//------------------------------// // The Getaway // Story: Bigger Than Mac // by DraconequusMaximus //------------------------------// Three weeks, it had been three weeks since Spike's secret had gotten out. The first couple days had been okay, but soon things started to get out of hoof. Canterlot had been sending him letters requesting him for ribbon cutting ceremonies and the like, and ponies as far away as Appleoosa had been sending him fan mail. He actually sort of liked that part, but a crazy fan had snuck into the barn and tried to pry a scale off of him. He had had enough, and so had Mac. The solution was simple, they were leaving for an impromptu vacation. Shining Armor had sent an open invitation to the Crystal Empire as soon as he heard the news. Spike had told him that they could handle themselves, but he was wrong. The stress of being a celebrity was overwhelming, they were taking him up on his offer. Spike had already sent Shining a letter via the flame channel, and they were on their way. The train would be pulling into the Crystal Empire Station within minutes. It was a little embarrassing, but Spike had to ride in a shipping car. It had been specially furnished to seem less like a big metal box. The floor had been specially padded for comfort, and the walls made to look like those in the castle. Spike had to stop them from adding a chandelier, as he'd be too tempted to eat it. Macintosh stayed in the car with him, despite being offered a private first class cabin. As the train pulled to a stop, Macintosh woke from his nap only to find he was trapped under the tremendously heavy arm of his beloved. This had happened a few times before, but each time he had simply had to wait for Spike to wake up on his own. Kicks, bites, and yelling seemed ineffective. Spike's scaly skin was too thick for pony alone to even irritate, this was going to be fun. Mac could hear them opening the container car. As the door slid open and light filtered into the car he could only sigh. "Welcome to the Crystal Empire Lizard Lips!" A white stallion with a dark blue mane bellowed as the door finished opening. As soon as Mac saw his red military uniform, and heard the childish nickname, he knew who this was. "He's asleep." Mac said with a deadpan expression from his spot underneath the sleeping behemoth's arm. "Aw, man. It took me all day to come up with Lizard Lips." The stallion said in disappointment. "Lizard Lips woke up when the light hit him." Spike said still somewhat groggy. He lifted his arm freeing Mac from the death grip. Spike stood and stretched, waking himself up fully. He planted himself back onto all fours and stepped out of the train car. Mac followed with Spike shutting the door behind them. "How's it going Shining?" Spike said looking down upon Shining Armor with a smug smile. "Whoa, Twily wasn't kidding. You got big fast." The prince said taking in his brother's new stature. "Ya should see how much he eats." Big Mac said as he himself took a moment to stretch. "Ah, right. Where are my manners? I'm Shining Armor, Spike bi-er older brother." He said offering a hoof to Macintosh. "Pleased t' meet ya. Macintosh Apple." Mac said accepting the hoofshake. "Twily's told me about you, Applejack's Brother, right?" Shining asked happily. "Eeyup." Mac said with a nod. "Probably would have known more, but somepony never writes." Shining said motioning to Spike. "I try, but they don't make quills my size." Spike said as he wiggled his pointy digits. "That's pretty ironic, considering you're a living mailbox." Shining said trying not to laugh at his own joke. "Ha ha, just take us to the palace Bubble Boy." Spike said rolling his eyes. "They're shields, not bubbles. Shields are manly, bubbles aren't." Shining said defending his special talent, "But yeah, let's go. Cadence has been dying to see you two. She's read all the tabloids about you." Spike and the stallions walked from the station to the palace, exchanging small talk, and enjoying the relative peace. Spike had been well known in the empire since the Sombra incident, so while he got many friendly waves, but the crystal ponies didn't do much else. It was almost like Ponyville had been before the fame had hit. The empire was really just an enormous city, with the crystal heart and palace in the very center. This guaranteed that there were many clear routes to the palace. They made it in good time, even though Spike's size made a carriage an impossibility. "This place is awful bright." Macintosh said as he shielded his eyes from the overwhelming glare as he looked up at the Crystal Palace. "Yeah, it'll take you a couple hours to adjust properly." Shining said as he nodded to the guards at the front gate. The armored stallions saluted and opened the doors for them. "Cadence is still holding court at the moment, so I'll send somepony to get you later. In the meantime you two can go get settled into your room. Sapphire here will show you the way." Shining said sending one of the guards to their side. Unlike the Canterlot guard, the crystal guard were allowed to retain their natural coloration. Spike found it refreshing as he could never tell his mother or aunt's guards apart. "Pleasure to meet you sirs. The room is down this hall if you'd follow me." Sapphire said with a salute, it was also a refreshing change that Sapphire was a mare, a rarity amongst Canterlot guards. After a short trek through some intersecting hallways they arrived