//------------------------------//
// Chapter 5 
// Story: Slumber Party 
// by CasualFanDontJudge 
//------------------------------//

"So, Greenie, why have you refused all of our invitations to jam out with us?" 

Spike ran a hand through his hair, trying to find a suitable answer to Rainbow Dash's probing question. Truth be told, he wasn't much of a fan of the type of music the Rainbooms typically played. Metal was more his style, and he'd even grown to appreciate orchestral music through his on and off again piano lessons, but girly pop was definitely not a regular feature on any of his playlists. He offered them a sheepish chuckle, "You girls are super great already! I would only bring you down if I played with you." 

More than a few skeptical glances were thrown his way, but he took solace in the fact that his answer had only been a half-truth. It was no lie that Spike felt a certain inadequacy when it came to his own musical abilities, especially compared to the literally magical skills of his friends. He was a self taught amateur when it came to the drums, and his piano playing skills were unrefined at best due to inconsistent practice. 

"I'm sure Octavia wouldn't mind helping with that though..." He thought, remembering how they met after school in the orchestra room. After the seven, she was one of his closest friends at CHS, right alongside Trixie and a few others. 

"Yeah, right, Greenie. I've heard you play the drums at school before; you're not half bad!" Rainbow Dash offered him a teasing grin, "It's okay if you just don't want to rock out with a bunch of girls; we're probably too cool for you anyway!" 

Twilight lightly squeezed the boy's shoulder, "You play beautifully on the piano, Spike. You're more than on par with any of us music-wise." 

Fluttershy nodded her head, "I agree; you're a natural with the keyboard, Spike!" The others vocalized their agreements with her assesment of the boy's piano playing skills, and his ego began to swell ever so slightly with the praise.

Spike rubbed the back of his neck, "Aw, thanks, guys." He slightly turned his head to meet Twilight's, "I try." But try as hard as he liked, he was unable to repress another blush from forming as he met Twilight's gaze. It didn't matter how long they had been like this at this point, her touch was like electricity. She returned with a bashful smile, also fielding more redness in her cheeks.

"Isn't it your turn now, Spike?" Applejack interjected, a slight edge in her tone.

"Right, yeah!" Spike noticed the uneasiness emanating from the farm girl; the predicament he was in was not lost on him despite the momentary diversion of thought. He really liked Applejack and the girl currently sitting on his lap - not to mention, Rarity - but his options were limited. "Just don't make it weird, dude." 

He looked around the room, trying to find something in the faces of his friends that would inspire his next move. Spike scratched his chin, barely noticing how tense Twilight felt against him; his thoughts drifted to the red and yellow haired girl sitting opposite of him on the carpet.

His mind went back to her cryptic remarks from earlier; the motivation behind her attire only served to deepen the mystery of the group's behavior toward him this night. 

"Is this a Pandora's box worth opening?" 

He coughed, "Say, Sunset. About Twilight's question from earlier - what was is it you said again? How you wore those clothes for...uh, me, I guess." Some of the color in the girl's face drained away as the adrenaline began rushing through her. The periphery of her vision blurred; her eyes locked onto the green haired boy as his mind grasped for a way to extract the truth from her. 
Spike returned a similarly focused gaze at her, "But...why? Why did you choose to wear, uh, that stuff for me?" The boy closed his eyes, finding the nerve to continue as the silence of the room inveloped him, "You said I appreciated it - I do. I think you - I think all of you are, uh, very...pretty. Y-you didn't need to dress up like this for me to notice that. Anyone with a working set of eyes could see how gorgeous you all are from a mile away." A few of the girls nervously shifted, others remained still, but all began to noticeably warm in the face as the boy continued, "I...I doubt you're doing this for my validation; it's no secret that, like, all of the guys at school would kill to score with you. So, why? Why invite me to this sleep over? The flirting? The touching? I just...I just want to know why." The boy's face tensed as he concluded his barrage of questions, but a sense of peace began to radiate through him. For better or worse, at least he would know the truth.

The silence remained. The world around the eight may as well have faded away into hazy realm of nonexistence, as no one could comprehend anything but the bare sensations of the room around them. No one wanted to break the silence; really, no one - least of all, Sunset - wanted to be the one to destroy the status quo. For all her planning, this was where the rubber met the road; so much potential for both joy and, to her sudden realization, destruction lay before her. 

