//------------------------------//
// 1/2 Cup of Packed Brown Sugar  
// Story: Heart Burns 
// by TheMessenger 
//------------------------------//


Chapter 6


The strings hung loosely in Spike's claws. He wrapped them tightly around his fingers, then released them, letting the lace droop limply in his grasp. Spike stared aimlessly around the kitchen, and his blurred reflection peeking through the recently restored crystal walls stared back, returning the troubled look he had gave them. The dragon turned away, looking instead at the countertop covered with bags and bottles and cartons. The large, aged recipe book sat opened, perched on its spine and leaned against a large bowl.

Have a nice date, you two.

Spike's fingers fumbled clumsily with the strings as he slowly coaxed them into knots. One over the other, right above left. Over and under, now pull. The knot instantly fell apart, leaving him with the two separate straps. Spike tried again, pressing down with a finger to hold the lace in place. Another loop he decided, twisting the strings around each other carefully. He lifted his finger, frowning after discovering the strings tied closely around it.

Have a nice date...

The strings released the dragon's finger after a few sharp tugs. A puff of steam flew from his nostrils as he breathed out in frustration. Taking a lace in each claw, Spike pulled at them, causing them to stretch. One over the other, right above the left. Loop around, over and under, now pull.

"Hey, Spike? You think you could loosen that? I can't breath."

Spike blinked, gasped, then immediately attacked at the apron's straps. "S-sorry, Rainbow," he said. "I don't know what I was doing."

"It's cool, it's cool," Rainbow Dash assured. "Well, besides the apron and everything," she added, patting at the cloth. "I really hope I don't get used to wearing this thing."

"I don't know why you keep complaining," said Spike as he finished securing the apron around Rainbow Dash's back. "I think it looks fine."

"Well, thanks, but it's cramping my style, you know?" Rainbow frowned. "It feels wrong. Like, Rainbow Dash in an apron?" The pegasus shuddered. "So what's up with you?"

Spike jumped off of Rainbow's back and gave her a confused look. His head was slightly leaned to the side, and the line he wore his mouth as was barely curved, betraying the uncertainty in the frown. "What do you mean?"

"You've been acting all moping ever since we met Pinkie Pie and Rarity. We've been here for an hour already, and you've barely spoken," Rainbow Dash said, crossing her forelegs. "I thought you'd at least complain when I dropped the eggs. Seriously, what's wrong? Is this about the milk bottles? I told you, it was a total accident, and I'm really sorry that happened."

Spike shook his head. "It's not that, it's...you dropped the eggs?"

"Don't worry about them, they're fine," Rainbow affirmed with a disregarding wave. "Come on, stay on topic. Was it something I did?"

"No, it's..." Spike wrung his claws together and stared at the ground. "What Pinkie Pie said's still bother me."

"Still?" Rainbow groaned. She walked over to the dragon's side. "Hey, I told, don't worry about it. you probably just misheard Pinkie, and she actually said have a nice day."

Spike scratched at his arm. "Maybe."

"Besides," Rainbow Dash continued, "it's Pinkie Pie, who knows what goes inside that head of hers? Just because she thought we were on a date doesn't mean anypony else would have."

"Are you sure?" Spike asked nervously.

"Oh come on, give Rarity some credit," Rainbow Dash exclaimed. "If anypony can tell the difference between a date and a not-date, it's Rarity. And look at us." Rainbow gestured to herself, then gently jabbed at Spike's shoulder. "What kind of pony would see the two of us walking around together and think we were going out?"

"Well, Pinkie Pie apparently," Spike answered slowly.

"Exactly, Pinkie Pie."

"Oh, right."

"So seriously dude," Rainbow Dash said, forcing Spike to look up from the ground by tapping at his forehead, "stop worrying so much. Rarity's not going to end up thinking you're suddenly taken or some other weird misunderstanding out of a cliche romantic-comedy book or something."

"Yeah, but--" Spike suddenly shook his head. "Actually, yeah, you're right. I'm just being silly right now." The dragon leapt to his feet. "We've got other things to do anyways."

"Finally, yes!" Rainbow Dash cheered, jumping into the air and performing a backflip. She quickly returned to the ground as Spike regarded her with a raised eyebrow. "What?" she challenged, rubbing her reddening snout. In hopes of hiding the blush, Rainbow turned away. "What? I just want to get this over with, that's all," she said. "What are you grinning at?"

Spike shrugged, making no attempt to wipe away the smile on his face. "Nothing, nothing," he said. "For a second I just thought you might have been excited about cooking."

"Yeah, well, you thought wrong," Rainbow Dash said as she reached for the bag of flour and used it to cover her reddening face. "One-and-a-half cups, right?"

"Hold on." Spike ran toward the counter and pulled himself up to the cookbook. He quickly flipped through the large book until he found the worn depiction of the plate carrying a stack of fluffy pancakes. Spike's finger slowly descended down the page. "Yeah, that's right, one-and-a-half cups of flour," he confirmed with a nod. "Next is the baking soda."

"Got it." Carefully balancing the spoon in her mouth, Rainbow scooped out the white powder from its bag and shook it into the mixing bowl. She repeated the action a second, and third, and finally a fourth time.

"Next is salt," Spike said, pointing. "One teaspoon."

"One...teaspoon...of salt," Rainbow Dash mumbled, shaking the spoonful of minuscule crystals into the snowy white mix. She spat the teaspoon out of her mouth and tossed it into the sink. "Okay, next is..."

"One tablespoon of sugar." Spike held up the silver utensil, which Rainbow accepted before grabbing the little brown bag decorated with a pair of black-stripped candy canes crossed over each other at the top.

"Hmm."

Spike looked up from the book. "Hmm?"

"I really want to add another spoonful," Rainbow Dash said, staring at the bag of sugar in her hooves. "It just feels like one tablespoon isn't going to cut it."

"Better not," warned Spike. "We should probably--"

"Follow the recipe, I know, I know," Rainbow finished, sighing. "I'm just thinking they'd taste better if they were sweeter."

"That's what syrup and jelly's for," the dragon said. Even as he spoke, Spike frowned and tapped the side of his cheek thoughtfully. "But I guess another spoonful wouldn't hurt," he conceded. "Go ahead."

"Right, then milk--whoa!" Rainbow Dash quickly steadied the teetering glass bottle full of milk.

"Careful, we just cleaned this place," said Spike. He lifted up a measuring cup toward her. Slowly, Rainbow poured the sweet,white liquid into the container until it had filled up right about the last measuring mark. She set the bottle down, took the cup from Spike, and added the milk to the mix.

