A few minutes later, Spike and Autumn sat in front of a large box with a screen, two joysticks, and numerous buttons. The words, 'Stable Fighter II' were proudly displayed above the screen.
“What is this?” the crystal mare asked.
“It's a bit-operated video game,” Spike told her with a laugh. “I figured you wouldn't have had a chance to play one yet.”
“Indeed.” She grabbed one of the joysticks and pushed it around experimentally. “And how exactly am I supposed to 'play' with a video?”
“Don't worry, I'll show you. You use the joystick to move, and push these buttons to do different things.” Spike deposited two bits through a slot in the machine. “First, select your character.”
With the young dragon's guidance, Autumn picked out a brawny earth pony stallion in a karate gi named Rein-yu.
Spike picked his favorite, a dark blue pegasus mare named Chun-breeze. He let his companion practice moving her character around and hitting the various attack buttons. He even explained the few combos he knew with Rein-yu and let her use them on him. “Not bad,” he said when his life was about half gone. “Now let's see how you handle a counterattack!”
To be fair, Spike did hold back a lot. Experience had shown that a forty-hit combo was a great way to convince others to never play against him again. He kept the fight close, and let her pull off a victory in the first round.
“These 'combos' are harder to use than I had thought.” Autumn frowned.
“Plenty useful though.” Spike grinned as the next round started.
She nodded. “Indeed.”
The second round was much like the first, except that Spike used a whirlwind kick at the last moment to win.
“How did you do that?” Autumn gasped.
“Win the third round and I'll tell you.”
She lost, but she did manage to put up a good fight.
“Nice match.” Spike leaned back with a grin. “You're better than I was expecting.”
Autumn let out a satisfied sigh. “Not good enough, it seems. Perhaps we could play again?”
Spike deposited another bit. “You read my mind.”
After nearly an hour, Spike had to admit that he may have met his match. Autumn Gem wasn't at his level yet, but she was getting there, and quickly. Their rounds had gone from How much damage should I let her do before I win? To What combos can I leave out and still have a chance of winning? The original plan had been to let her win about half the time, but between her rapid improvement and his self-imposed handicaps, she managed quite a few victories without him giving them away.
“I need to look into getting one of these,” Autumn said with a smile. Her crystal coat had returned at some point during their matches. “You are quite the teacher, Spike.”
“Teacher?” he repeated in confusion.
“You always held yourself at just above my skill level, and gave me constructive advice.” She looked equally confused. “Was that not an attempt to teach me?”
In retrospect, Spike didn't know why he was surprised that Autumn knew he had been holding back. He laughed a little. “Actually, I was just trying to make sure you had fun.”
“Then your intentions were even more noble than I had realized.” She looked at the screen thoughtfully. “Would you mind playing against me at your best, just once?”
“Uh, okay.” Spike deposited the bits. “Just don't be upset. This move is kinda unfair.”
Two forty-hit combos and two flawless victories later, Spike turned to his stunned companion. “Like I said, unfair.”
“Can other characters also do that?” A competitive spark had appeared in Autumn's eyes.
“Not that I know of.”
She smiled a little bit. “Then I challenge you to fight me as any character other than Chun-breeze. Without holding back, of course”
“It would be a pleasure.” Spike picked his second favorite character, Draka, the half dragon.
Several hard fought battles later, Spike held the lead with four victories out of seven matches. “You're really, really good at this.” He let out a breath of air. “I can't believe you've never played before.”
“Perhaps never before,” Autumn's back popped as she straightened, “but I hope you will be kind enough to play against me in the future.” She stood up and continued to stretch her back and neck.
“I'd love to,” Spike rose as well, “but until then, there's still a lot of Ponyville to see.”
They stopped by Sugarcube Corner for a snack, and Autumn was introduced to Pinkie Pie, the most oddball of Spike's friends. Luckily, the pink mare's craziness was limited to spontaneously generating a pair of cupcakes for them, complete with frosting replicas of the two. “In honor of Spike's first date!” She grinned and gave the dragon a hug before returning to work.
“First date?” Autumn asked. “Is that really true?”
Spike failed to suppress a blush. “Yeah... well, I've only been an adult for a few weeks, you know.”