Twilight turned her head toward Sunset, her glare screaming at Sunset to tell the truth, as it was coming out one way or another regardless of it if was on her terms or not. 

Sunset cast her gaze at the ground, a sense of resignation overcoming her. 

"I...Spike, we need to talk. All of us." 

Spike silently quirked an eyebrow at the girl, waiting for her to continue. 

Sunset audibly swallowed, "Listen, we - I, I did this because I wanted you to notice me, Spike. You're right, if I just wanted validation, I could find that with Flash or most of the other guys at Canterlot High, but that's not what this is about. I wanted you to notice me because I want you." Despite the emotionally charged atmosphere, she laughed, "It's a bit crude, but you can be a little dense, man. I wanted to make the signals as obvious as possible." A smile began to form on her lips, "That's about it, Spike. I really, really like you and I wanted you to notice that. I...can let the others speak for themselves. But, hey, it's fine if you don't reciprocate my feelings - I just want you to be happy, if that's with Applejack or some other girl - then you have my support." 

Time once more paused for Spike as his head simultaneously processed dozens of thoughts. In the haze, he was coming to realize that, on some level, Sunset's confession had been less of a revelation and more of a clarification of something he knew to be true already. He steadied himself, "I...wow. I don't know what to say to that, Sunset. You're awesome and you're super pretty and stuff! I-I think it would be cool if we started dating, I just don't..."

"It's okay, Spike. You don't need to say anything, not yet. This is a lot to take in. But, I think, in the interest of being open and honest about everything, I need to get something off my chest as well." Spike slowly turned to look at the girl currently pressed againt him, dreading what else might lay in store for him.

Twilight closed her eyes, "Sunset...Sunset isn't the only person with feelings for you. There's Applejack, obviously. But...I love you, Spike. More than a friend." She wanted to say more, but she stopped to wait for a response. When none was forthcoming from the boy she was straddling, she continued, "I don't know when this this came about exactly, Spike, but I do know that you're the most important man in my life besides my father and Shining Armor; you're easily one of the most loyal, beautiful people I know and I just...you just make me weak, Spike." 

Spike went numb. "Probably could have figured that one out, looking back at things." He slowly inhaled, "Y-yeah, me too, Twilight. You're..." He trailed off, lost in her eyes. "You're really something special, Twilight." 

"I guess if this is confession time, I-I got a few things to say too." All eyes focused on the rainbow-haired athelete who had taken to staring at the white draw strings attached to her shorts. "You're really cool, Spike. You're kind of a dork, but you're the cutest, coolest dork I know. I've never met a guy who's known me for as long as you have who actually respects me enough to not just treat me like another one of the guys. I...like that you can keep up with me, or at least try to, no matter what. But you make me feel...feel like a girl. What did Twilight say, you made her feel weak? Yeah, me too, Greenie." She finished, a note of her usual triumphant attitude returning as she met Spike with a steely gaze. 

Twilight sighed, knowing the avalanche had been started and there was nothing she could do about it. Her fate was in the hands of her assistant, and she would have to live with whatever he decided was best for him. 

Before Spike could acknowledge Dash's confession, another voice chimed in, "Y'know, it's kinda funny. I've always thought you were a cutie, Spike - ever since I met the other you." Fluttershy and Rarity silently nodded in agreement with their pink haired friend. "But since I've gotten to know you, you're one of the sweetest people I've ever met. I can always count on you to help me out, whether it's with baking or pranks or just life stuff, y'know? I don't know what this means to you, Spike, but you would make the most awesomest, amazingist boyfriend in the whole, wide world!"

Spike looked back and forth between the pair, struggling to find the right words to answer them, "Gosh, I'm flattered, Pinkie, Rainbow Dash. I think any guy would be lucky to call you their girlfriends." The boy was laboring to make sense of everything he was hearing, but none of it was adding up. This was either the cruelest prank his friends had ever played on him, or this was the longest and most vivid dream of his life. 

"Oh, well, I suppose it's my turn. You've always been such an extraordinary gentleman with us, Spike." Twilight cringed as the fashionista began her part in the group confession as it was no secret to anyone with a pulse that Spike was deeply enthralled with her. It was an obsession Twilight attributed more to physical attraction than anything else, but an obsession - and obstacle - it remained. 

"I've always thought you were quite adorable, Spike. And your little crush on me is just the most endearing thing I've ever seen!" Spike's cheeks burned a shade of red that seemed almost inhuman, "Rarity too? How is this even possible!?" 

