//------------------------------// // Chapter 3: Hypnotic Effect // Story: Love Anchor // by Pia-chan //------------------------------// Chapter 3: Hypnotic Effect “Sweetie Belle, just what in Celestia’s name was that?” Rarity exclaimed, furious, as she slammed the door shut behind her. “Oh, so you finally decided to speak with me after giving me the silent treatment during our way here…” Sweetie Belle replied nonchalantly. "You should be happy I'm even talking to you," Rarity said, her front legs crossed, "Even if it's only because you're my sister. Now, do you want to get anything off your chest?" "I don't know what you're talking about!" Sweetie Belle said, looking away from her sister, whose patience was wearing very thin by now. "Well! If you aren't planning to apologize or explain yourself, then I suppose there's nothing more to say!" Rarity raised her nose into the air and sniffed, "But now I know not to trust my sister again." And then she turned and walked away to her studio, not looking at her sister. “Trust me? When have you ever trusted me? I should be the disappointed one, I mean, you had something that important and didn’t think it was necessary to tell me, your own sister!” Sweetie Belle countered with an annoyed voice. Rarity stopped right in her tracks and turned to face her little sister, approaching her with a clear frown on her face. “Excuse me, just what are we talking about here?” Questioned Rarity, her nose practically glued to her little sister’s. “That’s exactly what I’d like to know.” Sweetie Belle fired back, bearing the same stern expression as her sister. Rarity stopped before she left the room and sighed, deciding to give it one last chance, "I don't suppose you want to at least explain why you were trying to complicate things with Spike? Did you even think about what it would do to him?" She turned to face her sister again. Sweetie Belle grinned in a decidedly mischievous manner, "I bet Spike's the most important thing to you right now, isn't he?" Her grin quickly turned to a smug smile as Rarity shot her an angry glare. Her remark had definitely hit the target dead on. “Excuse me? Of course not! I mean I’m obviously worried about, well you know, hurting his feelings. There is something that you should know, it is something complicated… but maybe it is time for you to know. After all you are almost old enough…” Rarity tried to avoid Sweetie Belle’s gaze, blushing a little bit. Sweetie Belle was surprised by the sudden reversal of the mood, staring back with eyes wide open and a severe case of anxiety, waiting for her older sister to say something about her relationship with the dragon. Perhaps she would even confess that she liked him. “Come on Rarity, you know you can trust me!” Sweetie Belle encouraged her sister, her big green eyes beaming with anticipation. Rarity shut her own, a faint trace of the blush still visible under her white cheeks. “Fine… but what I’m about to tell you is only for you and you only. It is not something that I want all Ponyville to hear about, understood? This also applies to your friends.” Rarity said, her tone deadly serious, and then silently waited for Sweetie Belle's response. “Of course silly, and since you are finally trusting me then you have my word, Pinkie Promise!” claimed the small pony while going through the motions and finally placing one her hooves in her eye, punctuating it with a loud “Ow!”. “All right.” Taking a deep breath, the unicorn with the perfectly stylized mane continued “Spike confessed to me that about… umm… 3 years ago? Do you remember when Ponyville was almost destroyed by a gigantic dragon?” “Of course I do, everyone else does. Everyone knows he did it, too… but what does that have to do with his confession?” The little pony’s eyes where blazing with curiosity her small body unable to contain all of her excitement. “Well, you know… he was… he had… he sort of has a crush on me…” Said Rarity, avoiding her sister’s eyes. “Now do you understand why I was so hesitant to tell you and why it’s a delicate matter?” Sweetie Belle was astonished at what she had just heard. All of the jokes she had been hearing about Spike and her sister started to make a lot of sense, but this raised other, more important questions, how had everyone found out, had Rarity told them too? "That’s impossible, she would never do that." she thought. Noticing the confusion reflected on her little sister's face, Rarity inquired: "What’s the problem, Sweetie Belle? This wasn't really a well-kept secret; as a matter of fact, somebody else already knew." “But how did he say it? And what did you tell him?” “What did you expected me to say?” Rarity’s cheeks started to glow hot red as she abruptly added “Anyway, that’s beside the point, the reason I’m telling you this is because that your attitude back at the Library could have hurt Spike’s feelings. Now, I understand that you weren’t aware of this but from now I expect you to be more polite and cautious.” “But what about your feelings Rarity?” asked the little pony, concern dripping from her tone. Rarity looked back at her sister with a confused look on her eyes. “M-my feelings? W-w-what are you talking about Sweetie Belle… we are not