//------------------------------// // Magic 11: レッド・ファイヤー // Story: 友達は魔法少女 ~FRIENDSHIP IS MAGICAL GIRLS~ // by MythrilMoth //------------------------------// "What's he worth to you?" Spike stared down at the duct-taped, writhing form of Snips. His beady eyes were wide with terror, and he shook his head frantically. "Trixie knows you've been hunting this little weasel," Trixie said. "I'm prepared to give him to you...for the right price." A pulse of intense heat was Trixie's only warning before she found herself flying across the roof. She rolled to her feet, readying several shuriken... Spike, his body enveloped in blazing red flames, stood over Snips, glaring hatefully into his eyes. A kunai appeared in his hand. With a terrifying roar, he plunged it into Snips' throat. Snips gurgled wetly through his gag, across which blood stains began to blossom. His eyes rolled back in his head, and his struggles ceased. Trixie stared at the dead body, eyes wide. After a moment, her normal disaffected, superior air returned. "Tch," she spat. "Trixie didn't think you had the balls to do that." "He tried to murder the most important person in my life," Spike said. He pulled another kunai, which glowed with red flames. "Remember this the next time you show your face around Neechan." "Oh? Why don't you just kill me right now then?" Trixie asked. "If you can." Spike's chest heaved; his pupils seemed to turn slitted for a fraction of a second. After a moment of tense silence, he sighed. The burning aura around Spike and his weapon vanished. "No." He looked down at the dead body of Snips. His eyes widened slightly, his face becoming slack. Trixie tilted her head. "You've never killed before, have you?" Spike looked down at his feet. He balled his hands into trembling fists. Without another word, he teleported away. Trixie sighed. "Well...it was worth a try..." Magic 11: レッド・ファイヤー Twilight Velvet was buying a drink in the hospital lobby when Spike shambled listlessly through the main entrance. His eyes were dull; he didn't seem to see anything around him, and his arms hung limp at his sides. She rushed over. "Spike!" she cried. "Twiley-chan's awake." She looked him over. "Did you...did you find him?" Spike said nothing. Velvet frowned worriedly. "Come with me...I was just heading back to Twiley-chan's room..." Spike still remained silent, following Velvet mechanically to Twilight's room. Twilight lay in bed, still pale and fragile-looking, but wide awake; the head of the bed was inclined slightly, and she was reading. She looked up as they walked in. "Spike!" she said happily; her voice was weak. "I was wondering when...you'd..." Spike sat down beside Twilight's bed, dropping his face in his hands. His shoulders shook, and heaving sobs issued forth. Twilight frowned, setting her book down in her lap. "Spike?" "Spike, what's wrong?" Velvet asked. Spike looked up, tears streaming from his eyes. "Neechan," he sobbed, sniffling. "I...I..." "It's okay, Spike," Twilight said, reaching out and taking his hand. "It's okay." "N-no, it's n-not..." Spike whimpered. "I...I killed him. I killed...in cold blood..." Twilight gasped. "You...?" "Trixie...caught him. Tried to...wanted to t-trade him..." Spike's breath hitched, and he shuddered. "She wanted to trade him for the Elements of Harmony?" Twilight prompted gently. Spike nodded. "I...saw him...and all I could think about was you, covered in blood..." He bowed his head. "I killed him. I killed him. Oh God, I killed him..." Velvet frowned and laid a hand on Spike's shoulder. "Spike..." Twilight's eyes clouded with pain and horror. "Okaasan...maybe you should...take Spike home..." "He tried to take you away from me!" Spike suddenly shouted thickly. "I couldn't think straight...couldn't...I..." Velvet helped Spike to his feet. "Shhh...come on," she said. "We'll...we'll come back later...you need to rest..." As they left, Twilight stared down at her lap, mind whirling. "Spike..." * * * * * "You called for me noso?" Sunset Shimmer frowned at Snails. "Where's Snips?" Snails looked down. "Yeah...about that..." He handed Sunset Shimmer a slip of paper. She unfolded it with a scowl. The short fat kid's dead. Twilight Sparkle's pet ninja didn't like that little stunt with the gun. My price just doubled, by the way. —Trixie Sunset hissed angrily, clenching a fist around the note. "Dammit...!" "I can't believe he's dead either noso," Snails said. "I—" "I don't give a damn about that!" Sunset snarled. "I promised Chrysalis two sacrifices, and now I only have one!" Snails blinked stupidly. "Sacrifices? Wait, wha—" A pair of burning green eyes limned in a black cloud appeared in midair. "You can't even do something as simple as delivering your own minions to me?!" "I can get you another!" Sunset said. "It'll