Autumn blushed a little too. “I feel like I'm stealing an honor that should be going to Lady Rarity.”
An honor? he thought. How is going out with me an honor? Oh right, the whole helping to save the Crystal Empire thing. The sentiment was flattering, but Spike knew he hadn't done all that much. As usual, most of the credit belonged to Twilight and the others. I'm getting distracted again. He took the crystal mare's hoof in his clawed hand. “Hey, you aren't stealing anything. I'm really happy about spending this time with you.” It was the truth. Not that he didn't love Rarity, but he couldn't goof around with her the same way he could with Autumn.
She smiled gratefully. “I assure you, Spike, the feeling is mutual.”
“Good.” He finished off his cupcake. “So where would you like to go next?”
-_-_-_-_-_-
Not much later, they were approaching the Dragon House. “Grandmother and Fire Eyes said they were going to do some training today,” Spike told his companion, “so don't freak out if it looks like they're attacking each other.”
Autumn Gem nodded. “I am curious how wyrms apply their magic in combat.”
“You'll see,” Spike said as the two dragonesses came into view on the other side of the house. They were relaxing in the field there.
“Hi, Spike!” Fire Eyes called when she saw them.
“Hey, Fire Eyes,” he called back. “Hi, Grandmother.”
Something strange happened as they drew near. Autumn Gem and Fire Claws both paused and looked at each other in surprise. They locked eyes for several seconds before both smiled.
“I'm surprised to meet a natural empath,” the older dragoness said.
“I am as well,” Autumn replied. “Oh, I understand. Magic?” She laughed after a moment. “Um, thank you?”
Spike looked at the two of them. If memory served, an empath was a pony that could sense the emotions of others. His grandmother's spell would certainly qualify her as one, and she had called Autumn a natural empath. The book did mention something about that, he recalled. “Are you two talking with just your emotions?”
“Sort of,” his grandmother said. She looked at Autumn for a moment before continuing. “Your friend is quite talented, but without knowing the same emotional 'language,' it's difficult to be sure exactly what the other means by what they are sending.”
“That's why I spoke out loud,” Autumn explained. “I wanted to make sure I was getting the correct message.” Her brow furrowed in concentration. “You are... offering to teach me?”
Fire Claws nodded. “Though I may not need to at the rate you're learning.”
“It's similar to the crystal pony language,” she admitted. “Surprisingly similar, actually. Perhaps one of these languages helped inspire the other.”
“Meaning our language was probably developed by imitating crystal ponies.” The purple dragoness smiled. “It's okay to admit it. The odds of natural empaths having to learn from artificial ones like us are slim.”
“In any case, why do wyrms even have an emotion-based language?” Spike asked.
“Linked combat,” Fire Eyes finally spoke up. “It let's the group communicate almost instantly with every other member.”
“Yes, and speaking of combat,” his grandmother said, “are you here for today's training session?”
Spike shook his head. “No, I was just showing Autumn around.” He suddenly realized that he had never properly introduced her. “By the way, this is my grandmother, Fire Claws, the best fighter in either the Ponyville or Redstone covens, and her most talented student, Fire Eyes.” He gestured to the crystal mare. “And this is Autumn Gem. We met at the ball in Canterlot, and I'm showing her around Ponyville today.”
The three females exchanged greetings.
“Are Spike and Cliff Runner also your students?” Autumn asked.
Fire Claws shrugged. “Yes, but Spike is just beginning his training and Cliff never had his heart in it until recently.”
A mischievous smile spread across Autumn's face. “Well, Spike just finished defeating me in a competitive game because of his greater experience. Perhaps he should spar against Fire Eyes to balance things out.”
Spike barely had time to say, “Wait, what?” before the white dragoness grabbed him and dragged him out into the field.
“Did he go easy on you at all?” she asked Autumn.
The crystal mare exchanged a look with Fire Claws. “No,” she lied.
“What?!” Spike sputtered. “No, I did! Fire Eyes, you have to believe me.”
“Five seconds to cast your spells.” The dragoness grinned. “Starting now.”
There comes a time in every creature's life when everything can be summed up in a simple, and yet eloquent phrase. This was such a time for Spike. “Oh crap!”
