//------------------------------//
// Through the Looking Glass 
// Story: The Heartbreaker and the Cultivator 
// by XSomeGuyX 
//------------------------------//


Through the Looking Glass

 

“Spike? Spike!” Twilight called out to her assistant, who was apparently in hurry to leave the library. “Are you going over to Rarity’s again?”
               
 “Yeah! I’ll be back later!” the dragon said as he ran through the doorway at full speed.
                
The unicorn did not try to impede him in any way, though she had to make a conscious effort not to. This had been the scenario ever since the night he had spent with Rarity more than a week ago. He seemed to speed through his chores and responsibilities faster and faster to spend the most time he could with Rarity. With every day that passed, it seemed to break Twilight’s heart more and more, taking this as a sign of Rarity imminent victory.
                
Had she been her more analytical self and less emotional, she would have surely grown suspicious of his unusual behavior. Spike had been slowly turned into the wicked seductress queen’s thrall. He said little more than he was instructed to by the Changeling Queen, he did as little as possible to avoid any suspicion and, moreover, he all but ignored the other two mares in the love rectangle that he had found himself wrapped up in. His mind was his own prison that he could not from escape.
                
The charmed dragon reached the boutique—the headquarters that Chrysalis had commandeered after taking over Rarity’s persona. She found it convenient, with very few disturbances as many of the seamstress’s friends left her alone while she was busy with her work. Though there were a few of Rarity’s clients that had commissioned dresses before the devilish Queen had trapped her away, she simply turned them away at the door. However, these ponies demanding their dresses sparked a new idea in the wicked Changeling’s mind.
                
“So… the Grand Galloping Gala approaches, does it?” Chrysalis said to a mostly empty room save  the cocooned unicorn. “A time at which all the elite and royalty of Equestria gather together, including the Princess from the Crystal Kingdom and her little guard captain loverboy. The very two that prevented my takeover of Canterlot and sent me and my subjects to outlands in a humiliating defeat. This is an opportunity I can’t afford to miss, a chance to wipe out the biggest obstacles to my new conquest. But how can I gain access to the event without drawing too much attention…?”
                
Rarity stared at the two gifts she never managed to give Spike. The Changeling Queen examined the unicorn’s gaze before she had a chance to break her stare. She carefully followed the path of Rarity’s vision to find two small boxes. The first contained only a highly decorated suit that she showed no interest in, throwing it among all the other projects the dress maker had been working on. As she opened the second, smaller box, the shapeshifting bug could not help but give an evil grin and a matching laugh.
                
“You’ve done so much of the hoofwork for me, I can’t help but feel utterly grateful for it all,” Chrysalis laughed. “First you provide me a loyal draconic slave, and now… now you hand me the tickets to my destiny. I must thank you somehow…”
                
“Chrysalis. I have returned…” the young dragon said, his voice very devoid of emotion.
                
As she continued to plot and plan, Chrysalis kept Rarity well-fed and hydrated, if only to prolong her torturous treatment. Over the days that the Queen had taken on her image and life, the unicorn had seen her little “Spikey-Wikey” fall further and further under the Changeling Queen’s control. The first few days had been terrifyingly familiar to her. She commanded him to go and do chores, as well as anything she found too troublesome for her to do herself. When he showed signs of resistance to her magic, she merely charmed the dragon with even stronger versions of it. 
                
Rarity had realized long ago that Spike had been serving as somewhat of a butler as a way to please her. She had gone along with it because he was, in all honesty, a very useful little assistant to have around. Though she had not wanted to admit it to herself, her thoughts only lead there and she had little to do in her captivity besides think. It was a despicable thing to admit about herself, but she could only find truth in it. Just as Chrysalis used her mind-heart controlling magic, she used his love for her as a means of control. Yet another similarity to Chrysalis, when Spike had doubts or felt like refusing her, she would just turn up her charm. She justified her actions by convincing herself that he really wanted to do it for her of his own will, but in truth, she had been little better than Chrysalis. Even though she would not say she appreciated her imprisonment, it definitely helped open her eyes to her own actions, as she was now able to somewhat observe a reflection of them in the Changeling’s.
                