just be harder, that's all!" "What's going on here noso?" The green eyes burned into Snails, examining him critically. "He's pathetic." "There aren't exactly many male mages to choose from in this stupid city!" Sunset said. "This one and Snips were all I had to work with!" The voice belonging to the eyes sighed. "Oh well...I suppose it's a start." The swirling black cloud surrounding the eyes contracted. A segmented, chitinous black tendril shot out from the cloud. The end bulged ominously, dripping glowing green venom. Snails' eyes widened in horror as the end of the tendril opened wide and latched onto his face. The segments bulged, a green glow leaking between the joints as a large object travelled down its length. Snails' screams trailed off into a gurgling rattle. With a wet, whiplike snap, the tendril retreated into the black void. Glowing green veins began to crawl up Snails' neck and down his arms. His eyes rolled back in his head as he sank to his knees. Black slime oozed from his mouth. "How long's this going to take?" Sunset asked, a nauseated expression on her face. "As weak as he was? No less than a full week," the green eyes said. "I doubt what comes out of that pitiful wretch will be able to give me a strong enough daughter to replace my dear beloved Pupa...or even Papillon," she muttered. "You were saying you could get me another?" Sunset frowned. "Well...perhaps," she said. "Twilight Sparkle brought a member of the Emerald Flame Clan with her to this city. I've seen his power. He's..." She grimaced, looking down at the scars she still bore. "Let's just say if he hadn't intervened, I'd have killed Twilight and her friends before they could do this." "Interesting," the eyes said. "I'll provide you with as many of my soldiers as I can. You can't have any more of my daughters. Ever." "Of course," Sunset said. "Thank you." "If you anger me again..." The eyes flashed angrily. "I do have ways of turning a female mage into one of my brood." Cold amusement entered her voice. "You would make a powerful daughter...perhaps even as powerful as Pupa..." Sunset narrowed her eyes. "You wouldn't dare." The black cloud around the eyes roiled angrily. "I am Chrysalis, Queen of all Changelings! I do as I please, human." With that, Chrysalis' eyes disappeared. Sunset stared at what used to be Snails. A wet, filmy cocoon had begun to envelop his body. She shuddered. * * * * * As sugary bliss melted in Fluttershy's mouth, she decided she was glad she'd let herself be dragged to the cake shop she currently sat in. Seated with her at the table were Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity. Despite their friend's prognosis, the girls were still very tense and worried. Still, they'd all decided they were going to take Fluttershy out to eat cake by way of thanking her for saving Twilight Sparkle's life. She'd insisted it wasn't necessary, but the three girls refused to take no for an answer. "Do you like it?" Pinkie asked. "Oh, yes," Fluttershy said with a smile. "It's delicious." "Yeah, I'm glad Pinkie introduced us to this place," Rainbow said. Pinkie pushed a bite of cake around on her plate with her fork, a frown on her face. "Ne, Rainbow-chan," she said. "Do you really think Spike will...?" Rarity grimaced. Rainbow sighed, running a hand through her hair. "I dunno, Pinkie. I just..." She shook her head. "I don't really know Spike all that well, y'know? But...but I do know..." She looked down. "For all his bad points, he really cares about Twilight." She cut her piece of cake in half with her fork. "You saw how worried Twilight's mom was when she told us..." She glanced over at Fluttershy, grimaced, then sighed again. "I just don't..." Fluttershy looked around at the girls. Their body language and the way they flicked their eyes to each other, then hastily away from her, told her there was something going on that was very private. "If...if you'd like me to leave so you can talk about...whatever it is..." "Oh, don't be absurd, darling," Rarity said, patting Fluttershy's hand and smiling. "In fact, it's terribly rude of us to exclude you the way we are. Please forgive us." "Oh, it's alright," Fluttershy said quietly. "Nah, we're bein' jerks," Rainbow said. "It's just..." She sighed. "There's a lot goin' on, and we...don't really wanna drag you into it." "Yeah, you saved our friend's life, and we want to be your friends," Pinkie said with a smile. "But we've kinda gone through some stuff you had to be there for." "Oh," Fluttershy said. "I don't think that really helped, Pie-san," Rarity said. She smiled at Fluttershy again. "Sparkle-san, her mother, and Spike-kun are from a place rather far from Neighpon. A very small nation. Things...work differently there." She sipped her coffee. "I've only known