talking about that.” After she recovered from the shock she continued “Anyhow, to me Spike is… he is… a great friend. And I would hate to lose his friendship because a misunderstanding caused by your recklessness!” Nevertheless, her eyes never met those of her sister. “Misunderstanding? I’m sorry to ask but, what misunderstanding are we talking about? We both know you like him back and I sincerely can’t see the probl-“ Sweetie Belle was interrupted by Rarity, who by now seemed to be quite shaken and extremely nervous. “What did you just say? I never said that… umm… that I have feelings for him, where did you get that ludicrous idea?” Cried the purple maned unicorn. “Nopony, it doesn’t take a genius to realize your have feelings for our dear dragon” Sweetie Belle replied with a frank and natural tone, not the best idea if she wanted to calm down her sister. Rarity’s response was composed of a stuttered series of incoherent words and sounds and it took a couple of minutes before she was finally able to articulate something that made sense. “Pl-eeeease Sweetie Belle, I have no idea what you are talking about. As I just told you I lov… like Spike as a friend, that’s all there is to it. Now, if you excuse me, I need to do some chores before lunch.” Rarity turned around and left to her room, not giving Sweetie Belle a chance to say another word. Resigned, Sweetie returned to her room with one of the books Twilight had lent her. “Well I just can’t seem to understand anything. Let’s see if these romantic novels have any clues.” Sweetie Belle opened a book with her magic and lying on her bed, started reading. Twilight kept knocking on the door to Spike’s room, it wasn’t normal for the drake to sleep in, especially considering it was already 10 AM on a Sunday. He was usually quite diligent in his job as her number one assistant “Spike, I’m coming in.” warned the lavender mare while opening the door softly and carefully. What she saw inside left her perplexed. There, sleeping on a pile of gems, laid the dragon, almost as if he was hugging the precious stones. Goosebumps ran through Twilight’s body with the shady look Spike gave her when he opened his eyes. She stammered a lot and could only utter a weak “S-Spike, are you feeling well?” Spike remained motionless in the same position, hugging the jewels even tighter than before. Eyes still fixed on his big sister he snorted, some smoke coming out of his nostrils. Only then did he return to his usual and proper self. “Oh Twilight!” babbled the young drake after shaking his head and leaping away from the jewels that were improvised his bed, still quite embarrassed. “G-Good morning, I’ll get started on our breakfast right away. I’m sorry I overslept” Spike excused himself, while scratching his neck nervously. Twilight kept on looking at him, still looking confused and not knowing how to react to what she had just witnessed. Suddenly the sound of her hungry stomach broke the awkward silence, and forcing her to put her inquiries on hold, at least until breakfast. “Ok Spike…” was all that Twilight could say while leaving the room and heading downstairs to the kitchen. “Thanks Spike, this smells wonderful” said Twilight while she prepared herself to devour her pancakes, freshly prepared by the dragon that she almost considered a brother. “You are welcome” said Spike and added “I’m supposed to do that anyways.” He concluded in a humble way just as he took a pancake and engulfed it without even munching. After the breakfast took place, the interrogation, that was inevitable, started. “Spike about this morning…” Said Twilight in a comprehensive tone seeking to prevent Spike from running away from the situation “Is there anything you would like to tell me? Because being brutally honest, I found your behavior somewhat weird. Not to mention I had to enter your room to see why you weren’t answering.” “I knew you would ask” said the dragon apologetically “Honestly I don’t know myself. All I remember is waking up this morning in that position.” His voice now with a desperate edge to it as he continued “I don’t know what is happening to me Twilight, I’m scared” said the young drake, on the verge of breaking into tears. These last words softened Twilight’s heart. Trying to console her friend, while aiming to gain his trust, she got closer to him, embracing the dragon with one of her front legs. “You can trust me Spike. Maybe if you tell me what is happening I could help you out? Come on, tell your older sister.” She looked at Spike with a reassuring smile, trying to inspire the dragon to open his heart and tell her everything that was tormenting him. Her efforts were not for naught and Spike began telling her what was happening. He told her about his fear of being consumed by greed that would transform him in a monster. The strange feelings he felt for Rarity, love in one hand and the desire to possess her as the most important part of his hoard on the other. Twilight couldn’t help but worry about the fact that Spike considered Rarity as his most precious gem, to keep and treasure, but in the end as a gem. Spike tried to explain that he really loved Rarity, but deep inside felt the need to have her as his possession as