He barely had time to cast Scale Armor and Strength before Fire Eyes was on him. Luckily, he could only manage tier two defensive spells, meaning they would both be limited to tier one attacks. For Spike, that wasn't much of a loss. He only knew seven tier two spells anyway. For Fire Eyes, however, it cut out almost all of her usual repertoire.
The white dragoness was resourceful, however. She surged a Light spell, blinding her opponent long enough for a throw and a joint lock.
“Ow,” Spike muttered into the ground. Scale Armor did very little to counteract having his arm bent like that.
“Now let's say I'm actually trying to hurt you,” Fire Eyes said, kneeling on his back. “How do you get out of this?”
He tried to shake her off and roll away, but only succeeded in wrenching his arm even more.
“Come on, Spike. Trying to beat me in grappling? When facing a more experienced opponent, you should count on them being more familiar with their own fighting methods than you are. Find the move I'm not expecting, and bring the fight back into your territory.” She applied more pressure to his arm. “And move quickly. Your foe won't wait around for you.”
Spike went through all the spells he knew. Unfortunately, 'Get This Crazy Dragoness Off My Back' wasn't among them. What would Twilight do? Teleport, obviously. There was no such dragon spell. Cliff? Those crazy bursts of momentum were way outside of his skill level. Applejack? Pinkie Pie? Rarity? No, no, and no. In frustration, he grabbed a handful of dirt and tossed it over his shoulder.
Fire Eyes let go, rubbing her eyes and spitting out a mouthful of dirt.
“Oh gosh.” Spike got up and rushed over to her. “Are you okay, Fire Eyes?”
She blinked out more of the dirt. “I'm fine, but you should have attacked just then.” She spat again. “Yuck.”
He shifted uncomfortably. “Wouldn't that be kind of unfair?”
She managed to give him a flat look. “I'm twice your age and have been training my whole life. What part about any of our matches has been fair?”
“Well...”
“Exactly. The whole point of fighting is to protect yourself and your coven. You want to be as unfair as possible so that you can keep everydragon safe.” She motioned him forward. “Now come on, do a followup attack. I'll give it to you as a freebie.”
Though he was still a bit unsure about the idea of fighting dirty, Spike wasn't about to pass up the chance to finally land a blow on Fire Eyes, especially with Autumn still watching. He surged his strength spell and did his best imitation of an applebuck. It was strangely satisfying to watch Fire Eyes fly a good ten feet before she landed.
“Now that's an attack!” She jumped to her feet with a grin. “Let's see if you can do it again.”
As it turned out, it was much easier to applebuck a stationary target. Also, throwing dirt only worked against a foe that wasn't expecting it. At least Fire Eyes kept things interesting. She seemed to choose randomly between slashing him into submission, using joint locks and choke holds, and pelting him with rocks from a distance. He never did manage to land another solid blow.
“Okay, that's enough for now,” the white dragoness said. “We shouldn't wear you out too much if you're going to spend the evening with... uh...” She snapped her thumb and foreclaw together a few times.
“Autumn.” Spike climbed to his feet, wincing as his muscles groaned in protest. He was tempted to heal himself, even knowing that it would undo the benefits of all that exercise.
The crystal mare smiled apologetically as he approached. “I hope you aren't too hurt.”
“Nah.” Fire Eyes slapped Spike on the shoulder, hard enough to knock him flat. “He's fine.”
The three females exchanged looks and laughs.
Whether it was that emotion-based language, or the legendary 'girl talk,' Spike was fairly certain that he had missed something. “I'll be back as soon as I rinse this dirt off.” He climbed back to his feet. “Feel free to tell embarrassing stories about me while I'm gone.” It didn't take much to figure out that they'd be doing that anyway, so he may as well let them know that he was aware of it.
“Will embarrassing stories about Cliff work?” his grandmother asked. “So far you've done nothing but impress us.”
“Ha ha ha,” Spike deadpanned.
The purple dragoness smiled in amusement. “I'm being serious, Spike. You might be inexperienced, but you're learning more quickly than I'd dreamed possible.”
“It's true,” Fire Claws said with a shove towards the Dragon House. “Now go wash off.”
Spike couldn't help but grin, in spite of his aching muscles.