However, as the days progressed, Chrysalis grew rigorously demanding of the dragon as she began to iron out the last of his will. Though Rarity admitted to herself that she manipulated the dragon’s feelings, what Chrysalis was doing outright sickened the seamstress. She did not show any consideration of his feelings or wants. She was taking away all his freedoms so he could to serve her own will and only hers. Rarity watched as the dragon slowly lost all autonomy and waited on her word for any new action. She treated him no better than a tool that she would leave lying around until it was needed once more.
                
“AH! Yes, I have just the thing,” the Queen finally spoke after a long silence. “When I take Canterlot Castle as my own, you may have your own cold, lonely cell in the dungeon. Doesn’t that seem like a fair exchange for all you’ve done for me?”
                
“Chrysalis…” the dragon called once more, still waiting for a new order to fulfill.
                
“Have I not told you to address me as ‘Rarity’ at all times!?” Chrysalis scolded Spike as she reengaged her illusionary disguise. “Had another pony heard you call me ‘Chrysalis,’ all this planning would have been ruined!”
                
“I’m sorry, Rarity,” Spike responded.
                
“We must make our preparations for Canterlot and the Grand Galloping Gala. Come, dragon," the shapeshifter said, leading her draconic thrall out of the room.



                
Spike’s long absence was not only felt by Twilight, but Applejack just as well. The apple farmer had not seen the little dragon since their embarrassing dinner date with the family, and she had begun to grow a bit worried. The worry she felt stemmed not only from fear for his self-being, but also from the fear that he had finally made his choice and it was obviously not her. To put her mind at ease, she decided to take a short break from her work on the farm to visit the local library, hoping to find the dragon at home as usual.
                
Applejack knocked on the door, and was greeted by the studious unicorn, though her demeanor was noticeably down. Twilight invited her in, faking a smile as she did.  Applejack saw that she walked a bit sluggishly, almost dragging her hooves. Her shoulders were drooped, and her gaze did not leave the floor. It all beckoned the blond farmer to ask her friend why she looked so unwell.
                
“Ya ok there, Twilight?” Applejack asked.
                
“I don’t really know… I mean, I’m trying, I really am…” the purple unicorn responded. “I don’t want to feel bad about it, I don’t want to be jealous… but I just can’t help it.”
                
“Whoa! Hold on there. Start from the beginning,” the apple farmer interrupted. “Now: what are ya talking about?”
                
“Well, ever since Spike went to apologize to Rarity, they’ve been spending some time together…” Twilight replied after taking in a deep breath. “A lot of time together…”
                
“Oh…” Applejack said, her fears very closely being realized.
                
“He’s been spending all his extra time over with her at her boutique,” the unicorn continued. “I hardly even see him anymore.”
                
“I guess… there ain’t nothing else to do than to admit it,” her friend told her. “She’s won, Twilight.”
                
“But are we… just supposed to let him go that easily?!” Twilight asked desperately.
                
“It was his choice, Twilight…” Applejack answered, pulling her hat down to cover her face. Twilight was only able to see the bottom of her jaw as her twin streams of tears met there and dripped onto the library floor. “I reckon I better go congratulate her…”
                	
“Applejack…?” the unicorn called to her weakly. “Applejack!”
                
“Ya ain’t to worry about me none, Twilight,” the earth pony said as she gave her face quick wipe, keeping her back turned to her friend. “I’ll be just fine…”



                
Taking a deep breath, Applejack knocked on the boutique’s door. Though she said she wanted to congratulate the dress maker, she also felt that she needed to see what Twilight had told her with her own eyes. She felt as though she needed hear it from Spike himself—that he in fact had finally chosen who it was he wanted to be with.
                
Inside, the Changeling Queen tried to ignore the knocking, wanting to just work on her insidious plot. However, she grew irritated as the knocking only persisted.
                
“These ponies and their dresses, so shallow…” she said as she changed her appearance to that of her captive.
                
“Yes, yes… you shall receive your dress before the Grand Galloping Gala…” she said as she opened the door, only to find her surprise another of the ponies that had had a hoof in her defeat. “Oh… it’s you…”
                
“Hey there, Rarity…” Applejack greeted her. “I just wanted to come ask ya about… well… Spike.”
                