"And now the hard part," Rainbow murmured, opening the brown carton and removing an egg. The lopsided oval rest in between the pegasus's hooves for a few seconds before shattering. Rainbow's yolk covered hooves clapped together, sending globules of egg and shells through the air. Spike flinched as one struck his nose like a sticky raindrop during a stormy afternoon.

"Dang it," grumbled Rainbow Dash. "This keeps happening."

Spike wiped his nose. "No wonder you went through so many eggs," he said, his brow raised. The dragon reached over and pulled out his own egg. "You have to be careful." With the egg gently tucked between the tips of his claws, Spike tapped against the countertop, then held the egg toward Rainbow Dash. "See?" he said, pointing at the cracks before leaning over and releasing the egg's interiors into the bowl, then tossing the shells into the skin. "It's not hard."

Rainbow frowned. "Yeah, maybe if you have claws," she said, crossing her front legs over her chest.

"Oh come on, even Twilight can crack open an egg," Spike protested.

"Twilight's got magic," responded Rainbow Dash.

"Oh, heh, right." Spike rubbed the back of his head. "So, uh, could you try holding the egg with one hoof?"

Rainbow pulled the egg carton closer to her and, with her teeth gritting together, cautiously took out an egg. It wobbled in her hoof for a couple of seconds before tumbling out of her grasp like a high diving aquapony performing at a swim meet. The imagined trill of a slide whistle rang through Spike and Rainbow Dash's minds as they watched the egg fall and splat against the floor.

"Okay, so that doesn't work," Spike noted. "Hmm."

"How does Pinkie Pie do this? Or the Cakes?" Rainbow Dash exclaimed. "It can't be earth pony magic, can it?"

"Dunno, maybe," Spike said with a shrug. "I wonder how Fluttershy cracks open eggs, if she actually eats them." The dragon drummed his claws against the mixing bowl. "I guess I could handle the eggs for you and--"

"No," Rainbow Dash answered shortly. She grabbed another egg. "I've got to do this myself now, or I won't be ready when it comes to baking that pie. This has to be one hundred percent authentic all natural Rainbow Dash, with no artificial substitutes." The little white egg followed a similar fate as the first, bursting in Rainbow's hooves and covering them with its innards. "Accept no substitutes," she growled as the fourth egg slipped out of her gooey grip and splattered against the kitchen wall. "No Pinkie Pie--"

The mess on the floor grew.

"No Spike or Twilight--"

Spike winced as he watched yolk slowly drip down from the ceiling.

"No Applejack--"

Spike quickly yanked the carton out of Rainbow Dash's reach, taking noted of its significant loss of weight. "Okay, first, doesn't getting my help in the first place count?"

"That's different. It's not like you're actually making the pie for me," Rainbow Dash explained.

"Well, what about the author who made the recipe?" Spike questioned. "Doesn't that make pie sort of theirs? I mean, you're kind of just copying what some other pony did."

"Then I'll just make my own recipe."

"In time for the bake sale?" asked Spike, the ridge over his right eye rising.

"Yeah, how hard can it be? I'll just take some boring old recipe for apple pie and change a few things," Rainbow said. "Just like in school. Now, will you give me the eggs already?" She toward the carton the dragon held.

Spike kept the eggs close. "Can I ask you something first?"

"What?" Rainbow Dash demanded, stretching her sticky hooves forward.

"Why are you so set on learning how to bake?"

Rainbow groaned. "I told you already, I told somepony I could bake, and he's showing up at the bake sale this weekend. I promised this guy pie, so he's going to get pie."

"So why can't somepony help you make the pie, but you don't tell him?" Spike inquired. "Or why not just get a pie and say you made it? I'm not saying you should lie and cheat or anything," he quickly added, "but it's not like this guy'll find out, right? I dunno, all this work just to make a pie for some random pony? It doesn't sound, well, it doesn't sound like you."

"It's not just for some random pony, he's--" Rainbow Dash shook her head. "I-it's complicated, alright? It's complicated and boring and I don't want to talk about and none of your business so drop it and hoof over the eggs so we can finish these pancakes and continue on with our lives!"

Spike stepped back, holding the carton in front of him like a shield. "R-Rainbow Dash, are you alright?"

"S-sorry, I-I'm just getting a little frustrated." The pegasus groaned. "Okay, a lot frustrated. I know I promised I wouldn't take it out on you, and I'm sorry I shouted. I just...I want to do this on my own, without needing somepony or some dragon to do it for me."

Spike placed an uncertain claw on Rainbow's shoulder. "It's okay," he said, kicking his feet awkwardly. "I shouldn't have pried. Sorry, but, uh..." Spike let out a dull chuckle. "We've been burning through eggs pretty fast. Maybe we should think of how you're going to crack them before we waste any more."

"Right, heh." Rainbow let out an embarrassed snicker. "Yeah, that's probably a good idea." She inhaled deeply. "So, any ideas?"

"How'd you get the egg in for the first patch," Spike asked. "You know, before we went shopping."

"I just threw an egg into the batter, punched it, then scooped out the shells. Hey don't give me that look, I got desperate."

"Hmm, you think you could try using your wings?" Spike suggested. "I've seen Fluttershy use hers to open bags and stuff, maybe that's how she does it?"

Rainbow Dash quickly glanced at her wings. "I don't know," she said. "I'd hate to get egg in my feathers, but it's worth a shot. Give me an egg."

Spike opened the carton and held it toward Rainbow. Rainbow Dash extended a wing and, with her tongue peeking through the space between her teeth, slowly wrapped her blue pinions around one of the few remaining eggs. Holding her breath, Rainbow lifted the egg out of its carton and moved to the countertop. She turned to the dragon next to her, who extended his thumb toward the roof. Rainbow nodded in return and let her encumbered wing drop.

She and Spike flinched at the soft sound the egg made as it tapped on the counter, next to the mixing bowl. Rainbow Dash lifted it closer toward her to examine it.

"Do it again," Spike suggested. Nodding, Rainbow tapped the egg a few more times. Her eyes widened at the sight of a crack growing across the white shell. Spike's knuckles whitened as he grabbed onto the counter and bounced on the soles of his feet. "Again," he said.

The crack became larger and darker, more visible against the white background. Rainbow Dash swallowed as she watched little lines branch from the crack like roots. She swiftly loosened her grip on the egg as she felt just how weak the structure had become. Rainbow shivered, hoping that the sensation of cold slime leaking over her feathers was entirely imaginary. "Ngh, I'm going to need another bath," she muttered.