"You're quite the helpful assistant, Spike." 

"More like 'pack mule' to you, Rarity." Applejack noted, cracking a grin at her own jest while the others silently giggled.

Rarity glared at the farmgirl before rolling her eyes and continuing, "But it's your heart I find to be your best quality, honestly! Really, any girl would be lucky to call you their significant other." The girl made no attempt to enhance her words with any flirtatious gestures or innuendo, opting to allow them and a small smile to speak for themselves. 

Spike's mind swirled as it processed everything up to this point. This was an unbelievable situation turned reality - as best he could tell, he was not dreaming or under the influence of any mind-altering substance - a reality that included most of his closest friends being madly in love with him. What was there even to say to that? He looked around the room, eyes wide, trying to find cameras or other recording devices that would let him on the joke. None could be found. 

His jaw slacked.

Several concerned expressions were directed at him, the group now collectively questioning their sudden decision to drop all of their confessions onto him in such an abrupt manner. 

Words filtered through his mind in an incoherent jumble of sentences and nonsensical wordage. But before he could even settle on something to vocalize, another voice broke through the mental fog. 

"I...I have something to say." 

Through the haze, Spike could recognize the voice of Fluttershy; on instinct, he found the will to concentrate on her words, even despite the slight pain that came with focusing on anything in particular.

Fluttershy was slow to speak, but an intensity radiated off of her as she gathered the courage to continue through clenched fists and rapid breaths, "You're...the kindest boy I've ever met, Spike. You're always there to help me when no one else can, whether it's with the shelter or homework or whatever!" She paused, steeling herself some more, "And you've always been so gentle and encouraging with me, no matter what!" 
She sat up straight, all the strain in her face appearing to fade, "I'll never forget that time at the mall, when those guys w-w-were yelling those awful things at me, and y-you stood up for me against all those...jerks! Even though we had only known each other for a little while back then, you were there for me when no one else was around! I...I love you, Spike." Silence fell as the girl finished. Fluttershy was flooded with relief, and she only hoped that Spike would be able to find it within himself to return her feelings. 

"Oh, Fluttershy..." Spike let out, recalling the incident in question. He frowned at the memory of what those idiots had said, "I...I was just doing what any friend should do." 

"It was pretty hot." 

Spike squinted in Dash's direction, "Thanks." 

He returned his gaze to Fluttershy, "And..." He knew what words wanted to come out, but he wasn't sure if they should come out. 

"Ah, what the heck. It's the truth, right?"

"I...I love you, too."

Fluttershy's face almost immediately lit up with joy as she struggled to contain herself from leaping across the room to be with her junior. However, almost as quickly as she ignited with utter bliss, the girl was brought down by the palpable feeling of devastation that echoed across the room.

Most of all, Twilight struggled to contain the tears that were on the verge of spilling out as she buried her face into Spike's shoulder. 

Noticing the fallen faces of his friends and the barely controlled quivering of the girl on his lap, the boy was quick to expand on his feelings about the preceding events, "W-w-wait a second, girls! If I didn't make it clear before, let me do it now. I...I love all of you. You're the most beautiful, awesome group of girls I have the privilege of calling my friends! I love all of you the same way you, uh, love me - I think." 

Twilight's quivering came to a quiet and steady halt as everyone else took in the news to mixed reactions. Fluttershy remained hopeful, but the others appeared confused and even somewhat apprehensive, save for Sunset - who now seemed to be taking everything in stride. 

Twilight brought her face to meet Spike's, but the two could only exchange more timid smiles with one another as they peered into each other's eyes. The silent communication was all that was needed to convey what could barely be expressed with words to begin with. 

No one was entirely sure how to proceed, but Rainbow Dash couldn't stand for another minute of the silence, "So, um, apparently we're all down bad for, uh, Spike. Isn't that, uh, kinda funny?" She forced a few short laughs out, "I g-guess this means he has to decide which one of us is going to be his girlfriend now, right?" 

"Spike doesn't have to do anything he doesn't want to, Rainbow Dash." Twilight firmly addressed the athlete, not out of malice for her or any of her other friends, but to reassure her assistant of his agency in the matter.

"The least we can do is respect Spike's wishes, even if those wishes have nothing to do with any of us. And this has all been rather sudden, so it might be best to give Spike some time to think about everything before demanding a decision out of him." 