Spike-kun a short while, but he's a fighter." "That punk that shot Twilight is from the same place," Rainbow said. "Him and his friends have pulled some pretty nasty crap before." She looked Fluttershy right in the eyes. "They kidnapped Twilight's mom a while back." Fluttershy's eyes widened. "Ki-kidnapped?" "Yeah. We got her back, though. Mostly thanks to Spike." Rainbow looked down. "When that little asshole shot Twilight, well..." She looked to the other girls. Pinkie grimaced, her hair seeming to go slightly limp. "Velvet-san seems to think Spike might...be hunting that kid down." Fluttershy frowned slightly. "To hurt him?" "To kill him, in all likelihood," Rarity said. Fluttershy gasped. "K-kill?" she squeaked. "I honestly don't blame him," Rainbow said. "I mean, shooting Twilight? That was pretty messed up. If I ever get my hands on that punk, he'd have a hard time walkin' away." "Yeah, but he needs to be sent back to Sun Island and put in prison for a long time, not...that," Pinkie said. Rainbow's phone beeped, and she pulled it out, looking at it. Her eyes widened. "Well that was fast," she muttered. "What is it?" Rarity asked. Rainbow passed her phone across the table. Rarity looked at it and paled. "Oh dear." Fluttershy peeked over Rarity's shoulder. The message on the screen was short and to the point. From: Twilight Velvet He did it. Tell the others. Fluttershy's heart pounded in her chest. Rarity passed Rainbow back her phone, a thin grimace on her face. "What do we do about this?" she asked. "We don't," Rainbow said. "We don't do anything until we talk to Twilight." * * * * * Spike sat on his bed, mechanically cleaning and oiling his weapons. The familiar, repetitive actions allowed him to zone out. He didn't want to think right now. He didn't want to feel. "Good evening, Spike." Spike frowned. "Celestia-sama." He didn't turn to look at the radiant projection which sat beside him. Celestia sighed. "I do hope you'll speak to me," she said. "I only have a short time before the sun sets where you are." "I did something terrible," Spike said in a dull monotone. "Yes, I know," Celestia said. "They're all gonna hate me," Spike said. "I just know it. I hate me." "Your friends are going to be shocked...scared, maybe. Disappointed, probably. But they won't hate you. I don't hate you. Twilight doesn't hate you." "She should," Spike grumbled. "I went too far." "Yes, you did," Celestia agreed. "There was no excuse for taking Snips' life. You acted out of rage. You're going to have to live with that for the rest of your life." Spike bowed his head. "But that will make you stronger," Celestia said. "This pain...you're going to make it part of you. You're going to grow. What you've done will haunt you for the rest of your life, but you'll atone. We all make mistakes, Spike." "Mistakes?" Spike asked bitterly. "This was a hell of a lot more than a mistake." "Nevertheless." Celestia sighed. "I'm not trying to condone what you did, but...all things considered, I have no doubt that a much worse fate awaited Snips at the hands of Sunset Shimmer." "Yeah, well...she's a murderer. I'm...not," Spike said. "I mean...I never wanted to be...I..." "I know," Celestia said. "What's done is done. The important thing now is that you don't hide from yourself. Or from your friends. Let them help you." She sighed. "I only wish I could be here in person. You look like you really need a hug right now." Spike snorted. "And before my time is up..." Celestia paused. "What happened with Snips...that was horrible, yes, and he didn't have to die. However..." She trailed off. "Yes?" Spike prompted. "On the matter of Sunset Shimmer..." Celestia sighed. "I've gone over that matter every waking minute since Twilight first told me what was going on. It's one of the hardest things I'll ever have had to do, but...I'm authorizing her execution. I hate myself for doing this to my most faithful student and her friends, but...I don't see any other way for this to end. Do you?" Spike sighed. "Not really." "Will you be able to do your part when the time comes?" Celestia asked. Spike snorted. "I think I already proved I'm capable of killing," he said. "That's not what I meant." Spike hung his head. "I won't let Neechan down," he said. "Then you need to face your friends and put this behind you, and you need to do it soon," Celestia said. "I will," Spike promised. "Good. Well...I have less than a minute left, so I'll take my leave now. But one last thing..." "Hai, Celestia-sama?" "Look at me, Spike." Spike looked up. His eyes widened. Celestia was completely nude. She smiled at him, gave him an impish wink, and faded from view. "Wow," Spike breathed. Shaking his head and laughing, he headed down to the kitchen, snatched two apples from the fruit bowl there, then