“What of the little drake?” the disguised Queen asked, her lids half closed and a grimace on her face.
                
“Little drake…?” the earth pony asked, though she quickly dismissed it. “Anyways, I just want to know if it was true… what Twilight told me… have ya and Spike been spending a lot of time together?”
                
“Ah! So you’ve heard, have you?” the changeling said, her grimace almost instantly changing into a malicious grin. “Yes, it is true. He and I have grown quite inseparable in the past few days. I’m afraid you are too late… he’s chosen me.”
                
“If ya wouldn’t mind, I wanna hear it from him,” Applejack said, a bit unnerved by the pseudo-pony’s stare and grin.
                
“Very well, but he won’t tell you anything you want to hear,” Chrysalis said, closing the door to fetch the dragon, who she had left in the bedroom.
                
Unbeknownst to her, however, it seems that the trapped unicorn had been attempting to get Spike’s attention.
                
“Spike… SPIKE!” she whispered harshly. “Spike!”
                
It seemed that her calls only fell on deaf ears, as the charmed dragon continued with the tasks the Changeling Queen had set out for him.
                
“Spike… I’m so sorry…” she pressed her hooves against the cocoon’s thin, semi-transparent film. “I didn’t mean to use you like I did. I didn’t know just how bad that was… But I promise that if I get out of here…”
                
Just then, something strange seem to happen. It was almost like he could hear her, as he stopped his chores and walked towards her. His eyes, which had seemed blank ever since he fell victim to Chrysalis’s magic, returned to their normal green shade. As he walked towards her, she could see his efforts to escape the magic that seeped into his mind.
                
“I promise, Spike, I’ll make it up to you… I don’t know how yet, but I will,” Rarity said, tears beginning to well up in her eyes.
                
“Ra-Rarity…?” the dragon called out.
                
The sweet moment was quickly cut short, as the Changeling Queen returned and intercepted the dragon before he was able to reach the real unicorn.
                
“Hmph… so it seems that there still a little bit of his will left…” Chrysalis said to herself as she began to subject the young dragon to her harsh magic. Rarity swallowed in fear as she stared at her own face holding a nefarious smile. “Did you really believe that you could free him from my control? I have already made that mistake once, I won’t make it again.”
                
“Stop! You’re hurting him!” the unicorn cried out.
                
“Stop… stop?” the Queen laughed. “Surely you jest. I care nothing for the dragon; he is merely a means to an end. Now come, dragon. There is something else that you must do for me.”
                
“Yes, Rarity…” the dragon said, obediently following her out of the room.
                
“Spike…” Rarity cried weakly.



                
“Now, you will go out there and reassure that pony that you have chosen me and that you no longer wish to see her,” Chrysalis told the dragon as she guided him to the door. “Understood?”
                
“Yes, Rarity…” he replied as he opened the door.
                
“Spike! How are ya? I haven’t seen ya around the farm lately…” Applejack greeted him, though he did not seem to respond very much. “I reckon I should stop beatin’ around the bush. Is it true that ya chose Rarity already?”
                
“Yes… I chose her,” he answered very emotionlessly.
                
“I see… I ain’t mad at ya or nothin’. But…” she told him. “Ya coulda at least told me, Spike, instead of leavin’ me in the dark.”
                
“I didn’t really want to see you again…” the dragon said as he told.
                
“Wh-what…?” Applejack asked in disbelief as her tears began spilling from the sides of her eyes. “What did you say?”
                
“I-” Spike paused as he saw the mare’s tears fall. Applejack watched as he grasped his head as if he was in some sort of inner struggle. Chrysalis also saw this, worry beginning to show on her face; a slip of the tongue from her thrall and her plans would be ruined as well as her safety compromised.
                
“Spike?” the earth pony called to him. Just as it seemed he was going to say something, he suddenly straightened up and his eyes began to glow. Applejack seemed to follow an invisible trail of magic to the unicorn behind the dragon, whose horn glowed the same color that had overtaken Spike’s eyes.
                
“I don’t want to see you anymore!” the dragon said, quite a bit more maliciously than the blond farmer had ever heard him.
                