"I agree." Applejack broke her silence, agreeing with Rarity's affirmation of Spike's role in the decision making process. It wouldn't have been fair to expect anything otherwise from him. 

Pinkie cautiously stepped into the fray, "Okay, so it would be totally uncool and not awesome to force Spike to make a decision about anything he doesn't want to, but this is all super weird! We just got done confessing our love to the same boy in the past hour at a sleepover! We can't just ignore everything that's just happened and go back to eating pizza and playing games like nothing happened!" 

"You're right, Pinkie. There's no going back after this; things have changed." Twilight mulled over what to do next, but nothing came to mind. An awkward silence threatened to overtake the room as everyone sat. No one was sure what the appropriate next step should be; this was alien territory for the group of teens. 

Sunset stood up and tentatively began, "I, uh, have a few ideas." She raised an arm to stop Twilight from responding, "No, please. I think this is important." The girl steadied herself in the center of the living room for a moment, "So, like Pinkie was saying, this whole situation is a bit weird. But let's not make it weirder by beating around the bush. Rainbow Dash is right, we're all down pretty bad for green boy." 

"Hey!" 

Sunset sighed, "You lost the right to complain about any green themed nickname after responding to 'Greenie' without a complaint for the millionth time." 

"She's right." Twilight gently informed him with a whisper, much to his dismay. Twilight could barely restrain herself from leaning in to kiss the adorable little pout he was nursing in response to the teasing. 

"Anyway, to get to the point, I think I have a  solution to the mess we've found ourselves in. It's heartbreak free, too!" Sunset took a moment to let her words sink in, hoping to breathe life into a room that sorely needed it. 

Applejack crossed her arms in frustration, "Get on with it, girl!" 

"Yeah, the suspense is killing me!" Pinkie huffed out, eager to hear Sunset's plan. 

"Okay, okay! Patience, girls! It's really not that complicated, if a bit on the unorthodox side...I think we should form a herd!" 

Applejack nearly choked on her own spit, "A-A what?!" 

"You want us to...buy a bunch of horses?" A confused Fluttershy asked, unsure of what herds had to do with their current predicament. 

Sunset chuckled, "No, no, that's not what I meant. You see, herding carries a different connotation - some of the time - in Equestria than it does here. All though not as common these days as it was even just several generations ago, ponies have practiced the tradition of herding for centuries now! The mare-to-stallion ratio has always been heavily skewed toward the mares, which means Equestria has always had a surplus of mares left out of the breeding population. For the sake of promoting genetic diversity and societal cohesion, it became commonplace for multiple mares to share the same mate. That's herding in a nutshell." 

Everyone's face burned at Sunset's explanation, but one in particular appeared especially offended at the notion of sharing a lover as a collective unit. 

"T-that is so gross, Sunset! Why would you even suggest that!?" Twilight shouted from across the room, a mix of anger and frustration evident in her tone. 

Sunset immediately jumped to counter her friend, "How is it gross? I'll have you know, my grandmother was just one mare out of five in my grandfather's herd! They couldn't have been happier!" 

"So your great idea to fix everything is polygyny, really?! What the hell is wrong with you!?" 

"Ow! Twilight, calm down." Spike reached for his right ear to soothe the pain Twilight's increasingly loud shrieks were causing.

"I'm sorry, Spike, but this is completely inappropiate. I can't be the only person here who see's a problem with starting some crazy sex cult! This is insane!"

Sunset's eyes widened with outrage and shock at the accusations being levied against her, "Sex cult?! What are you talking about, Twilight? A herd only works when everyone involved wants to be there on their own accord. And what other viable options are there? Assuming Spike wants to date any of us, it's pretty clear most of us are going to lose out no matter who he picks! What's the harm in suggesting it? What if some of us were actually open to it? In a perfect world, this is the best option for maximizing everyone's happiness." 
Twilight was lost for words as her mind frantically considered the myriad of ways such an arrangment could end in total disaster for all parties involved. There were so many things wrong with the proposal that her mind struggled to find a coherent way of articulating even half of them! 

"Would it really be that bad, Twilight?" Rarity questioned, trying to cool things down before someone did or said something they truly regretted. She was unsure of the proposal herself, but there was nothing unusually outrageous about it given their already extraordinarily unusual lives.

"I-I kind of agree with S-Sunset, it w-wouldn't hurt to try, if e-everyone was okay with it, that is!" Fluttershy forced out, much to the surprise of everyone else. 
"Fluttershy? Rarity? You're not telling me you're okay with this, are you!?" Twilight's voice resounded with incredulity at her friends' tacit affirmation of the proposal's validity.

