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// Not As Intense As You Think 
// Story: "Intense" "Sibling" Romance 
// by Takarashi282 
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"Focus, Casanova," Twilight had said, surprisingly annoyed.

Ever since that day, something had sort of struck her. Not the 'newfound' fact that Spike was an idiot, or was pretty hormonal for an alleged baby dragon, but jealousy! When Spike was daydreaming on her back that day, the curious emotion sneaked up on her and got the better of her.

And there she was now, hugging a pillow, feeling as alone as anypony could be. She tried to ignore it, honest! She distracted herself with other matters and a crush on Flash Sentry (who, by the way, was a complete moron incapable of an IQ more than ninety), but that nag was always there.

And boy, was it eating her up now.

It's all right, Twilight tried to reassure herself, stroking her pillow protectively, though squeezing it so hard that the movement was nearly impossible. It's just a crush, he'll let it go.

But you've got to admit, a crush lingering for a year is pretty persistent. 

Twilight flipped onto her other side in a new bed that was surprisingly comfortable, yet the castle that was not, and hugged her pillow closer to her chest. Spike was coming home any second now, she was sure of it. She took a deep breath. I just need to confess, she thought. I am absolutely sure the dragon will go for it. I somehow doubt that he's a baby with how persistent he is.

His persistence, though! That was exactly the problem! What if he didn't go for it? What if this only drives a wedge further into our relationship? Twilight asked herself in horror. She gulped. That thought wouldn't bother her if only it wasn't so possible: he was technically a teenager.

Twilight unleashed a crescendoing groan, only to be cut short when Spike stumbled into the room. He looked absolutely bushed; his eyes half shut, his scales dirtied with clumps of dirt, with new scratches that needed to be filed. He walked to his bed and made no hesitation to faceplant right into his bed sheets.

The motherly side of Twilight took over. "Spike, don't you dare fall asleep on your sheets when you're that dirty! Go take a bath, for Celestia's sake. You'll feel much better afterward."

Spike groggily slurped up to standing. "All right, all right," he said, rubbing his head. "Jeez, Twilight, you're such a nag!"

As Spike trudged out of the room, Twilight could feel her piss-off-ed-ness steam from her ears, but her temporary rage subsided with what she knew was silly worry. Does he really feel that way about me? Twilight thought, ears flopping down. I'm not a nag, am I? Twilight sighed. I need to apologize. Then I can confess... Anxiety filled her stomach as she thought about it.

Then, she took the same routine she was doing for the past hour or two: practicing the confession. She mumbled to herself in the uncomfortable purple castle, "Hey Spike... er... I love you more than you think... er—darn it, Twilight, you're going to fast. Um... Spike... er... things have been going smoothly between us, and I want to take our relationship to the next step... er..." 

Twilight kept at this for about a half an hour more before her bladder started to burn. She covered her crotch. Crud, she thought, I... gotta put this on hold for a minute. Twilight rushed down the hallway like a gazelle until she reached to the, unfortunately, only bathroom in the castle. Steam was rolling from under the crystal door, along with a slurping sound further in.

Twilight frantically knocked on the door. "Spike?" Twilight squeaked. "Spike, are you nearly done?"

"Yeah," came his voice, resonating in the bathroom so much it was almost inaudible. "Just one seco—OW!" A thump, followed by a crash of something inside echoed inside the room at impossibly high amplitudes. 

Without hesitation, and without thought, Twilight yanked the door open, and ran in. She slipped on the wet floor, falling right on her flank in front of Spike. He was still wet with bathwater, all except his face, so much that his scales gleamed brightly. It both hands he held a towel, strung behind one leg and in front of the other. They just stood there, staring at each other blankly, the fallen tin toothbrush holder rolling next to Spike's feet.

That's when the scene slapped Twilight across the face. She blushed wildfires as she scooted and slid out of the bathroom, closing the door in front of her. She flopped her tail in front of her face to hide her blushing from an invisible audience. So far, really bad, Twilight thought, trying to shake that image of Spike from her head. 

Later, she just gave up, and sulked back to the sleeping quarters. She laid on her bed and ate the sheeting. "What am I going to do now?" She mumbled, the mattress muffling her sounds of despair. "I can't confess following that awkward moment!" She turned her head to the side to breathe. She felt heat tingle from behind her eyes. I've screwed this up in every possible way! Twilight thought, blinking back tears. Now, this is never going to happen...

A few seconds later, Spike re-entered the sleeping quarters. Twilight's eyes were glued to the bluish bed sheets. I can't look at him, she decided, not after that! But she couldn't stay true to that. She peeked at Spike. He looked absolutely paralyzed, so paralyzed that he just stood there, staring at his bed, probably wondering whether or not it was a good idea to sleep in that room that night.

"So..." Spike said, voice constricted, "... what a day... eh?"

Twilight hesitated, her blush returning full force. "Yeah..." she laughed, nervously, "... what a day."

The two stood/laid in silence, obviously trying to forget what had happened a couple minutes prior. But it still stuck like stale gum to a wall. Twilight couldn't help but recall the moment whether she liked it or not, Spike's wet figure in front of her, towel strung between legs. But she wanted to get rid of that thought, ASAP, and it was going to be impossible.

Twilight subconsciously stroked her imaginary pillow slowly, gulping down anxiety. This alone feeling again, Twilight thought, then she sighed. And the only chance I had at eliminating it, I screwed up, royally.

Then Spike did something that surprised her. Spike waddled over to her bedside, and climbed onto the mattress, rolling next to Twilight.

Twilight's cheeks started to burn. "Spike...?"

Spike's lips crept upward as his cheeks started to burn red. "What?" he asked, crossing his legs. "I figured that I would try something new out." He scooted closer to Twilight. "Besides, you looking lonely for the past forever has got me worried. So, you wouldn't mind if... if I filled that gap, would you?"

Not only did Twilight's cheeks feel warm, but so did all her insides. Spike, an idol of idiocy on possibly the same scale as Flash Sentry, looked past that, and was being considerate. And that look he gave her, the warm, smug smile, the half-closed eyes, was definitely not something that a brother and sister would give each other.

Their faces grew closer together, as if some sort of magnetic pull was trying to connect them. His emerald green eyes grew darker in the shadow of her face, the flame in his cheeks growing brighter and brighter until Twilight couldn't see them anymore. She closed her eyes as their lips met, the first kiss slow at first, the first lip lock giving way to come tangent again. They tried something new with each lip lock, their tongues slipping into each other's mouths, exploring the new area around. They grew closer in contact, nearly full-body, as their kisses steadily grew more intense, more sincere. Twilight broke the kiss, swallowing her excitement.

Spike locked eyes with Twilight, breath shallow. "So," he said, "is this good enough for you?"

Twilight nodded. "Yes, Spike, it is."