"That's good!" Spike cheered, clapping his claws together. "Now bring it over the bowl."

Rainbow Dash obeyed, holding the fissuring egg over the rest of the added ingredients. "Okay, what next?"

"Now put the egg in."

"How?" the pegasus asked, the one-word question emphasized with irritation and slight panic.

"I dunno, um, can you move your feathers individually?"

"Are you crazy? Not without breaking one or messing up my entire feather arrangement."

"Okay, then..." Spike looked around the kitchen as he searched for an answer. "Okay, try hitting the egg against the edge of the bowl. Carefully."

Rainbow raised an eyebrow but followed the suggestion. Despite all her efforts in softening the blow, bits and pieces of the shell chipped off, and the insides slowly oozed out through the holes. "Spike..."

"Now hold it over the bowl and squeeze gently."

The cyan wing was lifted over the bowl. Rainbow sighed, shut her eyes, and braced herself for the disgusting feel of yolk in her feathers as they pressed against the egg. The egg cracked even further under the applied pressure, and more egg slowly dripped through, landing into the pancake mix.

"Okay, so I just realized you're going to need to wash your wings."

Rainbow bit back a scowl. "What ticked you off, the egg in my feathers?"

"No, I mean before we start cooking," Spike expanded, "if you're going to use them like that, unless we cover your wings with something. Maybe I have another apron, no wait, I've got an oven mitt from Pinkie Pie, maybe we can use that."

"Wait, you want to cover my wings with something?" Rainbow shook her head rapidly several times. "No way pal, that's not happening."

"Well we have to do something with them," Spike said. "It's either that or washing them every time before you start cooking."

"Ugh," groaned Rainbow. "Are you serious? Come on, I didn't have to brush my teeth every time I washed my hooves, and I've been using my mouth almost as much."

"Yeah, I've been thinking, maybe you should. Also, you can throw the shells into the sink now."

"Throw the shells..." Rainbow turned and stared at the empty hollowed husk gripped in her feathers. "Wait, did I just--"

The pegasus leaned over the mixing bowl and stared into it. Her eyes grew as she saw an island of yellow on top of a milky hill. "I did it," Rainbow whispered. "Oh my gosh, I got the egg in. I got the egg into the mix without any of the shells."

Spike looked into the bowl. "Actually, I think I see a few--"

Rainbow Dash laugh. "Aw yeah, I got this!" she yelled, leaping up and tossing the shells into the air. Just as they were about to hit the countertop, Rainbow slammed her hoof on them, crushing the shells into millions of tiny flying shards. Spike instinctively covered his face, and the pieces bounced harmlessly off his scales. "Heh, sorry," Rainbow said sheepishly under the dragon's glare.

"Do you think you could celebrate a little less crazily?" he pleaded. "We kind of need the kitchen after all this. Like, I don't know, maybe just a small cheer or something like that, please?"

"Yay?"

"Yeah, that'll work," Spike said. Using a spoon, he slowly fished out a few small gooey white chips out of the bowl and tossed them into the skin. "Alright, and finally three table spoons of melted butter."

"Wait, melted?" Rainbow Dash picked up one of the yellow stick and stared at it. "Shoot, did we buy the wrong butter?"

"I don't think you can buy melted butter," Spike said as he took the bar of butter and set it on a plate in front of him. He placed the tablespoon under the heavy stream released from kitchen sink's faucet, washing away the last goops of yolk before drying the utensil with a few quick swings in the air. "We have to melt the butter ourselves," he said, digging out a spoonful out of the golden stick. The dragon drew in a breath and released it as a small trail of bright viridescent flame right beneath the spoon's bowl. Once the chunk of butter became a puddle, Spike held the spoon out to Rainbow Dash.

"It doesn't count as me doing it for you if you add the butter yourself, right?" Spike said, noticing Rainbow's hesitation. "Look, you could just do that over a stove or something, but my way is way faster."

Rainbow Dash regarded the spoon with a frown. She stared at it, prodding it cautiously. Once she was confident that the metal handle was safe to take, she accepted the melted butter, holding the spoon carefully in between her teeth. She leaned over the bowl and dipped the spoon into the bowl, letting the liquified butter soak into the flour.

"Two more," Rainbow muttered, stabbing the spoon into the butter stick and shoveling up a generous portion. "Alright Spike, light it up."

Now Spike began to hesitate. "I don't know," he said, staring at the spoon Rainbow was jabbing into his face. "That's pretty dangerous. What if I miss and end up hitting you?"

"Then just be careful, like what you did before," Rainbow said as clearly as she could.

"Yeah, I don't know if I can. Maybe you could just give it over to me, and I'll give it back after the butter's ready."

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "Oh come on, it doesn't sound that hard. Quit wasting time."

"Have you tried breathing fire?" Spike exclaimed. "It's not easy keeping it under control. It's way harder than I make it look. Do you want to lose your eyebrows?"

"Eyebrows are overrated," Rainbow scoffed. "Spike, you're the best fire spitter I know--"

"I'm the only fire spitter you know."

"Yeah well, yeah, doesn't change the fact that you've got some pretty awesome fire breathing skills. Believe me, you're not gonna end up setting me on fire or anything," the pegasus assured.

Spike bit his lip. "Hmm, I don't know."

A muffled groan escaped Rainbow. "If you can't trust yourself, can you at least trust me?" she asked, bordering on pleading.

"Are the few seconds we'd save by not swapping the spoon between us every time really worth the risk?" asked Spike, his head tilted to the side and his brow slightly furrowed.

"Yes!" was Rainbow's exasperated answer.

"And you know we're just wasting time by arguing, right?"

"Yes! Spike, hurry up!" Rainbow growled. She flinched as emerald flames flew by, covering all of the exposed portions of the spoon she held. The fire vanished almost as immediately as it appeared, leaving behind a few dying sparks. Rainbow Dash almost went cross-eyed as she tried to stare at the glowing utensil in her mouth. Droplets of butter fell to the floor.

Spike covered his mouth, the green of his eyes shrunken into tiny dots painted on a large whitewashed wall. "Oh gosh," he gasped. "I'm so sorry, I-I guess I was surprised or something, I don't know. I-I didn't mean to--"

Rainbow's breathing slowed to normal as she felt the spoon cool. With a shrug, she pour the butter into the mix. "It's cool, it's cool," she said. "See, even still have my eyebrows, you did fine. Besides," she added, smirking, "you've got to admit, that was pretty darn radical."