"I think it would be awesome! We'd all be one big, happy family!" Pinkie's voice rang out, unashamedly approving of the potential unorthodox relationship. 

"Pinkie..." Twilight stopped, a headache beginning to form. 

"I, uh, have something to say." The normally boisterous athlete of the group began, sounding as reserved as she ever had, "This would be super weird, no question." 

Twilight's face lit with joy at the prospect of another dissenter among their ranks, but Rainbow Dash continued before she could join her in a mutual group tongue-lashing.

"But I know something else and it's this: I really, really love Greenie. And all of you love him too. It kind of sucks that I'd have to split my time with him six ways, but if it meant everyone got to be happy in their own way, I could deal with it. It's weird, but we are weird. Hope I'm not breaking any news here, but nothing about our lives has been normal since Sunset stepped through that portal." The girl leaned back into the couch, resting her case.

"I'm astonished that any of you would even consider this...this farce of a solution." Twilight's voice softened, her will to protest slowly being sapped with every passing minute. A look of hope etched itself onto her face as she remembered that there was one more party in their group she could depend on to reprove their friends for the outrageous suggestion, "Applejack, surely you see the problems that would come with...sharing Spike, right?" Desperation exuded from the girl, who was now unconsciously clinging onto Spike with a vice-like grip.

Applejack sat motionlessly with a blank look on her face. Gradually, her cool facade began to break, as her face trembled and her voice shook, "I-I'm sorry, Twilight. If it means being with Spike, I'd do anything. Even...share him." 

Twilight's hopes had been crushed. By this point, she was convinced that her friends were all suffering from a temporary bout of madness, but her spirit was broken. 

"Twilight, I just want everyone to be happy. So, I'm not going to be a part of anything that I know will hurt you, including being with Spike. If that's what you really want, when we wake up tomorrow, it'll be like nothing ever happened. We'll all forget about this night." She stopped, taking a moment to compose herself, pain evident on her face, "But...I just want to know, what's really stopping you from joining us?" 

Twilight stared at the dark purple fabric of Spike's undershirt for a few moments, a look of resignation emerging on her face. She sighed, finally leaving her assistant's lap as she made to stand. The girl stood opposite of Sunset, but no words were exchanged. She looked around at her friends, who watched with trepidation at what she would say. 

"I...I think there are a whole host of logistical, ethical, and personal issues that would likely come with the arrangement you're proposing, Sunset. But...these are all issues I could mostly overlook; issues that we could probably overcome without too much headache. I would be lying if I said those were the real reasons I don't feel comfortable joining a herd with you guys, I...I just don't want to lose Spike. I just...I just don't want to fade into the background noise of his life. You're all already super amazing and talented as is, but I know if even one of you guys started dating Spike, you'd be the new center of his world. And for good reason! All of you are so pretty and talented and awesome! And I'm just...me." 

"Twilight, that would never happen."

Spike rose from his spot on the carpet, determination etched in his face. Twilight was taken aback at her assistant's sudden movement; she never made much of his height - the boy had a habit of slouching, after all - but moments like these reminded her of how imposing a figure he could be when he wanted to. His posture was straight, and his voice tempered with confident conviction as he peered directly into her eyes. 

"The sun would go out before I ever forgot about you, Twilight. Doesn't matter if you're my girlfriend or not; I owe a debt of gratitude to you and your family I could never repay. Your parents practically raised me - they fed me, clothed me, and gave me whatever I asked of them! Even Shining always made time for me! But you, Twilight, are my best friend. You're the most beautiful, intelligent person I've ever met! Through thick or thin, I could always count on you to be by my side. Whether it was encouragement, emotional support, homework, or even a plain old reality check - you've always been there, even when I was acting like a total asshole who didn't deserve your help or love. We've spent practically our entire lives together! Birthdays, play dates, movies, experiments, dances, good days, bad days, demon possesions - we've been through it all...together." 

Twilight felt like crawling into a hole at the memory of the Friendship Games, but Spike was right - they had always been there for each other, even in their more...difficult moments.

"There's no one else on this planet I care about more than you, Twilight. And that will never change, ever. No matter what - herd or not." Spike stopped, never breaking eye contact with Twilight - who seemed on the verge of bursting into tears. A streak of self-consciousness finally hit the boy as he became acutely aware of the fact that he had just dumped his most intimate feelings about his closest friend in front of six others in the most dramatic way possible. 