at an especially large doorway. The door itself was a deep black metal that Spike's draconic senses picked up on. These senses let him smell and taste many things like ponies would food, as nearly anything was food for a dragon. This particular metal however, made him sick to his stomach. "Out of curiosity, what was this room before now?" Spike asked Sapphire. Sapphire's expression fell a bit as he asked that question. "It was Sombra's favorite bedroom. He slept in a different one every night but this one was the one he used the most." Sapphire said shivering at the thought of the former tyrant king. "That would explain why it's creeping me out." Spike said as he looked back to the particularly unappetizing door. "Yes, he did something to all the doors to keep ponies out. We disenchanted them, but sometimes they give off bad vibes." Sapphire said handing Spike a black key similar to the door in design. "Well, as long as it's safe. Thanks Sapphire, you can go back to your post now." Spike said turning the key in the lock. Sapphire walked off as the door opened, revealing an enormous bedroom. There was a fine sofa that looked so plush Macintosh wondered if it was made of clouds. On the opposite side of the room was a short dresser with a mirror atop it that had an ornate frame carved in the likeness of stylized unicorns. The carpeting in the room was a royal red and very soft, but the truly magnificent finisher of the room was the bed. It was a masterpiece, the blankets were obviously some sort of silk, the pillows were stuffed with phoenix down, (Spike recognized them as they were nearly identical to his mother's) and the most important part was that it was big. Very big, just like it had been tailor made for a certain dragon. Spike wasted no time in hoping into the lusciously comfortable bed. He let out a moan of satisfaction as he spread out over it's irresistible, possibly magical surface. He was so comfortable that he thought he might actually be dead, and he didn't care. "Oh Mac, you gotta get up here. It's like swimming in rainbows and kittens or something. It's even better than a lava bath." Spike said in his state of euphoric bliss. "It can't be that great." Mac said as he climbed up the edge of the bed, "See? ah ain't all... Oh Celestia, ah may never leave." "I missed having a real bed sooo much." Spike said as he affectionately nuzzled Big Mac like a teddy bear. "We gotta take this with us when we leave." Mac said as they thoroughly enjoyed the unbelievable comfort and closeness. "The world would be such a better place if Sombra had designed furniture instead of enslaving entire populations." Spike said before letting out a massive yawn. "Eeyup." Mac said as he let out a very similar yawn. Both of them were snuggled close together and were out in a matter of minutes. After sleeping on the barn floor for the last three weeks with only a couple spare blankets, this was heaven. Shining Armor and Cadence came to fetch them about two hours later, and opened the door to see the couple who had shifted positions. Spike lay flat on his back with his forked tongue hanging out to one side of his mouth. Macintosh was laying on top of him enjoying the natural heat his coltfriend gave off at all times. "You brought the camera right?" Shining Armor whispered to his wife. "Of course, aunty would kill me if I didn't get a shot of something so adorable." Cadence said as she snapped a photo of the scene. "Sombra's bed never fails, always put you to sleep within minutes." Shining Armor said with a smirk. The photo slid out the bottom of the camera and Cadence took it and waved it in her aura, developing it. She used her magic to summon up a pink envelope that she placed the photo into. She sealed it with a heart shaped sticker. She took a quill from under her wing and artfully labeled the envelope Aunty Celestia. "Do you need to make everything pink?" Shining asked her as she made the camera disappear. "Yes, as a matter of fact." Cadence responded as she booped him on the nose with the envelope. Shining rolled his eyes and pulled a large gem out of his uniform, he floated it in front of Spike's nose. The dragon woke up and crunched it between his powerful jaws. It took him less than a ten seconds to grind the gem to dust and swallow it. He yawned and lifted his neck looking to the sleeping stallion on his chest. "Hey, Mac? We have guests." Spike said as he nudged him with the end of his snout. "Hmm?" Mac said as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. When his vision was back he looked from the two across the room and then back to his position on top of Spike. He suddenly felt his face get very warm. He ducked behind his lover in embarrassment. "Y'all coulda knocked!" He said from his hiding place. "Yeah, we did sorta come out here for privacy you know?" Spike said as he slowly rose up from the indescribably soft bed. "You should have locked your door then." Shining replied as he pointed to the key that had been dropped on the floor as they fell unconscious. "Spike, it's good to see you. Could you send this off to aunty for me?" Cadence said floating the envelope into his claw. Spike let out a small burst of green fire, burning the mail away. The ash flew out the door on it's way to Canterlot. "There you go. Now then, did you two need something?" Spike groaned as he stretched his wings, they got stiff if he slept on them. "Actually, you two have been asleep for a couple hours