"Well..." Spike sighed. "Yeah, I guess."

"So, one more tablespoon?" Rainbow asked, reaching for the plate of butter.

"You know, I think two tablespoons is probably enough."

"What happened to sticking to the recipe?" Rainbow questioned as she returned with another chunk of butter.

"We already changed it by adding an extra spoonful of sugar, I think they'll be fine with a little less butter." Spike grabbed the spoon from Rainbow and popped its contents into his mouth. "What?" he said to the staring pegasus while he chewed.

"That's just gross," Rainbow said, shaking her head in disgust. "Baked bads made out of worms and dirt's one thing, but just plain butter, without anything else?" She stuck her tongue out. "Bleh."

Spike licked his lips. "Geez, you too? Pinkie Pie's the only one who understands," he grumbled before setting the spoon in the sink. He grabbed a new one from the drawer, this spoon larger and made of wood. Spike stabbed the spoon into the center of the doughy blend and pushed the bowl toward Rainbow. "Alright, now mix."

Rainbow Dash stared at the wooden handle sticking out of the mixture like a branch in mud. She extended her next, turned her head to the side, and grabbed the spoon with her mouth. Muffled grunts spilled through her teeth as she tried to push and prod the spoon through the mix. Saliva soaked into the spoon, and Rainbow Dash felt the crick in her neck before she heard the painful crack, shortly followed by another loud snap as she bit through the wood.

"Try using your hooves," Spike suggested as the dragon removed the utensil from Rainbow's mouth. He cringed as his claws ran over deep teeth marks and splinters. Spike quickly retrieved a replacement, placing the new spoon in Rainbow Dash's hooves.

The pegasus poked the dough a few times before thrusting the spoon into the bowl like a knife. Some pancake mix landed on her apron. With her jaws grinding together, she forced the spoon through the blend, then dragged it along the sides of the bowl.

"You have to get the center too," instructed Spike. Rainbow Dash nodded shortly before pulling the spoon toward her through the middle of the bowl, splitting apart a yolk. From the center, she moved the spoon toward the bowl's edges in a spiral fashion. She repeated the motion, moving toward the center, then circling outward, then returning to the center. She began to pick up speed, slowly at first, like the initial build of a tornado, then into a full blown hurricane. Pancake batter escaped the bowl, finding new homes on the floor, the countertop, Rainbow's nose.

Spike grabbed the pegasus's hoof, stopping her. "Carefully," he said. "And you have to do it more evenly, like this." With the cyan leg still in his claws, he whirled the spoon through the batter, cutting through the thick mixture with relative ease. The spoon pushed through in an oval shape rather than Rainbow's messy spiral. It dipped down into the mix and surfaced, revealing the chunkiness hidden near the bottom of the bowl. Soon, however, the uneven pieces of flour and egg and milk vanished, blended together with the rest of the smooth mixture as they forced the spoon forward. 

"Spike?"

"Yeah?"

"I think I got it, you can let go now," Rainbow said.

"R-right, sorry." Spike swiftly released Rainbow Dash's hoof as the pegasus turned to the side and coughed. The dragon rubbed the back of his claw as awkwardly as the silence that soon grew to saturate the room. The soft clicks the wood made against the metal sides only seemed to accentuate the embarrassing quiet.

"Done, I think," Rainbow announced after a few minutes.

"Huh?" Spike shook himself out of his stupor and peered into the bowl. The mix stared back, even and smooth and all the same tannish color. Spike stuck out his claw with the thumb up, and Rainbow found herself wearing the same silly grin the young dragon wore. Spike clapped his hands together. "Alright, the mix is finally done. Are you ready to cook some pancakes or should we take a break first?"

"Uh, hello? Did you forget who we're dealing with?" Rainbow Dash laughed.

"Whom," Spike immediately corrected. He cringed before the word finished leaving his mouth and mentally kicked himself.

"What?"

Spike rolled his eyes. "Sorry, I guess I did forget for a second," he said with a snicker, his previous shameful display forgotten.

"Well then, let me remind you pal. The name's Rainbow Dash, fastest and most radical pegasus in Equestria, future Wonderbolt and master chef. Does that sound like the kind of pony who needs a break?" she challenged, smiling confidently.

"Can you--"

"And no, I won't stop jumping on the countertop. Seriously, I think I get why Pinkie does it all the time."

"Well, be more careful," Spike said, scowling as he pulled the bowl of pancake mix away from Rainbow's hooves. "I get it, no breaks, now get down already and hand me that spatula."

Rainbow Dash glanced below her. "Okay, which one's the..."

"You're pointing at the whisk," said Spike. The dragon placed his claws over his hips. "You know, that thing that looks like a stick with a flat thing at the end."

"A flat thing?" Rainbow repeated.

"You know, like a...a...a fin! Yeah, like a fin."

"Can you just point it out for me?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"The thing next to your left leg. No, your other left leg," Spike instructed. "As in your left hind leg. How do you not know what a spatula is?"

"I just called it the flipper or the turner," Rainbow replied, grabbing the tool and leaping back onto the floor. "I didn't think their names were all that important. What, do you know what all the types of clouds are called?"

"Sure, white puffy and gray stormy." Spike placed the bowl back onto the counter and took out a shiny frying pan. He placed the pan on the stove, then moved the mix and a clean plate to the counter adjacent to the stove. "Okay, you're going to watch me make one pancake, then it's your turn."

"Can't you just run through the steps while I do the baking?" Rainbow Dash suggested.

"Would you rather try it yourself after seeing how it's done or have me order you around for a bit?" asked Spike, his claw opened and outstretched as he silently asked for the spatula.

"Good point," Rainbow Dash said before relinquishing the utensil to her teacher. "Okay then, show me how it's done."

"Right," Spike said with a nod. "So first you--"

Three loud bumps rang through the castle and into the kitchen. Spike turned toward the direction of the castle entrance.

"It's probably just the wind," Rainbow assured. "Come on, let's start already."

"Okay." Spike turned one of the nobs sticking out in front of him. The stove began to hiss softly, and both his and Rainbow's noses wrinkled at the scent of gas.

Three more knocks stole Spike's attention. "I should probably get that," he said, shutting off the stove. "It might be Twilight."

"Doesn't Twilight have a key or something?"

"Well, if she does, why is she knocking?" Spike swallowed. "You don't think...Pinkie Pie?"