"Oh, S-Spike, I-I love you; I love you so much..." A trembling Twilight spoke as the tears broke through. Any embarrassment Spike felt vanished as he marched forward, ready to comfort his oldest friend with an embrace. As soon as her assistant wrapped his arms around her, Twilight melted into his embrace, leaning into him as she quietly sobbed tears of joy into his neck.

"I, um, hate to interrupt the moment, but...I think we should just drop my idea." Sunset interjected, reminding the hugging couple of the other people in the room. "It's obvious you two belong with each other, and I think everyone can see that." No one questioned her, but there was an air of sadness in the room. Sunset's pronouncement was obviously true, but the heartache remained for the other six. Sunset clenched her fists, determined not to show any of the hurt she was feeling for the sake of her friends, "Y-you two deserve each other, n-no doubt about it. I-I p-promise to never bring this up ever again; I-I'm sorry, Twilight." Try as hard as she might, Sunset couldn't help several tears from wetting her cheeks. Rarity was quick to embrace her friend in a hug, gently guiding her to the couch to sit.

Spike thought to say something to the heartbroken girl; thought to say something to all of the girls whose hearts he had apparently captured, but Twilight separated from him to address the crowd before anything could leave his mouth. 

"Sunset, wait - please, don't cry. You're...you're right. All of you. You were all right. If there's a way for all of us to be happy, I'll...I'll do it. I don't want a relationship to destroy all of our friendships. I want all of us to thrive, to be happy - if that's with Spike, then so be it." 

"Twilight, I...I don't know what to say. Thank you, thank you!" Sunset leaped from her spot on the couch to hug her friend, happiness radiating off her like heat from her namesake. 

"Twilight, you're the best friend ever!" Rainbow Dash screamed, rushing over to join their hugging session. 

"You could say that again!" Pinkie jumped into the impromptu group hug, giggling as she wrapped her arms around Twilight and Dash. 

"Ah, what the heck. I guess sharing a boyfriend can't be too bad." Applejack spoke to Fluttershy, grinning as the girl turned away to hide her blushing face. 

"I-I guess not." 

"C'mon, Shy - may as well join 'em!" 

Both headed toward the group hug, but Rarity remained seated. Much had transpired within the past hour, so there was much to process. There was nothing about the proposed setup that particularly offended her romantic or moral sensibilities, and it seemed like everyone else had already made peace with the idea of sharing Spike - so why not give it a try? She smiled, already moving to complete the group hug, but something struck her as she closed in on Rainbow Dash and Sunset. It was Spike. 

Spike. The one who had the ultimate say in this "herd" business. Nothing he had said to Twilight indicated his approval to go ahead with the idea. She stopped dead in her tracks, her heart racing as she detected his silent form watching the group hug from afar. 

She coughed. 

Spike's head tilted in her direction, but the others remained lost in their own world, oblivious to the pressing issue that was now literally facing them. 

She coughed again.

At once, her friends began to disengage with one another. They immediately took notice of their cross-armed friend's mild annoyance, much to their confusion. Fluttershy frowned, "Rarity, what's the matter?" 

"Yeah, dude. You're kind of killing the mood." 

"I can't believe I have to remind any of you of this, but I don't recall Spike ever giving his consent to proceed with this herd of yours! Isn't that right, Spike?" Rarity finished, hoping the boy would regain his agency before being swept up in the ecstasy and chaos of the moment. 

"R-right - Rarity's right! Spike, if this isn't something you feel comfortable with, don't feel obliged to do it for our sake. Whatever you decide, I promise to support you. Always." Twilight walked a few feet closer to Spike, a reassuring smile on her face as she stopped at an arm's length away from him. 

Sunset fell in a foot or so behind Twilight, to her right, and met the boy's emerald eyes with her cyan-colored ones, "What I said earlier still stands, Spike. If this isn't something you want to do, no hard feelings." 

The other five slowly but steadily made their way to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the pair. No words were spoken, but none were needed. The message was clear: the decision was in his hands now. 

Spike looked over the row of friends that had assembled before him as his heart pounded away with a vengeance.

"This is unreal." 

He ran a hand through his green locks, "No way this is real. Like, no way." He turned to stare through the window into the pitch-black night, "I don't get this. I've never even had a serious girlfriend before, now I'm supposed to have seven? At the same time?!" 