soon as possible. “That is the reason I feel so irritable whenever she leaves. It angers me not being able to be with her all the time.” After one long sigh he continued “Do you believe you can find an answer to this problem? Or do you believe is better that I… leave Ponyville forever?” Spike added, his eyes betraying his sorrow and despair at the mere thought of having to leave his friends and family behind. “I don’t want to hear you say something like that ever again, Spike! This is your home and you have no reason to leave! We will find an answer to this problem. If you have been able to overcome this on your own until now, then you should be able to keep going until we do. I trust you and I believe that you are capable of solving this.” Twilight started patting his head, being a little bit brusque due to all the intense feelings coursing through her. “But I’m scared of destroying Ponyville again, or worse, hurting you… or Rarity, don’t you remember that I even kidnapped her?” “That’s true, but don’t forget that you were able to regain your senses and come back.” Twilight smiled playfully. “Rarity is always the first to tell that story whenever there’s a chance to.” Spike couldn’t avoid blushing. “That said, I’m happy you decided to trust me and told me about this, now we can start working on your problems and on finding a solution. And well, you know that even the Princess will be there for you if you need her.” “Please don’t get the Princess involved in this; she has many things to worry about…” “For crying out loud Spike, you are one of the heroes of Equestria, just remember how many times she had to place the fate of the kingdom in our hoofs, claws in your case, so don’t be silly. We will find a solution but for the time being I believe you need to relax a little bit. Although I would like to ask, how did you manage to return to your normal self that time? Maybe the key to all of this lays there.” If Spike was already red, this last statement made his face bright as a ripe tomato. The memory of what happened there and how Rarity got involved in all of that were the cause of his actual state. “Oh that, well you see” he stammered, for he felt a little bit embarrassed to explain how everything came to be. Fortunately for the dragon, Twilight decided to give everything a rest, as she felt that she had already attained enough information and didn’t think it would be wise to press the issue anymore. “You know what, Spike? Let’s just leave it at that for the time being. What is clear indeed is that some distraction will make you feel better. Also, do remember that you still have something to say to Rarity.” Twilight gave Spike a suggestive look, while floating a pair of saddlebags towards the dragon. “How about you go to the boutique and gently return these to their owners?.” Spike smiled excitedly and took the bags with his claws, pausing only to give his surrogate sister a strong and tight hug. “Thanks Twi, you are the best.” Twilight returned the affection for a minute and then nudged her assistant to the door, watching as Spike dashed out of the library to accomplish his new appointed task. “Rarity, there’s somepony at the door!” Sweetie Belle shouted, waking up her sleeping sister. “Ungh… what time is it?” Rarity yawned, waking up slowly and removing her mask only to find that she had been hugging a pillow. A bit embarrassed, she pushed herself away and started rubbing her eyes. “Almost eleven” “Oh my, why didn’t you wake me up earlier, did you already have breakfast?” She inquired, sounding somewhat worried. “Yeah, don’t worry; I made something since I couldn’t find a way to get you up… you worked so hard last night that I figured you could use the extra sleep” The younger unicorn said. “Awww… that’s really sweet, but I do hope you didn’t burn anything.” Rarity commented, noticing that the bell was still chiming, a sure sign that her sister had yet to see who it was. “Would you be a dear and get that for me, Sweetie? I need some time to get ready.” Sweetie dashed downstairs, while her sister ran to the bathroom to shower at the speed of light; using her magic to dry and comb her mane to the perfect form it always has and then jumped after her little sister, intending to find out who had dared disturb them on a Sunday morning (actually, it was almost afternoon, but it would have been impossible to convince Rarity of that right now). While making her way down, the dressmaker heard a voice that made her heart jump with rejoice. It was Spike’s. Suddenly the idea of an unwelcomed visitor seemed to vanish away as Rarity hastened her steps to meet the dragon. “Oh Spike, Darling, what a pleasant surprise” the unicorn greeted the dragon with a warm smile. Spike started scratching his neck; somehow it felt as though she had been expecting him, what with her acting so cozy and warm. “Hey Rarity… I just came to return these saddlebags, it was the least I could do after you presented me with those gems yesterday.” Spike quickly explained himself while looking down at the ground, blushing and a bit embarrassed. “Oh, you shouldn’t have Spikey-wikey” She took the saddlebags with her magic and set them aside. Spike tried to gather some courage for