More knocking echoed through the room. "Alright, let's go," Rainbow said. "I'll keep an eye on you from a distance and rush in if there's trouble."

"At a distance?"

"Yeah, there's no way I'm letting anypony catch me wearing an apron," the pegasus hissed. "Hey, remember who you're dealing with. I'll get you out of there at the first sign of trouble."

"Whom--never mind." Spike shook his head and hurried out of the kitchen. "I'm coming, I'm coming!" he shouted down the hall, uncertain if whoever was knocking could hear him. He weaved past the bare bookcases in the front foyer. He looked behind him, hoping to catch some evidence that Rainbow was still behind him somewhere. After seeing a blue hoof wave at him from behind one of the bookshelves, Spike pushed open the door, squinting as sunlight beamed into the castle. Once his vision had adjusted, the dragon noticed the trio of stallions standing before him.

The largest was red with a blond mane, with a large green apple on his flank and an old dusty harness around his back. The stallion on his left was of a light tan color, his mane brown and flattening near the top while slightly curled at the bangs and near the bottom. Three blue horseshoes served as his cutie mark. On the very left was a blue stallion with a darker blue mane and two pairs of eight notes on both flanks.

"Hey, Spike," the tan stallion greeted. His gaze drifted past the dragon's face, to the stained apron that covered his scaly chest and stomach. "We, uh, catch you in the middle of something?" the stallion asked.

Spike quickly smoothed out the wrinkly hills and valleys in the pink cloth and tried to beat off the powdery residues of flour. "Yeah, something like that," he said. "What's up, Caramel?"

"Is Princess Twilight around?" Caramel asked, peeking inside. "We need a book, you know, something that tells us that as long as the hoofball passes the line and is being held, the touchdown's good."

"You mean something that tells us that the guy holding the hoofball has to be completely over the line for the touchdown to count," snapped the blue stallion.

"Oh, quiet, Notes," Caramel said with a roll of his eyes. He turned back to the dragon in the doorway. "So can you grab the princess and help us settle this once and for all?"

"What makes you think Twilight would know anything about hoofball?" Spike asked. "She's not much of a fan for sports."

"Yeah, but we figured she'd have a book or something," Noteworthy explained. "Right, Big McIntosh?"

"Eeyup," said the large red stallion, nodding his head.

"Sorry guys, Twilight's at a meeting with the mayor and, well," Spike sighed, "we don't have any books at the moment. Remember, we're having that bake sale this weekend?"

"Oh, right. Is it this weekend?" Caramel said. "Well, we were kind of hoping something survived, or at least Princess Twilight knew the rules. I mean, she likes rules, right?"

"Well, I--"

"I guess it doesn't really matter," Noteworthy said. "I can settle for a draw. We should probably go see how Thunderlane's muzzle is doing, I don't think we gave him enough ice." The blue stallion whistled. "Rumble's got one heck of a tackle."

"I could--"

"I'd be more worried about his ego," Caramel cackled as he followed his friend. Big McIntosh gave Spike a hasty nod and a mumbled apology before retreating after the other two, leaving the dragon alone at the empty entrance.

"Caramel's right!" Spike called out toward the trio in the distance, already too far away to hear. Grumbling quietly to himself, he closed the door and started back to the kitchen. Rainbow Dash soon joined him, walking a step or two ahead of him.

"They could have asked me," Spike grumbled.

Rainbow Dash looked her shoulder. "Huh?"

"They could just have asked me," repeated Spike. He quickened his pace so that he now march side to side with Rainbow. "I know the rules. I love hoofball."

Rainbow blinked "Really?" she said.

"Yeah. Well, okay, maybe love's a bit strong. I like hoofball," Spike amended. "I mean, I don't know if I'd actually enjoy playing it, I've never tried it, but watching ponies play is always fun."

"Huh, wow, didn't expect to learn that about you," Rainbow said as they entered the kitchen.

Spike picked up the spatula he had left on the counter. "How come?" he asked.

"You read comic books, wear pink, are half my size, and was raised by the greatest egghead in history." The pegasus shrugged. "The whole sports fan thing, for a full contact sport involving a bunch of muscle bound knuckleheads ramming into each other, it doesn't exactly fit your image."

"Like cooking doesn't really fit yours?"

"Exactly. Speaking of which..." Rainbow gestured to frying pan waiting for them on the stove. "So show me what I've got to do."

With a few turns on the nob, a small flame sprouted out of the stove's mouth, licking the bottom of the frying pan. Spike lifted the bowl of pancake mix over the pan, tilting it slightly to the side. "Do you want me to explain what I'm doing or do you just want to watch?" he asked.

"I think I'll just watch from up here," Rainbow answered as she hovered over the stove, keeping herself steady with each wing beat.

"You sure you can see?" Spike asked, looking up.

"Yeah, I'm good, go on," the pegasus prompted. Spike nodded and began to slowly pour batter onto the sizzling pan. Once the mix covered a good portion of the pan's floor, creating a small creamy circle, Spike set the bowl to the side. He leaned forward and watched as small bubbles formed and popped in the batter. The blue flames shrunk as Spike adjusted the gas. The dragon slid the spatula underneath the batter and lifted up the side of circle, examining the bottom and noting its golden color.

With one claw holding the spatula and the other wrapped tightly around the pan's handle, Spike carefully flipped the pancake over, revealing the brown cooked side completely.

"Wait, you're not going to toss it in the air?" Rainbow Dash asked, frowning.

"You hovering right above me makes me nervous," the dragon admitted as he pressed the pancake with the spatula's blade, making a soft hissing sound. A thin trail of steam drifted lazily up. "I don't want to hit you in the face with a hot pancake."

"That sounds like something out of a bad joke," Rainbow scoffed.

"Heh, yeah, that does sound kind of silly," Spike admitted, flipping the pancake over again. "Can you grab the plate?" He set the spatula down, grabbed the pan's handle with both claws, and gently shook the hot cake onto the plate Rainbow Dash held out toward him. "There, one pancake," he said with a triumphant grin as he put the pan back on the stove and wiped his claws on his apron.

Rainbow stared at the pancake she held. "Is that it?" she asked.

"It's harder than it looks," Spike said, taking the plate from the pegasus. "You ready to give it a try?"

"Ha, as if you needed to ask," Rainbow Dash laughed before taking her place in front of the stove. Spike pushed the bowl of mix toward her, which Rainbow accepted and tipped it over.