-_-_-_-_-_-
Autumn had a surprise for Spike when he reemerged. Backed by his grandmother and Fire Eyes, she held out a small white flower, made entirely of crystal. “I thought you would like this,” she said with a nervous smile.
Spike accepted the gift and held it up to the light. Even though it was crystal, the amount of detail was unreal. Individual veins and folds could be seen in the petals, and there were even flecks of yellow pollen. He had never seen anything quite like it. “This is beautiful,” he breathed. “It must have cost you a fortune.”
“Guess again.” Fire Eyes chuckled. She pointed to two piles behind them. One was of regular flowers, and the other was of crystal ones.
Spike's eyes widened. “Wait, you made this?”
“I am a crystal pony,” Autumn said. “Smaller things like flowers can be crystallized very easily.”
I really need to ask Twilight everything there is to know about crystal ponies, he reflected. “That's an amazing ability.”
She smiled again. “I hope it tastes good.”
“Tastes?” Spike repeated. “Do crystal ponies eat crystallized flowers?”
This time the mare laughed. “Of course not, Spike, but dragons eat crystals.”
“Oh.” Spike felt a little silly. He looked at the beautiful flower again. “Uh, would it be alright if I kept this one and ate another?”
Autumn's grin told him that he had said the right thing. “Of course.”
Fire Claws nodded approvingly as she gave him a crystallized daisy.
Spike took a small bite of the flower. It crunched pleasantly in his mouth, and the taste was amazing; like a piece of daisy-flavored quartz! “Mmmm.” He licked his lips. “Delicious!”
The two female dragons must have been waiting for that, because they each tossed a crystal flower into their own mouths. Appreciative sounds quickly followed.
“Spike,” Fire Eyes said as she grabbed another flower, “marry this pony!”
It took a few minutes of sputtering and blushing for both Spike and Autumn to calm down after that comment. Fire Eyes had just laughed at their discomfort, but at least Fire Claws had the decency to reign her in a bit.
“Sorry about that,” Spike said as they walked back to Ponyville. “Fire Eyes doesn't usually think before she talks.”
“Agreed,” Autumn laughed, calming the tension that had built up around them, “but she and your grandmother are far more caring than they let on. As soon as they realized how much I've missed empathetic communication, they were both kind enough to indulge me.”
“Wait, Fire Eyes can use that spell too?”
The mare nodded. “She doesn't use it continuously, like your grandmother, but she does know it. She even tried using illusions to reflect her emotions, like a crystal pony's coat, because she wanted to remind me of home.”
Spike studied his companion. “I thought your coat only showed if you were happy or not.”
Autumn sighed. “To an outsider, perhaps, but another crystal pony would be able to know what I'm feeling simply by looking at me. One of the reasons we rarely leave the Empire is that, because other types of ponies can't read our visual or emotive cues, they come across as unforgivably insensitive.”
“Oh.” Spike swallowed nervously. “Tell me the truth. How much of a jerk have I been today?”
“Far better than most ponies,” she assured him. “In the Crystal Empire, feeling angry at another pony in their presence is as rude as verbalizing those emotions. We learn from birth to moderate our surface feelings, just like other ponies must learn to control what they say. Your training in the Stillness yields similar results. You have also been radiating a desire that I enjoy myself, which is rather flattering.” She smiled gratefully.
He returned the smile with one of his own. “Well, you have been going way out of your way to help me. I just wanted to do something nice in return.”
They walked in silence for a few moments before Spike spoke again, “By the way, would you mind teaching me to read crystal pony emotions by their coats?”
Autumn turned to him in surprise. “I could teach you, of course, but why would you be interested in learning?”
“You said that other ponies seem insensitive for not understanding what your coat shows.” Spike scratched the back of his neck. “I'd rather not be a jerk to you by doing the same thing.”
“...If you look closely, you'll see that my coat has become slightly more transparent,” Autumn said with a smile. “That means gratitude. In this case, for your thoughtfulness.”
Spike didn't bother trying to hide his grin as she continued to elaborate.
-_-_-_-_-_-
They went to the palace next. There were two reasons for that. Firstly, his connection to Princess Twilight was well known, and refusing to introduce Autumn would have made it seem like he wanted to keep her at claw's length. Secondly, and more importantly, Autumn was his friend, and Spike wanted her to meet his older sister.