teleported directly to the hospital. * * * * * Reading too long had made her dizzy and light-headed, so Twilight had opted to watch some television. She'd found something quiet and relatively interesting to watch, and was half-watching, lost in thought. "Hey Neechan," Spike's voice intruded into her thoughts. "Gah!" Twilight looked up, seeing Spike sitting next to her bed. "Could you maybe move around like a normal person once in a while? After what I've just been through, I really don't need any sudden shocks!" Spike chuckled. "Sorry." He handed Twilight an apple. "Peace offering?" Twilight rolled her eyes, took the apple, and bit into it. "Neechan...I don't expect you to forgive me for what I've done," Spike said. "I'm not gonna forgive myself, but I'm gonna move forward. I just...I just need to know you don't hate me." "Spike..." Twilight said. She reached out and took his hand. "Of course I don't hate you. I'm kinda freaked out by what happened, yeah, but..." She looked into his eyes. "Just...promise me you won't..." "I won't," Spike said. "What I did was unforgiveable, and that's one mistake I don't intend to make ever again." "Good." Twilight smiled. "So...how're you feelin'?" Spike asked. "Miserable," Twilight said. She sighed. "I hate being stuck in the hospital. Especially when Okaasan could've healed me completely in a couple of hours." "Well, it can't be helped," Spike said with a shrug. "Too many people saw you, and then the ambulance and the doctors and all...there's no choice but to let you heal normally." "Yeah, but it still sucks," Twilight said. "I'm gonna miss a lot of school because of this." Spike gave her hand a squeeze. "Hang in there, Neechan." He stood up. "I'll be back tomorrow, okay? I need to go visit everyone else...I need to know..." Twilight smiled. "Friends forgive, Spike." "I hope so," Spike said with a grimace. He disappeared in a burst of green fire. The door opened, and Twilight Velvet walked in. "I brought us a little snack and a couple of games," she said. "You just missed Spike," Twilight said. "Oh? Is he...?" "I think he's gonna be fine," Twilight said. She grimaced. "Unless Senpai is the judgmental type. If she hates him for what he did, I don't think he'll ever get over it..." * * * * * Spike found Rainbow shooting hoops in an empty lot. "Hey, how about some one-on-one?" he asked. Rainbow blinked at his sudden appearance, shrugged, and passed him the ball. For a few minutes, they played in silence. Finally, after making a three-point shot, Rainbow said, "So you got the guy, huh?" "Yeah," Spike said. "I...I shouldn't have let my anger get the better of me..." "Eh...he tried to kill the girl you love. And don't deny it. She's more than just a sister to you, isn't she?" Spike sat down on the ball. "I've been in love with Neechan for a long time, yeah," he said. "I mean, it's never gonna happen, but..." Rainbow nodded. "So, you gonna turn yourself in?" "I've already had a long talk with Celestia-sama, and she's the only one I have to answer to for this," Spike said. "I mean, other than myself...and all of you..." He stood up and passed Rainbow the ball. "So..." "Far as I'm concerned, it's one less asshole we gotta deal with," Rainbow said with a shrug. "He tried to kill Twilight, he kidnapped her mom a while back, there's no tellin' what else he's done. Doin' that Sunset bitch's dirty work, he was pretty much askin' for it." "You're handling this a lot better than I am," Spike said. Rainbow stopped dribbling the ball and held Spike's gaze. "Thanks to Sunset Shimmer, my boyfriend is dead. His best friend since grade school is dead. Who knows how many other people are dead because of her?" She looked down. "I honestly don't care how this all ends, just as long as it ends." Spike sighed. "It'd be better to seek justice than revenge. I understand that now." He dug at the blacktop with a toe. "But...it doesn't really matter either way. Celestia-sama's given the order." Rainbow blinked. "Given what order?" "As soon as Neechan's all healed up and we find the last two people that can use the Elements of Harmony, we're...we're supposed to execute Sunset Shimmer." Rainbow smiled grimly. "Best damn news I've heard all week." She bounced the ball once, then paused. "By the way, Senpai thinks Fluttershy might be the next one." "Fluttershy? The girl who saved Neechan?" Spike asked. "What makes her think that?" Rainbow shrugged. "She just says it seems awfully convenient that she keeps getting mixed up in our business." Spike frowned. "Well...we'll find out sooner or later." He waved. "I gotta go. Later, titless!" With that, he disappeared. Rainbow stomped a foot, puffing out her cheeks. "Mou...! Stop calling me that!" she cried to empty air. Then, with a smile and a chuckle, she made one