"Wait, not so much," Spike said, grabbing the pegasus's foreleg. A large glob of batter leaped out and splattered against their aprons as Rainbow jerked the bowl back. "S-sorry," he said as he let go of Rainbow Dash's hooves. She shrugged and patted the sticky spot on the pink cloth protecting her front.

"Next time just give me a warming," Rainbow Dash suggested, turning back to the frying pan. In the center sat a shapeless blob with many arms reaching toward or over the edges. She frowned as she compared the mess she had made to the near perfect circle that was Spike's pancake.

Spike grabbed the spatula laying on the counter and gave it to Rainbow Dash. "Here," he offered. "You can fix it pretty easily with this." The pegasus took the tool with a nod of understanding and prodded at her pancake, cutting off its limbs and feeding them to the main body. Switching between holding the utensil with her mouth and with her hooves, Rainbow reshaped the bubbling batter until it looked more like a simple cloud than something out of a biology manual.

"Good enough," Rainbow muttered as she dropped the spatula into her hoof. She set the blade parallel to the pan's bottom and struggled to wedge it between the pan and the cake. She slid the spatula back and forth and wiggled it to the sides. As she raised the pancake to peek at its underside to gauge her progress, just as Spike did, a large tear ran through the edge of the pancake towards the center. Awkwardly, Rainbow rotated the spatula to the side and tilted her head.

"It's--"

"Shh, I know," Rainbow said, licking her lips. She forced the spatula forward, ignoring the additional fissures that appeared in the hardening mix. She pulled the tool back, attacking the the pancake at a different side, at a new angle. She chipped away at the pancake's hold on the pan until finally it was free. Taking the spatula in her mouth, Rainbow twisted her head and folded one half of the flapjack over the other, sandwiching the uncooked batter in between. A low growl escaped the pegasus as she forced apart the halves that clung stubbornly together thanks to the sticky mix in the middle.

At last, the raw side of the pancake now sizzled against the hot pan. Rainbow took a moment to rub her forehead against her foreleg. "Ugh, that was painful."

"Eh, it could have been worse," said Spike, pulling himself up to look into the pan. "At least it's still intact. Try again."

The spatula's blade dug under the sizzling mix, clinging desperately to the pan as Rainbow Dash forced it up. She turned the tool and let the pancake fall back onto the pan. As the spatula drove back under the pancake and flipped it over, Rainbow began to grin. "Hey, alright, I think I'm getting the hang of it," she said, nodding confidently. 

"See, it's not that hard," Spike said. The dragon let go of the counter and let himself drop to the floor. He quickly dusted his claws against his apron. 

"Not that hard?" Rainbow tossed her head and scoffed. "Psh, this is easy! Are you telling me the hard part was getting all the ingredients together? A pie's going to be a cinch, all I've gotta do is shove it in an oven."

"It's burning."

"Huh?" Rainbow turned back to the stove and groaned. "Oh, horse feathers," she grumbled as she tried to peel away the charring pancake off the pan's bottom. "Just, give me a sec, let me just...Spike, get me a plate!"

"Well, it's edible, at least," Spike said as Rainbow dumped her partially blackened, lopsided pancake on top of his. A few burnt flakes sprinkled on the lumpy mass. Its edges were uneven and rough from the burning, with trails of black smoke still rising from them. Spike ripped off a chunk from the lightest side and threw it into his mouth. "Yep," he said as he chewed, "way better than your first one."

"Not like that was hard to do," Rainbow muttered and frowned.

"You said it, not me," Spike said before folding what was left of Rainbow's pancake in his own and taking a large bite out of the wrap. 

Rainbow shook her head. "Whatever, I just need more practice, where's the mix?" She tipped the bowl and made another blob of batter in the center of the pan. She smoothed the borders of the pancake so that it resembled more of a circle than a beat-up cloud. Rainbow inhaled deeply. "Okay, so how do I know when it's done?"

"When it's brown, I guess," Spike instructed as he licked his claws then stuck them under a running faucet.

"What, that's it?" Rainbow Dash asked. "Just wait for it to turn brown?"

"Yeah, so pay attention," Spike said, pointing at the pan. The pegasus immediately lowered her gaze to the pancake. "And you need to check both sides," Spike added, prompting Rainbow to toss the flat cake onto its other side. "Pancakes don't take very long to cook, you don't have to wait very long."

"Well, that's good," said Rainbow as she flipped the pancake over. "I can handle fast. Where's the plate?"

"On your left. There, perfect!" Spike exclaimed clapping his hands together. He rushed to Rainbow's side and held the plate up. "See, it looks great."

Rainbow stared at the little pancake sitting under her nose. Small invaginations blemished the sides, and the brown shade was uneven throughout the pancake's body; some sections were darker than others, even bordering on black. "Great, huh?" she said with a frown.

"Okay, maybe not great-great," Spike amended, deflating a bit. "Seriously, Rainbow Dash not taking a compliment? Whatever happened to 'everything I do is awesome'?"

"Okay, one, I don't sound like that, and I don't talk like that, and I don't think I've ever said that. Two, I take compliments I deserve, which is often since everything I do is awesome." Rainbow allowed herself a small smirk as Spike rolled his eyes and snickered. The smile swiftly vanished and she pointed at the pancake in front of her. "Well, except this isn't awesome. It doesn't even look half as good as yours did."

"Well, it's definitely pretty good for your first day," Spike insisted. "I mean, you don't want to know what happened when I first tried making pancakes."

"What happened?"

The dragon shuddered. "I just told you, you don't want to know." Spike reached over and patted Rainbow's shoulder. "I bet you're sick of hearing this, but you'll get better with practice. Look how much better this one was than your last one, and don't forget how much better that one was than your first attempt."

"Ugh, don't remind me," Rainbow said, shaking her head even as a smile lit across her face. She sighed and closed her eyes. "There really wasn't any way I could've done worse than that."

"Want a bite?"

"Huh?" Rainbow turned and found half of her latest creation held a few inches away from her muzzle in Spike's claws. Crumbs dotted the dragon's lips and cheeks as he chewed on the other half. 

Spike swallowed and wiped his lips. "Here," he offered. "It tastes pretty good, and that's what matters, right?"

Rainbow Dash stared at the torn pancake in Spike's claw. She turned to the dragon, who gave her an encouraging nod. Rainbow sighed and leaned forward, tearing off a large chunk with her teeth. Her mouth moved slowly, and her cheeks swelled slightly. 

"Well?" Spike asked as Rainbow swallowed. "I mean, yeah, I guess it could some jam, maybe a few emeralds--whoa!" the dragon yelped as the rest of the pancake was suddenly ripped out of his grasp. 