Twilight was reading at the kitchen table when they walked in. “Oh there you are, Spike.” She smiled. “And it's a pleasure to finally meet you, Lady Autumn Gem.”
“You honor me too much, Princess Twilight,” Autumn bowed, “but I thank you for your kindness.”
Spike rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah, you can both ditch the formalities. Autumn's here to relax, Twilight, not to practice her manners.”
“Oh, sorry.” Twilight blushed. “I wanted to make a good first impression so I researched etiquette from the Crystal Empire.”
“There's no need to apologize.” Autumn looked a bit uncomfortable as well, and now that Spike knew what to look for, he could see it reflected across her body. Her hooves had become slightly more opaque, and her coat wasn't quite as reflective as before. “It's... actually a bit awe inspiring to meet a princess and a national hero.”
“And a real nerd,” Spike commented. “With a bit of mad scientist thrown in for good measure.”
“Oh hush,” Twilight said with an indulgent smile. “Sorry about this, Autumn. Spike only knows how to be sarcastic.”
“I would still take sarcasm over the selfish quarrels of nobility,” the crystal mare replied.
This time Twilight laughed. “Yes, I have to agree with that. You wouldn't believe some of the silly requests I've gotten since becoming a princess.”
“Really?” Autumn pointed to a seat at the table. “May I?”
“Yes, you may.” Spike rolled his eyes again. “Come on, I told you that you don't need to be so formal.”
“Be nice, Spike,” Twilight gently chastised him. “She was just being polite.” She turned back to Autumn. “Anyway, one time a duke came up to me and asked me to issue an arrest warrant for Doughnut Joe because he was taking customers away from that duke's chain of bakeries...”
Twilight had never liked being treated differently because of her status as a princess. In fact, she had spent countless hours studying about how to put others at ease around her. Spike knew, he'd helped her take notes. His sister told a couple of funny stories, and then artfully guided Autumn to talk about herself. First, to share stories about annoying nobles, like Twilight had just finished doing. (Apparently Autumn hated Prince Blueblood as much as Rarity.) Next, they talked about their hobbies and interests; crystallization, considered to be an art form in the Empire, jewelry making, and surprisingly, jousting. Finally, they discussed their day-to-day lives.
“Honestly,” Autumn said, “when there isn't a party or a concert to attend, or a business deal to finalize, I just sit around my apartment reading or go to the gym and exercise.”
Spike winced. “Wow. No wonder you were so excited to get away from it for a while.”
“Indeed.” Autumn sighed. “It will be waiting for me when I return, though.”
Twilight shot Spike one of those looks that only a sibling could decipher. Remember what I said earlier?
He nodded subtly. “Well if you want, I could come visit you sometime. Assuming the 'Princess' here can survive without me.”
“I think I'll manage.” Twilight smiled playfully. “With only Cliff around, I might get some sarcasm-free conversations for a change.”
Autumn laughed at the display of sibling affection. “Yes, I would love to have you join me in Canterlot sometime.” She looked around. “Although, speaking of Cliff Runner, where is he?”
“He's practicing magic in his room,” Twilight said. “Fire Claws wants him to learn some new spells.”
“Do you want to go say hi?” Spike asked.
Autumn seemed unsure. “I wouldn't want to upset him.” The color of her mane also changed slightly, but Spike could only guess what emotion that signified.
“He'd be fine.” Spike assured her. “Cliff is nothing if not go-with-the-flow.”
“Well, okay.” Autumn rose to her hooves. “If you're sure.”
Spike and Twilight both nodded and rose as well.
Cliff was sitting on his bed with his eyes closed and his claws held together to form a circle.
“Hey bro.” Spike said.
…
“Hello in there?”
The older dragons eyes opened and he blinked a couple of times. “Hey Spike.” He turned to Autumn. “And good afternoon to you. I'm Cliff Runner, Spike's brother.”
She nodded. “I'm Autumn Gem. It's an honor to meet you.”
Spike groaned. “Again with the formality? Can't anypony just say, 'hey, I'm Spike. What's up?'”
Cliff arched an eyebrow. “Has this been a problem for you today?”
“Not really,” Autumn said. “I think your brother is trying to give you a hard time.”