last lay-up before heading for home. * * * * * So I'm super-sorry to all my fans who were waiting for the new PV, but after what happened to my friend, I'm feeling SUPER UNSMILE. If you wanna send her gifts or get-well cards, go to my website and Pinkie stopped typing when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around, expecting to see Maud... And nearly jumped out of her chair when she saw Spike. "Kyaa! You startled me!" "Sorry," Spike said. Pinkie shifted in her chair. "And...well...I'm kinda in my underwear..." "I can see that," Spike said. "No wonder you're so popular." "I'm not on the webcam!" Pinkie cried. "I've never...I mean yeah I've posted swimsuit pics, but..." Spike laughed. "Sorry to drop in without calling. I just wanted to ask if...if you hate me..." "For peeping on me in my underwear? Well...not really. I mean, it's kinda rude and all, but as long as you don't act all super-perverted, I don't mind." "Not that," Spike said. "I mean about...you know. What I did." "Oh, that." Pinkie sighed and looked down. "Did you really have to kill him?" Spike sat down on Pinkie's bed. "No," he said. "I was pissed off. I just...lost control. It's something I've gotta live with." He looked at Pinkie. "I'm not a killer," he said. "What I did...that isn't me. I...I don't do things like that." He gave Pinkie a pleading look. "Are...are we still friends?" Pinkie smiled sadly. "Of course we are," she said. "I just hope we can get a chance to really know each other without all this awful unsmile stuff happening all the time." "We will," Spike said. "Two more to go, then we can end this." Pinkie frowned. "Yeah...and then we've all gotta..." She looked down. "We gotta kill Sunset Shimmer, don't we?" "Yeah." Spike sighed. "You know...Neechan never wanted any of this to happen. To any of you." "I know she didn't," Pinkie said. "I don't blame her. I'm happy I met her. Meeting Twilight-chan and Rainbow-chan changed my life..." She looked at her hands. "Before I met them, I was really depressed. Being Smile was the only thing that made me happy...and I wasn't really happy." She looked up. "But now, I have friends and I'm really happy for the first time in my life, and I'm gonna fight to hold onto that. I'm gonna fight for my friends." Spike grinned. "Thanks, Pinkie. I'm glad Neechan met you. And not just because you have awesome boobs." "Well, I do have awesome boobs," Pinkie said with a wink. "Anyway, I'm about to go beddy-bye, and I'd rather not have any of my sisters—or worse, my parents—walk in here and see a boy in my room when I'm in my underwear, so..." "Yeah yeah, I'm gone," Spike said. He looked at Pinkie's clock and sighed. "Guess I'll have to wait until tomorrow to talk to Rarity-sama." He waved. "Later, Pinkie." As Spike disappeared, Pinkie turned back to her computer and finished typing her blog post. As soon as she posted it, she shut down her laptop, then stood and stretched. "Boy am I glad he caught me before I went to bed!" She stripped off her underwear, crawled into bed nude, and turned off the lamp by the bed. "That would've been really embarrassing," she murmured sleepily. * * * * * After breakfast, Spike went to the hospital to spend the day with Twilight. His presence caused some confusion among the hospital staff, as it was a school day, but the two mages wove a story that the staff seemed to accept, and for the most part, Spike was left alone. "I visited Rainbow and Pinkie after I left here last night," Spike said as he dropped a checker into the Connect Four board. "Neither one of them hates me." "I didn't think they would," Twilight said. "I talked to Okaasan after you left. I think she had pretty much already prepared the girls for the possibility you might...do what you did." Spike frowned. "She really thought I'd...?" Twilight turned her next checker over in her fingers, feeling the rough grooves of the pattern stamped on the plastic chip. "She said your flames turned red," she said quietly. Spike winced. "I...didn't even notice." He looked down at his tray of checkers. "It took me a few minutes to remember what that means," Twilight said. "It's been a while since I studied Emerald Flame clan lore." Spike snorted. "You may be the only person outside the clan who'd actually study it." Twilight shook her head. "Okaasan's studied it too." Spike sighed. "I remember the day Master Kouryuu taught me about red flames..." * * * * * Spike sat attentively on a straw mat. A tower of a man loomed before him: the Clan Elder and his personal mentor, Master Kouryuu. Kouryuu was the largest man on Sun Island, tall and broad and heavily muscled. His skin was lined and weathered, and his long, spiky hair and equally long, drooping mustache were pale gold shot through with bright silver. His eyes were