what he was about to say but with Sweetie Belle around this was proving to be quite a difficult feat. Thankfully, something completely unexpected saved him the trouble of having to rise up to the occasion, right after the awkward silence that took place after they had both said their greetings. “Oh my, look at the time, I believe we should get started on our lunch.” said Rarity while looking at the watch and then added just before Spike had a chance to speak “So um... how about you stay over, darling?” Spike was stunned by the sudden invitation, but he couldn’t ignore the also sudden blush that appeared on the cheeks of his beloved, the very mare who was, right now, looking at him expectantly, waiting for his answer. Spike staggered a little bit but realized that this was the perfect opportunity to do what he really had come to do. “O-of Course I would love to, though I wouldn’t want to impose…” “Don’t worry about it, Spike. Besides I can make you one of your favorite dishes, I have a couple of gems that I just know you’ll adore!” saying no more, Rarity headed into her study, just to reappear a couple of seconds later with a bunch of gems held in her magic grasp, accompanying her into the kitchen. “Lunch will be ready soon.” She added before disappearing from Spike’s and Sweetie Belle’s (who had remained discreetly silent) sight. And just like she promised, the table was soon set and ready. “Wow, Rarity, these look delicious, thank you!” Spike exclaimed upon seeing his plate, which was, obviously, the one with the gems. The treats were placed in a beautiful pattern that matched their colors and sizes, denoting great care and taste from the fashionista’s part. His chair was placed exactly opposite to Rarity’s, where they could both look at each other, while Sweetie Belle sat between them. During lunch, the dragon and the designer talked happily, while Sweetie Belle finished her lunch without even having a chance to take part in the conversation. They spoke about Canterlot, fashion trends and duties Spike had in the Library, which didn’t sound too appealing for the younger pony and gave almost no opportunities to add anything. She started to feel a little bit awkward since the other two had seemingly forgotten about her presence. They just talked, smiled and looked at each other. Hence, she had already finished her lunch while Spike and Rarity had barely touched theirs. Sweetie Belle asked for permission to leave, to which her sister consented paying no mind to what she was asked. Finding this to be the perfect opportunity to speak with Rarity, Spike mustered all the courage he could find in his body and got ready to ask about his new tuxedo. As soon as the unicorn finished talking about her new line of hats, he decided to speak his mind. “Um Rarity… changing the topic…” the dragon’s tone reflected extreme nervousness, so Rarity encouraged him to speak, curious as to just what could make the otherwise friendly and outgoing dragon to become so shy and timid. “Please tell me, darling, you have my whole attention” She smiled winking at him without letting the dragon leave her gaze. “Well you see… I wanted to ask you something… not really a favor, but more of a commission, so to speak.” “Whatever it is, I will be delighted to do it for you” Rarity interrupted him, sounding excited and blushing slightly when she noticed the awkward silence that had followed her outburst “I mean, you want some kind of suit, am I correct?” she followed her statement with a nervous giggle. “Oh, sure, that. Well, you know the Gala is getting awfully close and…” “The Gala, darling, but isn’t a couple of months away?” “Yes, yes, you are right but… well, you know I usually go to Canterlot on official business due to my job as Royal Envoy and such, and well…” Spike couldn’t find any more words or arguments to justify his request. He obviously couldn’t tell her the REAL reason, that he wanted it for the date he had planned to invite her to. The drake realized that, in hindsight, his plan was rather blunt; perhaps he could ask her out first and then ask for a suit? Unfortunately for him, he wasn’t ready to invite her out just yet. Rarity’s next move, however, rescued Spike from his current distress. “Of course, I understand darling, so what you really need is some kind of tuxedo, right? I noticed you have grown a lot these last months and the one you used the last gala probably doesn’t fit anymore, am I correct?” Rarity batted her eyelashes at him, clearly she wasn’t easily fooled. “That’s exactly it!” Spike said, beaming with satisfaction (in no small part due to the fact that she had noticed his last growth spurt). “Then, we have a deal Spike. Of course I will have to take measurements… would tomorrow be all right, say at about five or six?” “Sure, I’ll make sure to be here.” Spike beamed at her. One thing was for sure, he had lucked out on this one, either Rarity’s generous nature of maybe her fascination with the new challenge presented before her (or both) made the reason behind the drake’s request unimportant. Glad to have reached a satisfactory conclusion, they both continued with their lunches. In the meantime, Sweetie Belle had tried to read her novel but to no