“Ah,” Cliff smiled, “that seems to be how he says, 'I love you.'”
“I assumed as much.”
The older dragon stretched his arms. “In any case, it's good to meet you as well, Autumn. I hope you'll forgive me for sounding silly, but I never expected crystal ponies to actually be crystalline.”
“We aren't, actually.” Autumn took a seat next to him. “It's natural magic in our coats that gives crystal ponies this appearance.”
“That's interesting.” Cliff leaned forward a bit to get a better look at her. “Does your coat protect you more than other types of ponies?”
“A little,” she replied. “I doubt it provides as much defense as dragon scales, though.”
Cliff nodded thoughtfully. “I hope you and Spike have been enjoying your date.”
“Very much so.” Autumn smiled. “Spike took me to a place called an arcade...”
As the two of them talked, Spike took the opportunity to sit beside Autumn. Twilight sat next to Cliff.
“...You are quite the inspiration, Cliff.” Autumn said after a few minutes of idle chatter.
He frowned in confusion. “How so?”
“The Dragon-Pony Cultural Exchange Program wouldn't exist if not for you,” she pointed out. “Not only are you the first wyrm to integrate into pony society, but you convinced both species to attempt peaceful cohabitation.”
Cliff shook his head gently. “I came to Ponyville because I wanted to find my brother. Then I stayed here because I didn't want to leave him. The real inspiration for dragons and ponies living together is actually Rainbow Dash.”
“Really?” Autumn asked. “Nopony has mentioned that.”
“Really,” Cliff said. “She followed me back to my old coven after that whole incident with the hydra. She got along so well with Fire Eyes and River Wind that I found myself wondering how our two races started hating each other in the first place.” He shrugged. “Since then, I just asked why we couldn't all get along, and Twilight, Celestia, and Silent Halls put the Exchange Program together. It's like they were trying to say, 'good point. Let's give it a try.'”
Twilight beamed. “Thanks, Cliff. But you really shouldn't underplay your own role in starting all this.”
“I'm not,” Cliff told her. “Rainbow deserves credit for inspiring it all, I deserve it for mentioning the idea, and you, Celestia, and Silent Halls, deserve much more credit for making it real.”
“It seems that all dragons are determined to remain humble,” Autumn observed.
Cliff shrugged. “You can be greedy for attention and credit just as easily as for possessions.”
“It's a good thing Rainbow Dash was only a dragon for a week then,” Spike said. “She loves attention.”
Twilight looked like she was going to get mad at him for that, but then she sighed. “You're right.”
“Anyway,” Spike looked at the clock. “we should be going. Our reservation is for six.”
“Okay, have fun you two,” Twilight said with a smile.
Cliff nodded. “Take care.”
-_-_-_-_-_-
“Twilight really is a wonderful pony.” Autumn said over dinner.
Spike had gotten them a table at the fanciest restaurant in town, but now that he knew the crystal mare a little better, it occurred to him that going to Vinyl's club might have been a better idea. It would have been easier for them both to be themselves, at least. A candle-lit dinner on an enclosed balcony with violin music didn't exactly scream, 'relaxation.'
“I see now why the town treats her like any other citizen.”
Spike nodded over the table. “Yep, she wouldn't have it any other way.”
“Although Cliff Runner was something of a surprise.”
Conversation was cut off as an immaculately dressed waiter took their orders. Spike motioned for her to continue once they were alone again.
“Well, he seems completely unaware of the political power at his disposal.”
Spike had to laugh. “That's because he is. Cliff knows what he wants in life, and political power isn't on the list, so he ignores it.” He sighed. “I actually envy him for that focus. I still have no idea what I should be doing with my life. Maybe it has something to do with not having my true name yet...”
Autumn smiled sympathetically. “At least you still have time to decide. With your lifespan, you could explore any number of options.”
That made him think about Twilight, and how she would be with him for so much longer than any normal pony. Spike smiled a little. “Yeah, but more importantly, I have my family.”
“Yes, that is what matters most. I could feel how much they all loved you. It was rather heart warming, to be honest.”
“What's your family like?” Spike asked suddenly. “Do you have any siblings?”