so pale many thought he was blind. Those who had studied under him knew better. "Spike," Kouryuu rumbled in that impossibly deep voice that seemed to shake the ground he stood upon. "Today we are going to discuss emotional suppression and its importance to an Emerald Flame Dragon." "Emotional suppression?" Spike asked. "In combat, you must govern your emotions carefully," Kouryuu said. "You must keep a cool head, for losing your temper leads to haste. In your anger, you will make mistakes that can be used against you. "But control of your emotions is just as important in everyday life. Always allow yourself to feel the joy of living, the love of friends and family. Never suppress your sorrow or your passions. But anger...you must guard your anger vigilantly. "It is human nature that you will get angry. It is not possible to traverse the river of life without feeling anger or frustration. But there is a level of anger only felt a scarce handful of times throughout your life...if you're fortunate." "What they call a blind rage?" Spike asked. "Precisely." Kouryuu glared sternly at Spike. "You must never allow yourself to enter a blind rage, no matter how furious you are, no matter what has driven you to that point. If you do so, your green flames will burn red, and you will be a danger to yourself and those around you." "I don't understand," Spike said. Kouryuu sat down. A weariness overtook his stern, intimidating demeanor. "Spike...when I was a young man, the Emerald Flame Dragons had a rivalry with the Soaring Lion Eagle Clan." Spike frowned. "I've never heard of that clan." Kouryuu shook his head. "No...you wouldn't have." He sighed. "I was seventeen at the time. My mother had long since passed away, and my father had taken interest in a woman. I was old enough to understand and support his newfound love, and looked forward to welcoming my new stepmother with open arms. "His rival, the son of the Soaring Lion Eagle elder, lusted after the same woman. He fought my father viciously on more than one occasion, but always lost. He tried to persuade her to be his, but she rebuffed him. "In time, she accepted my father's marriage proposal. His rival was furious, and vowed that no man would have the woman who had rejected him. When my father arrived at the Temple of the Sun to stand beside his new bride before Celestia, he learned that she had been murdered in the night." Spike gasped. Kouryuu bowed his head. "My father's anger was terrible to behold. Only the Great Sun Sage's power was able to hold back the red flames that threatened to engulf the temple. Father left before anyone could calm him down. "I went after him, along with the other clan members and several of the Island Guard. By the time we found him..." Kouryuu took a deep breath. "By the time anyone was able to approach him, he had killed not only his rival, but every Soaring Lion Eagle on Sun Island, and had burned their compound to the ground." He looked up at Spike. "Only the scattered remnants of the clan, those who had left Sun Island, still live. With their compound and clan eldership gone, the clan is effectively dead. The last time a descendant of the Soaring Lion Eagles set foot on this island was over twenty years ago." Spike looked down, brow furrowed in thought. * * * * * Twilight gasped. "I had no idea a member of your clan had wiped out another clan entirely!" Spike nodded. "Only Emerald Flame Dragons and Celestia-sama know about it," he said. "Well, and anyone who's still alive that witnessed it. Master Kouryuu's father was exiled to an uninhabited island, and Celestia-sama worked with the Emerald Flame Dragon elders to erase all records of the tragedy. Soaring Lion Eagles who returned to Sun Island were simply told that there had been a fire that engulfed the compound, and there were no survivors." He looked down. "Celestia-sama didn't want a blood feud between the survivors and the Emerald Flame Dragons. There probably aren't even a dozen Soaring Lion Eagles still alive today." "That's terrible..." Twilight said. "I think I almost killed Trixie too," Spike said quietly. "I remember wanting to kill her...but then I remembered that she helped us out. That...snapped me out of it." He shuddered. "To think what I could've done if I hadn't come to my senses..." Twilight took his hand and gave him a gentle smile. "Hey...why don't you drop by the school later on and wait for Senpai?" Spike nodded. "That's a good idea. I hope she...you know..." "I'm sure it'll be fine," Twilight said. * * * * * Rainbow and Pinkie met up in the entrance hall after school. "You're gonna go see Twilight, right?" Pinkie nodded. "Yep. But hold up a minute, okay? I wanna grab Fluttershy-chan and take her with us." "Better hurry," Rainbow said, pointing to the shoe