"Yeah, it could definitely use some syrup," Rainbow agreed, spraying bits and pieces of pancake as she spoke and chewed. "It wasn't awesome...but it wasn't the worst thing I've eaten," she said with a small smile. "Yeah, you know what? It wasn't too bad."

Spike brushed his claw against his front and lifted the mixing bowl. "We still got a lot of batter left," he said, "ready for another shot?"

Rainbow Dash grabbed the spatula and set a hoof on her flexing foreleg. "You know it," she declared, smirking. "Now hoof over the--"

The kitchen door flung open, and in stepped Twilight. Tuffs of hair stubbornly shot out of her mane, with more rebellious strands springing out with every tired step the alicorn took. Dust coated her body, dulling the lavender shine of her fur. She kept her head low as she approached the stove. Spike and Rainbow shared a look before placing down their utensils and rushing to the princess's side. 

"Twilight, are you--" Spike began.

"Please tell me dinner's soon," Twilight Sparkle begged, collapsing and grabbing Spike's apron. 

"Dinner?" Rainbow said, raising an eyebrow. "A little early don't you--oh yikes, wow," she exclaimed as she noted what number the hour hand of the kitchen clock pointed to. 

"It's already that late?" Spike lowered his head. "S-sorry Twilight," he said, trying to knock off the persistent dirt from the princess's neck. "I lost track of time. Don't worry, I-I'll--"

"It's fine, Spike," Twilight assured with a weary smile. "It looks like the two of you were hard at work," she said. She clenched her teeth tightly to contain a yawn. "It's fine," Twilight continued, "we can just go out to eat or something."

"Actually, how do pancakes sound?"

Twilight slowly raised her head toward Rainbow Dash. "Pancakes?" she repeated.

"Yeah, some good old one hundred percent natural Rainbow Dash pancakes for dinner," Rainbow said, rubbing her hoof on her chest. "Not a big deal, bet I could whip some up in no time."

Twilight turned to Spike, giving her assistant an asking look.

"We've got plenty of sauces and topping to drown out the taste," he joked. "Though maybe you should stick to fruit tonight."

"Hey!" Rainbow Dash growled.

"No, really, they're not bad," Spike said. "Pretty good even, and it won't take long. Dinner'll be read by the time you finish taking a bath."

"Okay then. A bath does sound good right now." Twilight started toward the kitchen exit, taking a few steps, then turned her head and giggled. "I'm sorry," she said, "it's just, this is all just a little surreal."

"What, me making dinner?" Rainbow Dash asked in mock defensiveness undermined by her smile as she crossed her forelegs over her chest.

"Actually, I'm more troubled by the idea of having breakfast for dinner. What are we supposed to eat tomorrow morning?" The alicorn snorted. "But now that you mention it, you wear that apron well, Rainbow Dash."

Spike's snickers joined Twilight's trailing laughter while Rainbow Dash groaned and tugged at the lacy pink cloth over her. "See, pink does look good on you," Spike teased.

"Ha ha, laugh it up," Rainbow grumbled as she retrieved the spatula. "Pass me the pancake mix."


*


Steam billowed out of the bathroom and Twilight, dressed in a pink bathrobe, stepped out and sighed. "Oh, I definitely needed that," she said to herself with a shudder. Her smile turned to a grimace as her stomach rumbled in want. She giggled and shook her head. "Yeah, and I guess I could also use some dinner," Twilight said, taking hold of the bathrobe with her magic and removing it before making her way down the hallway. 

Spike was waiting for her at the end of the hall. Seeing the alicorn approach, he leapt up and ran to her side. "Geez, what took you so long?" he asked, placing his hands on his hips as he followed Twilight into the dinning room. "Rainbow Dash had to leave, by the way."

"I had a pretty rough day," Twilight said. "I think I deserve a two hour bubble bath once in a while."

"As long as you left me some hot water," the little dragon said, taking a seat at the table. Before him was a plate with a stack of two brown pancakes and a bowl of oats. Twilight sat down in front a similar arrangement, though her bowl was larger than Spike's. A jug of milk sat in the center of the table, along with a bowl of strawberries and blueberries and a dispenser of amber syrup. The princess stared woefully at her tiny stack as Spike grabbed the syrup dispenser and drowned his pancakes with syrup. "Something wrong?" Spike asked, noticing Twilight's disappointed look.

Twilight quickly shook her head. "Sorry, it's just I was hoping...is this it?" she asked, wincing as the needy whine escaped her. 

"We, uh, made a few mistakes earlier," Spike explained, "wasted a lot of the mix. We have cereal if you're still hungry," Spike offered, pointing to the bowl of oats in front of Twilight. "Is that okay? I can try making something else if you want."

"This is fine, Spike," assured Twilight, giving her assistant a smile as she took the syrup and the bowl of fruit. "Sorry if I sounded like I was complaining. It looks great, I'll have to let Rainbow Dash know next time I see her."

"She's coming back tomorrow for more practice," Spike said with his mouth full. He poured some milk over his oat and washed down the pancakes with a gulp of milk. "I think we'll try something harder tomorrow, like cookies or maybe even a cake."

"You think she's ready for that?" Twilight questioned as she carefully arranged the blueberries and strawberries in perfect even ratios before pouring syrup over the pancakes in straight crisscrossing lines.

Spike struggled. "I think so," he said. "At least, I hope so. We don't have a lot of time left before the bake sale."

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Twilight asked. "I mean, I know I don't have a lot of personal experience with baking, but there must be something I can do."

"Nah, that's okay," Spike said as he took another bite out of his pancakes. "I guess you could always taste test, but you're busy enough as it is. What happened today anyways? You looked horrible."

"Thanks for the honest assessment," the princess grumbled with a roll of her eyes. "I had to cut my meeting with the mayor short to help Applejack. A hydra wandered onto Sweet Apple Acres from Froggy Bottom Bog that had to be dealt with."

Spike choked on his milk. "A-a hydra?" 

Twilight nodded. "Yeah, how it got there is still a mystery," she said while adding milk to her cereal. "But at least it wasn't hostile, just a little confused and lost. Well, it was until somepony threw a hoofball at it."

"Yikes," Spike said with a low whistle. 

"No kidding," said Twilight as she lifted the fork to her lips. "So that was the majority of my day, fighting off multi-headed monsters before being lectured by Fluttershy. And..." Twilight suddenly went silent, leaving the sentence unfinished. Spike lifted his head and watch Twilight set the fork on the plate and chewed slowly. She swallowed and smiled at the dragon sitting across from her. 

