//------------------------------// // Rude Awakening // Story: Princess Spike // by Daelyx Len Auphydas //------------------------------// Spike groans as he slowly drifts out of oblivion, a thick shroud of lethargy hanging around his mind. He hasn't slept quite as well ever since Twilight's and his old home had been destroyed by Tirek and they'd had to move into the castle of friendship, but even by that standard he feels unusually tired this morning. Still, he can see that morning light was streaming in through the window, and so he reluctantly resolves to get up; He can't quite seem to recall what Twilight's plans are that day, but one didn't get a title like "Number one assistant" by lazing about all morning. Even if the events of the previous day are a hazy blur. Trying to rise up to his legs, Spike loses his balance almost immediately, falling forward onto his arms. Only, they weren't arms at all. H-huh? Spike blinks down at his hooves in consternation- Wait, hooves? The empty halls of the castle are momentarily filled with the echoing sound of Spike's screech of dismay and confusion, quickly summoning the attention of the premier occupant of the castle. Twilight herself had also slept in- Remarkably late, for such a schedule-oriented pony- but the sounds of her young dragon's dismay rouses her to full cognizance instantly, triggering a reflexive teleportation straight into his room. But there is no dragon waiting there for her, and instead standing in Spike's room is a pony she does not recognize- Even more startling, an Alicorn, with a purple coat and scales running down their back which makes them resemble a Kirin. Although, granted, Twilight had only ever read about such creatures in books. But the most noticeable attribute is the strange ponies mane and wings, a bright nuclear-green color and flowing like a wildfire in a windstorm. Having had her friends stolen from her numerous times to get some leverage over her, Twilight does not hesitate or mince words, instantly sealing all the doors and window of the room, and capturing the intruder in a protective bubble. There are no other Alicorns in Equestria that she is aware of, least of all ones that had any business intruding upon her closest family's bedroom. Taking up an aggressive stance, Twilight summons a combative spell to the tip of her horn, and only with those precautions complete did she take the time to address the intruder properly. "Who are you? What happened to Spike?" Twilight demands, narrowing her eyes suspiciously. "What are you, a changeling infiltrator? You should know that there aren't any Alicorns that look anything like you in Equestria." Even as she interrogates her hapless captive, her mind buzz's with other possibilities. Maybe they came from foreign lands, or even another timeline? Starlight's investigation of time magic had revealed that was at least a possibility. Or of course, they could have been yet another ancient threat or benefactor of Equestria. Only some of her attention was on the target in front of her, the rest of her mind searching through her endless reserves of knowledge to try and make some kind of guess as to who the stranger in front of her was and what their intentions may be. "No, Twilight! It's me! Spike!" The Alicorn protests desperately, banging on the walls of their magical prison. Twilight blinks, startled, and momentarily lets down her guard. The voice is exactly Spike's, but, there are various threats that could mimic that, as well... But as Twilight hesitates, her focus on the protective bubble weakens, and the horn of the Alicorn inside lights up with a green faerie fire. Both Twilight's and the strange ponies eyes widen in apparent surprise. Had she accidentally allowed the threat a chance to escape? Before she can reinforce her shield bubble once more, the flame from the horn burns out of control, eliciting a yelp of surprise from the pony it originated from, and the inside of the bubble fills with a neon green inferno. The inside of the protective magical carapace bursts with energy as it strains to contain the blast, stretching beyond its limits before shattering in an incandescent flash of purple and green light, the fireball inside unleashing in a wave like a nova. Twilight shields her face from the heat, coughing. Concern quickly fills her, overriding her defensive instincts- Whether the pony inside the bubble was Spike or not, she couldn't just let a pony burn to a crisp in front of her, even if they were intruding. Twilight quickly dashes into the fire and bats the flames away with her magic, before sucking the smoke into a small bubble and compressing it into a solid black marble. Much to Twilight's relief, the pony still seemed intact, in fact entirely unburnt by the inferno that had just raged in the room, coughing and sitting anxiously on the ground before looking up at Twilight with unmistakably familiar green eyes. "T-Twilight! What's going on?" Spike's voice wails out. "S-Spike? Is that really you?" Twilight asks, hesitantly, cautiously, slowly stepping closer. It was hard to believe, but somehow the mannerisms did seem familiar even if they were being projected through a totally different body shape. The green fire retreats, until it had died down to just the Alicorns mane and tail, dully glowing, now more like embers than a full-on flame. "I-I mean, I think so!" Spike states, feeling his unfamiliar body up and down with his claws... No, hooves. Well, they were sort of like claws, still... They had sharp points, even if they were mostly hoof shaped. Before the conversation could continue any farther, the final inhabitant of the castle strolls around the corner, roused by the commotion. A steaming mug of tea held securely in her levitation magic, Starlight yawns and blinks around the room, looking like she hadn't slept in a year from the bags under her eyes. "What's with all the commotion?" She asks, not yet having taken in the sight in front of her. But as she takes a sip from her tea, the scene finally clicks in her head, and she chokes on her tea, spitting it out. "Huh? Whuh? Huhwhuzzat?" Starlight stammers, falling onto her haunches. "I don't know, I just woke up this way!" Spike insists, hooves grasping at his horn. Twilight frowns and walks around him, inspecting him diligently before levitating a mirror over to him. "Here, you can stop pawing at yourself, just take a look." Twilight states, a deeply concerned look on her face as she settles in by his side. Spike stares into his new reflection, taking it all in. He didn't look quite like anypony he'd ever seen before; While he was unmistakably an Alicorn, with wings and horn both, the horn was almost buried in a blazing green mane that seemed to pulse and flicker like a flame. There were a number of traits that were still familiar despite the situation; An arrow-shaped tip to the end of his tail, wide and familiar green eyes, and even a pair of elongated canines he could observe when he opened his mouth. Spinning in a circle slowly to take a look at himself all over, he gets a good look at his flank and finds, somewhat to his surprise, a cutie mark- A bright green fireball highlighted against his purple fur. Finally, he sits down- standing felt rather clumsy, as unfamiliar as it was to him to stand on all fours like that. "How did this happen? Whats going on, Twilight?" Spike pleads with Twilight, giving her the pleading eyes he normally reserved for when he caught sight of a particularly juicy gemstone for sale. Twilight put a hoof to her head, trying to concentrate as she darts around him, trying to get a good look. "I-I don't know. What were you doing last night? Is there anything you can tell me?" Even as she asks that, the three of them- Starlight, Twilight, and of course the alicornified Spike- are teleported into the library as Twilight begins habitually digging through books in search of relevant reference material. "I-I don't know, I don't remember anything from yesterday!" Spike says, after a long pause. Twilight halts in her book searching for a long moment, looking back at Spike with a confused frown. "...That's, odd. I don't remember anything either. What about you, Starlight?" The lavender-coated mare simply shakes her head in negative. There is a long moment of silence as the three of them ponder the implications. But as the studious and proactive pony she was, Twilight finally comes up with a plan. "We'd better investigate if anything else is weird in the town, and see if anypony else remembers anything about last night. And Starlight, keep an eye out for anything strange with yourself, too... We don't know for sure if Spike will be the only one affected by whatever happened yesterday." Twilight states, authoritatively. She was perhaps less concerned than was warranted, if for no other reason than it seemed like a fantastic mystery to unravel, and if there was one thing that overjoys Twilight... It's discovering new things.