lockers. Fluttershy was already exchanging her uwabaki for her shoes. "Ack!" Pinkie flailed around and rushed over to Fluttershy. Rainbow snorted and followed. "Hi, Fluttershy-chan!" Pinkie said, bouncing into Fluttershy's field of vision. "Kyaa!" Fluttershy recoiled. "P-Pinkie-san...you startled me..." "We're headed over to the hospital to see Twilight-chan," Pinkie said. "You wanna come with?" "Oh. Umm...I don't know..." "C'mon," Rainbow said. "We want you to come. I know Twilight wants to see you again." "W-well...alright..." Fluttershy paused. "Oh! Gomen...I'm supposed to run an errand right now. I'll...I'll catch up with you as soon as I can, alright?" "Okay!" As the two girls left in the direction of the hospital, Fluttershy headed for the small market she and her grandmother always shopped at to buy groceries for dinner. * * * * * "Rarity-senpai? She should be in the Judo Club room. It's down that hall." "Thanks," Spike said. He walked through the hall, earning the occasional odd glance from students. He finally found a door with a sign that read "Judo Club". He opened it and walked in. A dozen students were milling about, all dressed in white gi. Most of them were male; several of them were fairly large and muscular. One of the bigger guys grunted as Spike entered. "Whaddya want, runt?" "Now now, there's no need to be rude to others," Rarity's voice chided. Spike entered fully and saw Rarity in the back corner of the room, dressed in her black and gold gi. She saw him and smiled. "Why, hello, Spike-kun! Welcome, do come in! We're just getting started, but you're welcome to sit and watch." "Arigatou," Spike said. "Oi, Rarity. What's with this kid?" the rude guy said. Rarity frowned. "Spike-kun is a friend of mine. He gave me this exquisite gi." She ran her fingers along the gold trim of her gi. "Also, his sister, also a friend of mine, is in the hospital. I expect he's come to ask me to visit her after I'm through here." "That's right," Spike said. Another girl in the room, who had gold eyes and spearmint-colored hair, peered curiously at Spike. "Your sister wouldn't be Twilight Sparkle by any chance?" Spike nodded. A round of murmurs went around the room. "Oh man...kid..." the rude guy said, rubbing the back of his head. "We all heard about it. My uncle saw the kid that did it. It totally sucks and I hope they get the little bastard." He paused. "Sorry for dissin' ya." "It's cool," Spike said. "Actually, I hear that the boy responsible has been dealt with," Rarity said, with a pointed look at Spike and an arched eyebrow. Spike wilted slightly. Rarity looked around at her fellow club members and clapped her hands. "Alright! I believe we need to work on vital strikes today, since we have our first competition in a few weeks. As usual, please show restraint when sparring with your fellow students..." The club members began pairing off; with an odd number of students present, Rarity was left without a partner. "Spike-kun? Would you be a dear and help me out?" "Uhh...yeah, okay," Spike said. "You...do know I don't do judo, right?" "Oi oi, Rarity," the same guy from earlier said, "are you sure that's a good idea? You could break this kid in half!" Spike stood up and smirked, rolling his neck and cracking his knuckles. "I never said I'm not a martial artist," he said. "I just said I don't do judo." "Which actually makes him an excellent sparring partner," Rarity said. "After all, you need to know how to face an opponent who uses a different style..." She tilted her head at Spike. "Would you like to change into a gi?" "Nah, I'm good like this," Spike said, kicking off the visitors' shoes he'd picked up at the school entrance. The other members of the club watched with interest as Spike and Rarity faced off. Most of them were clearly expecting to see Spike humiliated. What they instead saw was Spike disappear and reappear behind Rarity, aiming a knife-hand strike at her kidneys. Rarity turned to the side and deflected the strike with her arm, then dropped to take Spike's feet out from underneath him. Spike leapt over her sweep, then brought his foot down in heel kick that planted Rarity's face on the floor mats. Upon landing, he backflipped away and settled back into his ready stance. "Whoa," the spearmint-haired girl said. Rarity pushed herself up and stood. "Well. It's certainly been a while since I've tasted this floor," she said. "It could do with a scrubbing." For the next fifteen minutes, the Judo Club watched in astonishment as Spike and Rarity introduced each other to the floor, the walls, and even the ceiling with dizzying speed and ferocity. Rarity was breathing heavily and dripping with sweat, her hair completely mussed and in disarray, by the time she called a halt. "Well..." she panted. "I think...that's a