avail, she couldn’t stop thinking about what her sister and the dragon could be doing or talking about while she was gone. Sighing loudly, she closed the book and was about to take a nap when a bright new idea crossed her mind. Smiling mischievously, the small unicorn silently made her way towards the kitchen where Rarity and Spike were still going at their meals. She peeked through the door, making sure she could pass unnoticed. There they were, eating from their respective plates, not speaking at all. “At this rate it will take forever for these two to admit they have feelings for each other” the young unicorn sighed again. What she wanted was some action; a kiss would be a good start she thought. And it just happened that she had a plan. Spike finished his meal, making sure to savour the last gem as much as he could: it was delicious, not only because of its quality but because Rarity, of all ponies, had given it to him and that alone made it the best gem he had ever eaten. He smiled sheepishly at his own thoughts and then at the pure white unicorn before him. “Thanks for inviting me, Rarity, this was truly delicious.” “I’m glad you liked it and there is nothing to be grateful for dear. It was my pleasure” She smiled with a slight blush in her cheeks. “It’s amazing, you know, that besides being a talented designer, you are also a master chef” claimed the dragon, making the unicorn blush even more. “Um… thanks for the compliment Spike, but I believe you are exaggerating a little. Most of the flavor of those gems came from their own nature, not my ability to prepare them.” She concluded while fixing her mane and looking to another side with a timid smile. Spike, that looked at her while squinting shooting her with his best, most seductive smile, resting his head on his fist as he did so. “But you are the one who found them with your magic, and you are also the one who chose them, if not they would still be underground. The credit is still all yours.” To say Rarity was stunned would be an understatement, she had never seen or heard Spike act like that, and she had to admit it was extremely gallant. She liked what she was hearing, not because of her ego but because Spike was the one saying it. Meanwhile, Spike had no idea as to where that… that courage, that smoothness, that willingness to hit on Rarity so openly had come from. He felt more and more confident, he felt strong, so strong that he could even imagine himself asking his love out on date right there and then. If Rarity’s cheeks and the way her eyes were fixed on him were anything to go by, she would certainly say yes. A romantic melody seemed to play in the background, adding even more ambience to the already charged situation. Rarity found herself lost in Spike’s green eyes, she was at a loss of what to respond to his incessant (and quite charming, she had to admit) compliments. She felt her heart racing under her chest, making her feel as if she was floating among clouds. The background music beckoned her closer to him, luring her into a deep trance that slowly pushed her to… wait a second, background music? Rarity blinked the spell that had her now broken as her muddied brain struggled to comprehend what was going on. “Sweetie Belle!” She shouted, standing abruptly and looking at the door: standing there was her little sister, a terrified look on her face having just been caught in the act (so to speak). Spike was still trying to figure out what had happened. It was obvious that the music had come from none other than Sweetie Belle, the beauty of her voice certainly did her cutie mark justice, for she was not only able to sing with an amazing tone but also to compose melodies that had an hypnotic effect to them, or so it seemed to Spike. “I’m sorry sis, I was just… just passing by and felt like singing a tune that just came to me while I was reading. Oh, look at the time; I must be going now, bye and see you later!” Sweetie Belle made a quick escape, laughing nervously and locking herself in her own room as soon as she was out of sight. Facing an angry Rarity was something that she definitely did not want to do. “Come back here, Sweetie Belle, I’m not done with you!” shouted the fashionista. She was about to give chase when she remembered that she was not alone and that charging after a, arguably, defenseless foal was not very ladylike. “I’m sorry Spike, you know how she just…” “Don’t worry about it, everything is fine. She didn’t do anything wrong.” Spike acted nonchalantly, as if nothing had happened. “Oh, of course you would say that, being a gentledragon and all, but I’m afraid Sweetie Belle and I are going to be having another Sister to Sister conversation very soon…” Rarit thought frowning as she stared at the doorway where her sister had stood just seconds ago. Upstairs Sweetie Belle felt a chill running down her spine. “Anyways, I believe I should be leaving… Though I’ll help you clean up first.” “Oh, please Spike, there’s no need to worry yourself over this. You already did enough just by coming all the way here just to return our saddlebags…” “I insist” The dragon jumped from his seat and started to pick up the dishes. Rarity sighed, defeated, and proceeded to help him.