“No.” Autumn looked out the window, or maybe it was at her reflection. It was hard to tell. “I was quite spoiled as a child, and told my parents that I didn't want any brothers or sisters so I wouldn't have to share their attention.” She rolled her eyes. “One wonders how they ever managed to put up with me.”
“Yeeaahhh, that's pretty bad,” Spike had to admit. “But hey, at least you never smashed up the town in a greed-induced rage.”
She smiled. “True, I don't think I have anything in my past that could match that incident.”
“Well then, tell me about your parents.”
“My mother ran the wheat industry in the Crystal Empire. Every wheat farm was connected to her in one form or other. She's very hardworking, and a talented businessmare, but she somehow found time to spend with me.” Autumn laughed softly. “We played a different game at every high society event we attended together. One time we had to convince other ponies to invest in dehydrated water. Whoever got the most promised funds won. At another, I had to get as many stallions to flirt with me as possible, while she tried to dissuade them. I won because I still had three of them following me around when the night ended.”
Spike laughed as well. “Wow. You and Celestia would get along so well. She does that sort of thing too.”
“Celestia?” Autumn looked around to make sure nopony was listening in. “Really?”
“Yeah.” Spike leaned forward a little. “Don't get me wrong, she's still the most caring ruler ever, but all the pomp and ceremony drives her nuts. That's why she plays little games to keep things interesting.”
“Such as?”
“Have you heard about that one Grand Galloping Gala that was ruined by an animal stampede?”
She nodded. “Yes, the reason why the Elements of Harmony aren't invited to any major events.” Autumn's eyes widened. “Did the Princess know that they would cause that mess?”
Spike chuckled. “She found us later that night and said that it was the best Gala yet.”
Autumn was struggling to contain her laughter. “My goodness. I wonder if she would like an ally in her quest for amusement.”
“We could ask her when I come visit you in Canterlot,” Spike offered. “When would you like to do that, anyway?”
“Let's,” she agreed. “Perhaps Saturday?”
Spike held up a wine glass. “It's a date.”
-_-_-_-_-_-
Their final stop for the night was the movie theater. “They only have two screens,” Spike said apologetically. “So you'll have to choose between Establo Blanco, and The Dawn of the Trotting Dead.”
Autumn groaned slightly. “I've been forced to watch Establo Blanco three times since it debuted in Canterlot. Would you mind too much if we went to see the other one?”
“Seriously,” Spike chuckled, “you're asking if I'm okay with going to see an awesome zombie movie instead of a boring drama?”
She chuckled as well. “I suppose if you put it that way... Let's go see The Dawn of the Trotting Dead.”
Two zombie-filled hours later, the pair walked out of the theater with matching grins.
“That was awesome!” Spike said. “I loved how the breakdown of society triggered a breakdown in everypony's morals too. It's like the director was saying that we're all one disaster away from becoming feral monsters.” The young dragon frowned as he realized what he had just said. Curse you adult brain! You aren't supposed to enjoy symbolism in a monster movie!
Sensing his internal conflict, Autumn laughed. “Why Spike, it seems you've become deep and insightful in spite of yourself.”
“Uh yeah,” Spike scratched the back of his neck. “I guess I have.”
“Though personally,” she added, “I preferred the explosions.”
They both laughed.
“You know,” Autumn said nervously as they approached the hotel. “You don't have to come visit me in Canterlot if you don't want to. I know you would rather spend time here with Rarity.”
Spike shook his head. “I like spending time with you, Autumn. You're one of my good friends, and it sounds like you could really use another day away from all that monotony.”
“Thank you, and you are all too correct about the boredom.” The crystal pony groaned.
He nodded. “Yeah, I thought so. Anyway, I'll come by tomorrow at seven thirty to take you to breakfast.”
“You don't have to.”
“I want to,” Spike insisted and gave her a hug.
Autumn stiffened at first, but then she returned the embrace. “Thank you, Spike.”
“No problem.” He stepped back. “I'll see you tomorrow then?”
She was just a little red as she nodded. “Yes. See you then.”
Spike watched her go inside, and then turned to make his way back to the palace. Video games, crystallized flowers, good food, a great movie, and the revelation that Rarity actually did have romantic feelings for him. All in all, he couldn't have hoped for a better day.