good demonstration..." "Demonstration?" the spearmint-haired girl cried. "That was a freakin' street fight!" "Sorry," Spike said, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. "I guess I got a little carried away." "I was actually afraid you might hold back and not give me a proper match," Rarity said. "Hey, I was holding back," Spike said. "You don't wanna fight me when I'm goin' all out." "No...I suppose I don't," Rarity said with a sigh. "Still, that was an excellent workout. Thank you, Spike-kun." She bowed; Spike returned the bow. "Well! I believe I'm going to call it a day. Spike-kun, I'll meet you at the entrance once I've showered and changed." With that, Rarity left the club room. All eyes turned to Spike. "Where the hell'd a kid your age learn to fight like that?" "I've never seen anyone knock Senpai down." Spike laughed nervously. "Umm...eheh...gotta run!" * * * * * After dropping by the house and putting away the groceries, Fluttershy headed for the hospital. A few blocks past Umadakara, she saw what appeared to be a Sumo wrestler in a yukata pacing in circles, his geta clacking, a worried expression on his face. "Ex...cuse me?" she said timidly. "Is...is something wrong?" He looked up at her and held up a small, empty bamboo cage. "I've lost my lucky beetle," he said. "It's a very rare beetle...I've been looking everywhere for it." Fluttershy smiled. "I'll help you look...what kind of beetle is it?" * * * * * "Thank you for waiting, Spike-kun." Spike smiled as Rarity approached the school gates. Her hair was still slightly wet and shone in the late afternoon sun, and she smelled strongly of soap and shampoo. As they fell in step side-by-side, Spike said, "I haven't had a good spar like that in forever." Rarity giggled. "I was afraid you wouldn't want to fight me at all, given your..." She coughed delicately. "Rather obvious infatuation with me." Spike blushed. "Yeah, well...okay, so I do kinda have a crush on you—" "You stole my underwear. Right off my body." "—but I also respect you as a martial artist, and not giving you a good match would have been an insult." Spike looked down at the sidewalk. "So...you heard? About...that?" "Mm-hmm," Rarity said. "I...admit it bothers me that you...did what you did. But at the same time...I believe I can understand. Goodness knows if anyone hurt my dear sister Sweetie Belle, I'd probably at the very least put them in the hospital. With multiple broken bones." "It's a little more than that," Spike said. "You...you know Neechan and I aren't actually brother and sister, right?" "I did not, actually," Rarity said. "Yeah, well...I may have a thing for you, but..." Spike turned red. "Neechan...she's the one I..." "Oh," Rarity said, blinking. "I see." She cleared her throat. "Well in that case, your...reaction...becomes all the more understandable." She frowned. "Even so...laws and police and courts and prisons exist for a reason." "I know," Spike said. "And if I hadn't let my anger get the best of me, he'd be on his way back to Sun Island right now, with a cell in the dungeons waiting for him." He sighed. "I just—" He trailed off as his pendant began to glow bright green. "Oh crap, not now!" "What is it?" Rarity asked, noticing the glow. "Changeling," he muttered. The air around the two of them began to ripple. "Transform," he said, even as his own clothes were replaced with his battle attire. "Here? Now?" Rarity asked, looking around. "Hurry!" Spike snapped. Hesitantly, Rarity pulled out her locket and summoned her Element. "Element of Harmony...GENEROSITY!" Once Rarity had transformed, the two of them charged down the sidewalk. The glow of Spike's pendant grew brighter as they went. Two blocks away, they encountered Fluttershy, who was kneeling next to the base of a potted tree. Beside her stood an incongruous Sumo wrestler. "I-I'm sorry," Fluttershy said. "It's not here either." "Fluttershy!" Spike yelled. "Get away! That guy isn't human!" Fluttershy stood up and turned, her eyes widening as she saw Spike. "Eep! Anou...Spike-kun..." "Fluttershy-san," Rarity said, "please take cover immediately." She snapped her fan out to her side. "You're in danger." "Danger? What?" "You're scaring this very kind girl!" the Sumo roared, stomping a foot. "Shove it!" Spike yelled, holding up his glowing pendant. "We know you're a Changeling!" The Sumo raised an eyebrow. "Is that so? Then..." He snorted. "You must be the one I was sent here for." And with that, he transformed into a giant dung beetle. Fluttershy fell down in shock, screaming. "I'm DUNGABEET!" the Changeling roared. "Queen Chrysalis is pissed about Princess Pupa getting killed! I'll kill the girls that killed our Princess...and as for you," he said to Spike, "Our Queen wants to turn you into a Royal Drone..."