“Spike…” she called to him as she reached her hoof out to him, only to be stopped by the disguised Queen.
                
“As you can see, he’s made his decision…” she told her. “Now I must ask you to leave. We must go back to our sewing and whatnot. Good day!”
                
Applejack took a second to recover from having the door slammed in her face. Her tears dried as her sadness was replaced with rage.

“I can’t believe she would stoop so low!” the apple farmer spoke to herself. Though she did not know much about magic, she knew it could be used in an almost infinite number of ways. She thought it to be entirely possible for the unicorn to find a spell to make the dragon behave as he did. If he did not make the choice for himself, then it held no legitimacy. And if it was in fact the misuse of magic, then there was only one pony she knew that could possibly reverse it.



        
That very pony was currently in her own struggle. After the apple farmer had left, Twilight was fighting with the idea that she had left her with: Rarity won. This turn of events felt so sudden and so wrong to her that she could not find it in her to accept it. She racked her brain for a way to perhaps win back her assistant from the seamstress. Her wandering eyes eventually came to rest on her bed.
        
Between her mattresses sat the diary she had found the other day. Her thoughts slowly shifted to the content inside. She could possibly find what he looked for a perfect mare, but she did not know if she would be able to do so in clear conscience. However, remaining idle, she knew, would do nothing to help her situation. Against her better judgment, she reached under the mattress and pulled out the small notebook.
        
As she read the journal, she noticed quickly that it was more intimate and detailed than the last, which made it that much more discomforting for her. She nervously followed the lines of text and began to picture the scenario he was describing. It began with his description of being a dragon in a land inhabited by all ponies. He found out very fast that he was not like the rest of the crowd, something very obvious to many ponies but not so much to hatchling dragon. 

Though some ponies did not mind the fact that he was a dragon, an overwhelming number of the more “snooty” and “uptight” citizens of Canterlot looked down on him. He described their piercing eyes follow him as he walked through the streets.Sometimes he could not tell whether their eyes were filled with more fear than hate. However, those that took the time to get to know him treated him much better were still a little uncomfortable around him when Twilight herself was not around. Twilight never noticed it at the time, but she realized that perhaps that was the very reason he stayed in the library most of the time.

She began to mentally kick herself for not noticing the distress the little dragon was going through, but as she continued reading, she realized that she have done the right thing without even realizing it. Spike began to write more and more about his time with her. He did not describe her as the nicest pony but she made up for that in the way she treated him. It was the fact that she did not give him any different or better treatment than any other pony, she treated him just as she did anypony else. He went for nearly whole page about how appreciative he was for that.

She wiped a tear from her watery eyes and continued to read. He then wrote about a dream he had of her. This dream, however, was anything but an ordinary dream. In the dream, they had kissed. Somewhere along the line, he had developed a crush on her that he seemed to deny to himself about. There was clear evidence of this from the color he wrote her name as well as the way it was written. Every time he wrote her name, beginning a few entries leading to the dream entry, he switched off to a purple pen and took the time to carefully write it in perfect cursive, which contrasted to the rest of his regular, sloppy print.

After that were pages of flattery that would humble even “The Great and Powerful” Trixie, had they been written about her. He became quite infatuated with her, to say the least. He complimented everything from her brains to her looks to even the way she ate hay. All this eventually lead to a small, crude drawing what she could make out to be herself and Spike inside a pink heart. Twilight felt like her cheeks were on fire from the intense blush that had overtaken her face.

Her heart sank, though, as she read the final few entries of the journal. The little dragon began to lose hope that the purple unicorn would ever return her feelings. He did not know very well how to express them but did his best by doing waiting on her as her assistant, helping her with whatever she needed. He even wrote about given the choice to live in the castle with Celestia and having some other pony serve as her assistant. But he had chosen to stay with her, he decided to stay by her side even if she would never know or return his feelings.

Twilight took a moment to soak in all she had read. Had she paid more attention to her assistant’s feelings while they lived in Canterlot, there have been no need for her to compete for his love now. Even though she had missed her chance the first time around, there was perhaps still a chance to rekindle those same feelings. Lying on her bed, she stared at the ceiling as she continued to absorb all this new information until a knock at the door disturbed her meditation.