it seems. It's dinner time." Cadence answered with her characteristic smile. "Awesome, I feel like I could eat a house." Spike said instantly perking up. "Considerin' where we are, ah'd believe it." Mac said stepping down from the magical mattress. "I like him, he's funny." Shining said to his wife. "And he isn't too hard on the eyes either, you can sure pick em' Spike." Cadence said teasingly. "Yeah, he's definitely a keeper." Spike said planting a kiss on Mac's cheek. "Ugh, dude. Come on, I'm right here." Shining said shielding his eyes from his younger brother's display of affection. "Grow up Shining, it was just a kiss on the cheek." Cadence complained to her husband. "Yeah but, he's like my little brother or something. Imagine watching your brother kiss someone." Shining replied. "Yeah, disturbing. But nopony wants to kiss Blueblood." Cadence said visibly sickened at the thought. "I'll give you that one." Shining agreed. The group adjourned to the dining hall shortly after everypony's agreement about Blueblood. The room was large enough for Spike to move around in freely, possibly even fly in if he kept a low altitude. It was empty except for the four of them, making it feel much more spacious than it already was. The nobles had been sent away so tonight would be a family only dinner. Spike was seated across from Macintosh as Cadence was across form Shining. "So, I know you both live in Ponyville, but how did you two meet?" Cadence asked, ever interested in pony's love lives. "We started helping each other out with chores when the girls went off to save the world." Spike said before taking a large chunk of quartz crystal into his jaws. "Eeyup, neither a' us could do everythin' by ourselves. So, we worked together and eventually became friends." Mac said before taking a bite of his own meal. "Then a few months after that Mac's grandmother passed away and I guess I made a pretty good shoulder to cry on." Spike added after swallowing the crunched up quartz. "Miss Rarity broke his heart bout a month later an' I helped pick up the pieces." Mac said looking to Spike with an expression containing nostalgia, sadness, and happiness all at once. "We hung out whenever we could, and after awhile we knew we had feelings for each other. Mac was the first to speak up oddly enough, just as soon as I turned eighteen. A day before my uncomfortable growth spurt." Spike said shuddering at the memory of his body feeling like it had been in a taffy puller. The wings had been even worse though. "Hard to believe you got so big all at once." Cadence replied. "Yeah, Discord says I can expect it to happen every twenty years. First a big eating binge, then super painful growth. Next time should be easier though, now that the wings are out." Spike gave his wings a small flap as demonstration. "Can you fly yet?" Shining asked looking the membranous wings over. "Yeah, didn't even need any lessons. Instincts kicked in soon as I got off the ground." He replied before taking a hearty drink from the barrel of crystal berry juice he had been supplied. "Scared the apples outta me first time he took me up." Macintosh said clearly annoyed. "Yeah, forgot earth ponies didn't like heights." Spike said apologetically. "Well you two seem like quite the couple, I see you having a great future together." Cadence said cheerily. "Means a lot comin' from you ma'am." Macintosh said gratefully. "Please, just call me Cadence. It seems like you're going to be part of the family before too long." She said with a warm smile. Mac smiled back, family was the most important thing to an Apple, and the more the merrier. After dinner the couples parted and went to their own rooms. Spike and Mac elected to lay on the carpet instead of the bed, as they didn't want to fall asleep right away. They were just enjoying the peace, and each others company. Spike had his head rested on Macintosh's barrel, and Macintosh had even discarded his yoke, a rare occurrence. "Ya know what yer cousin said about bein' part a' the family?" Mac asked Spike, interrupting the quiet. "Yeah?" Spike relied without moving from his position. "Does it bother ya that ah' can't stay with ya forever?" Macintosh said somewhat sadly. "I'd be lying if I said it didn't make me sad sometimes, but I'd rather have you for as long as I can than not at all." Spike said in a tone that told Mac he had been thinking on it just as much as he had. "Ya wouldn't rather have some other dragon, er wait fer a' new alicorn or somethin?" Mac asked, worry evident in his voice. Spike moved his neck to meet Mac's face and kissed him tenderly, it lasted less than a minute, but spoke volumes about Spike's feelings. Though he was sure Mac knew his answer he felt the need to say it as well. "I only want you Mac. I could literally wait for eternity without finding anyone that even came close to you." Spike said as he took Mac into his arms and pulled the stallion close to his chest. "Ah, love you." Mac said as his worry left him. "I love you too." Spike replied softly. Mac wasn't sure if it was Spike's internal heat, or their love, but he felt a warmth deep down. He had never considered himself anything special, but right now he felt more important than the sisters that moved the sun and moon around the sky. He knew he wouldn't last forever, but as long as Spike never forgot him he wouldn't truly be gone. The pair didn't make it back to the bed that night, they fell asleep in each others embrace.