"Looks like you've been pretty busy yourself," she said as she took up the fork and began to tear the pancakes into chunks. "Rainbow Dash's definitely improved," Twilight praised with her mouth full.

Spike threw his fist up into the air and screamed, "Yes!" His chair clattered against the floor as he leapt to his feet. Spike, with his cheeks bright pink under Twilight's stare and in the presence of her raised eyebrow, immediately set the seat upright and sunk into it. "I-I mean, I bet Rainbow's going to love hearing that."

"Oh Spike," Twilight giggled. "There's nothing wrong with a teacher taking a little pride in the success of their students. Rainbow Dash is improving because you're teaching her. You're doing a good job, Spike."

"Heh, ah well..." Spike's blush deepened, and he rubbed the back of his neck. He coughed and stuck out his chest. "Of course, I mean, come on, it's me," Spike said, his chest puffed out like a bird. "I'm like the..." Spike stared down at his claws and counted silently, lowering fingers and raising them. "...fif--six...no, seventh best cook in Ponyville," he finished proudly as Twilight shook in a effort to contain her laughter. 

"I think you've been spending too much time with Rainbow," the alicorn snickered as her assistant lowered himself into his seat. "Her ego's been rubbing off on you."

"Heh, maybe," Spike said, shrugging. "It's actually kind of fun, teaching Rainbow, I mean."

Twilight smiled. "Well I'm glad you're enjoying your time with Rainbow Dash," she said. "Remember how reluctant you were before? Hmm..." 

Her thoughtful hum drifted down the table. "Something wrong?" Spike inquired as the sound passed him. Twilight shook her head.

"Nothing's wrong," she assured, "there's just something I want to ask Rainbow Dash tomorrow. that's all. She wasn't too keen about being your student at first, so I was wondering if her attitude's changed just like yours did."

"Well, I think she's having fun," Spike said as he wrapped blueberries and strawberries in a syrup-soaked pancake. 

"Really? Because it sounded like the two of you were about to rip each other apart when I stepped in this morning."

Spike waved his claw. "Yeah, but that was that morning. You should have seen her when we were cracking eggs..."

The plates and bowls slowly emptied as Spike's tale continued between mouthfuls. The windows darkened as the day gave way to evening, the orange sky replaced by a sheet of dark blue sprinkled with lights. Even as the princess and her assistant cleared the table and cleaned the dishware, Spike chatted about his and Rainbow's trip to the marketplace and all the little steps they took before Rainbow Dash finally made the pancakes now inside them.

"Sounds like the two of you had one pretty exciting day," Twilight was saying as she led the little dragon down the hall, toward the bedroom. "In all honesty, I never thought Rainbow Dash would have expressed this much enthusiasm for cooking."

"Me neither," Spike said, shuffling closely behind. "Then again, I never thought I'd ever see Rainbow Dash read willingly."

"Hmm, well she gave reading a chance because she found a book that was interesting..."

"Maybe I'm just that good of a teacher, huh?" Spike suggested. Twilight rolled her eyes at Spike's smirk.

"Whatever you say, Spike," she said, playfully jabbing at the dragon's belly before sighing. She opened the door and walked straight to the large bed in the center of the room. "We'd better go to bed soon, tomorrow's going to be another long day."

"Yeah, for the both of us," Spike groaned as he reached toward the ceiling, then bent down to touch his toes. 

Twilight lifted the covers of the bed and dove beneath them. "From what you've told me, it sounds like the two of you are just messing up the kitchen and having fun," she joked as she watched Spike curled underneath his own blanket, making a little nest in his bassinet.

"Doesn't mean it's not hard work," Spike yawned. "H-hey, Twilight?" the dragon began, peeking out of his basket.

"Hmm?" 

"How do you know if something's a date?"

Twilight sat up and stared as Spike hid himself under his blanket. "Why are you asking me?" she asked. "It's not like I have a lot of experience on the subject."

"I was hoping you read something about it," Spike said, "or that Shining Armor or Princess Cadence told you something. I mean, Princess Cadence seems awfully insistent about introducing you to that blue-maned guard."

Twilight pulled her blanket over her own glowing muzzle. "Isn't this something Rarity would know more about?" she asked. "I don't really read romance, but Rarity's a fan of those and she might have some personal...oh, ooh oh." The covers were dropped, revealing Twilight's knowing smile. "I think I get it, Casanova."

"Get what?" Spike asked. Seeing Twilight's smile sent the dragon into a panic, and he frantically tried to untangle himself from his blanket. 

Twilight winced as Spike tripped and sent the basket flipping over. "Guess you need a new bed soon," she said, mentally adding it to her to-do list.

"I-it's not like that," Spike asserted, glowing pink from under the basket. "It's not about Rarity. I mean, I guess it kind of does but not really but, well, not directly, more indirectly sort of I think..." 

Spike's rambling trailed to nothing as Twilight fixed his bed and levitated him on to hers, right next to her. "Aren't you a little young to be thinking about dating?" she said softly. 

"You're the one who says you can never be too young to learn," Spike argued. Twilight laughed.

"That's true," she conceded. "A date is...is..." Twilight turned to the nightstand at her bedside and pulled out a large tome from the drawer. "A particular mouth, day, and year..." she read. "...time or period to which any...time during which anything lasts...ah, here we go, this is what we're looking for," Twilight announced confidently. She tapped the book page and cleared her throat. "Ahem, a social appointment, engagement, or occasion arranged beforehand with another pony, or dragon," the princess added with a grin toward Spike. Spike slowly began to smile back.

"So a date isn't just with your special pony, right? You can have dates with friends?" Spike asked hesitantly.

"Sure seems like it," Twilight answered. "Maybe I do have more dating experience than I thought," she joked.

Spike laughed. "Maybe," he said, giving Twilight a quick hug before jumping off her bed. "Thanks Twilight."

"No problem, Spike," Twilight said as she watched the dragon nestle in his bassinet. "Try to get some sleep, okay. I've got to finish that important date with the mayor tomorrow, and it looks like you've got a pretty big date with Rainbow Dash."

A groan came out of the bundle of blankets. "Not you too," Spike mumble sleepily.

Twilight sat back up. "'Too'? What do you mean, 'too'?" she questioned, turning to Spike. The only answer she received were the dragon's snores. "Good night, Spike," Twilight whispered before resting her head on her pillow and closing her eyes.