Spike closed his eyes, "Assuming this is real, I'd...have my work cut out for me. I bet it's hard enough having a single girlfriend, but seven's a whole 'nother ball game."

The girls exchanged mildly concerned gazes with one another while Spike remained lost in thought. 

Twilight's lips began to part, but before the air could leave her lungs to vocalize anything more than a syllable the silence was sooner pierced by her assistant. 

"I...I don't know how any of this happened, really. And I'm still not convinced this isn't some really long dream or something like that. But...if this is real, I think I'd be a pretty big idiot to turn down seven of the most stunning girls in the world. I can't promise I'll be the greatest boyfriend in the world, but...I'll give it my best shot." 

Before the boy could even react, he found himself being assailed by several warm and very soft bodies rushing to embrace him. Twilight and Sunset mutually buried themselves in his chest; Pinkie and Applejack took his right and left arms respectively; Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy made their way to his back to loop their arms around his neck, and Rarity managed her way into a space between Pinkie and Twilight. 

Spike did his best contortionist act to embrace what were now his girlfriends, and his eyes were drawn to the indigo-haired girl currently beaming into his chest, "Gosh, Twilight. For someone who was just talking about how terrible of an idea this was, you sure do seem pretty enthusiastic about it!" 

Twilight's eyes darted to meet his, daring him to continue. 

Spike recoiled, "I'll shut up." 

Twilight giggled, happy to bury herself into his chest once more.

"Y'know, Greenie - now that you're my boyfriend, I'm gonna expect for you to be my biggest cheerleader at all of my games." 

"S-sure thing, Dash. Not sure if competing with Scootaloo is gonna workout the best for me though..." 

"She'll get over it." Rainbow Dash mumbled into his shoulder, basking in the tranquility of the moment with her eyes closed.
Spike nearly moaned as Rarity ran a hand through his messy mop of green hair; the heavenly feeling only being enhanced by the feminine fragrances and touches currently surrounding him. 

"R-Rarity!" 

"Have I ever told you how pretty your hair is?" 

"Pretty?" 

Applejack silently chuckled, "You're the prettiest boy I've ever met, Spike!" 

"Very true, Applejack. But we still haven't confirmed if he's hairless underneath this shirt, have we?" Spike's breath hitched as Pinkie Pie's hand began to travel along his torso, feeling the contour of his chest through the thin fabric of the nightshirt.

Sunset sighed as she batted away Pinkie's hand and moved to gently separate herself from the pile of bodies. She laughed, "Okay, that was nice, but eight-person hugs were not meant to go on for longer than a few seconds!" 
One by one, the girls detached themselves from Spike. Except for Fluttershy - she remained clung to him; the girl appeared to be in nirvana as she nuzzled her face even deeper into his shoulder from behind, clearly content with the way everything had worked out. 

"Hey, Fluttershy, you-"

"Shhh." 

"I, uh-"

"Let me enjoy this for a little while longer."

Spike grinned, "Well, I guess there are worse things to put up with than a cute girl hanging off your back." 

The girls buzzed with excitement as the room came to life once more. The tension, the anxiety - it had all faded away as the reality of their new lives settled in. Pinkie Pie buzzed across the entire living room in excitement while Rarity sat back down to watch Applejack and Rainbow Dash fight over what instruments they were going to use for their video game.

Sunset wrapped an arm around Twilight's shoulder, leaning in slightly to place their foreheads together, "Thank you, Twilight. This wouldn't have been possible without you." 

Twilight's face reddened, but she made no attempt to pull away from the older girl, "I still have my doubts, but I'm hoping for the best. I think, after all we've been through, we can find a way to make this work." 

The two rested their heads together for a few more moments before Twilight broke away from the contact. She left Sunset with a smile as she made her way to join Spike, along with Fluttershy, on the couch. The two girls cuddled into either side of him, enjoying his presence and warmth. 

"Wow, this is great! What did I do to deserve this?" He chuckled as he wrapped his arms around both girls to bring them closer into his frame. There was no denying how amazing their bodies felt against his, and there was nothing left holding him back from fully embracing it. His fingertips traced Twilight's back where it had been left exposed by her tanktop, reveling in the feeling of her smooth, warm skin against his while his left hand palmed Fluttershy's silky soft hair as she hummed into his chest. 

"Yeah, this was definitely the right call."