Antaboga.

by Reptilicus

Apples, fruits maybe.

Spike curled his toes under the blanket, hoping a slight change in position might make him more comfy. It was beginning to dawn on him that no matter how tired he felt, after a long exhausting day of organizing books, he wouldn't be falling asleep anytime soon. Excursions to the kitchen for warm milk had only succeeded in making him feel hungry or need to use the bathroom. Nearly 200 sheep had been counted, bouncing across an imaginary fence in his mind when he gave up. He kicked the blanked off in agitation and once again tried to look around the room, hoping for anything that might occupy his brain long enough for sleep to kick in.

But there was nothing to hold his attention, like the night before, and the night before that. His new room, much like the rest of the purple crystal castle he and Twilight had moved into, was dark and quiet. The seemingly endless tessellations of crystal walls, complete with all their grooves, faces, and edges had nothing really to adorn them or brighten their dreariness. Everything was grey and purple and occasionally a deep royal blue. Not that the old oak tree had been a lively home either, being the dusty old library that it was, but it was at least cramped enough to be cozy. A roaring log in the fireplace had been enough to quickly spread warmth throughout the house, the crackling of the fire audible even up on the balconies. But here in the castle, everything was quiet, and cool. It wasn't like the old castles and fortresses in Canterlot, where the halls were lined with sulfur torches that flickered in the night, making the kingdom feel so friendly and inviting. Maybe one day Twilight would find the time to install similar structures in her new home, but it wouldn't be any time soon.

In the old castles, the walls were covered in paintings and murals, illustrating amazing deeds from ponies and griffons long in the past. Some of the newer ones even depicted Twilight, Spike, and her friends. Those were always fun to look at, and a welcome distraction before the mind wandered to darker thoughts before dozing off. But the walls here were blank. Twilight had never owned any paintings, or had much interest in art or murals.

"I should hang up some of my old posters." Spike thought to himself, though unsure since most of his posters were of comic book heroes and Pony Trek, his favorite radio serial.

But for now he simply lay in bed, his large green eyes with their slitted pupils, roving lazily around the room, impatiently waiting for sleep to come. At least Spike knew one thing for certain, at this hour Twilight would be checking on him soon. Every night like clockwork, Spike would hear Twilight wake up and run through the hallway to his bedroom, peering inside. And there it was, the clicking of her delicate cloven hooves as she came galloping down the hallway, her out of breath wheezes echoing down the hall into his room. Spike instinctively turned to look at the door as his guardian poked her head through.

"Hey." Spike said meekly.

Twilight always looked so exhausted when she came to check on him. Her hair a mess, her face sweaty, her eyes looking crazed. Sometimes a small cloud of feathers from her recently acquired wings would flutter into the room in her wake. She always looked like she'd woken up from some sort of nightmare, and would stare intently at Spike. At first he had pretended to sleep when it happened but he had grown tired of acting, and would now greet Twilight when she entered, which always made her smile and seem to breathe easier.

"Sorry if I woke you." Twilight whispered, her eyes looking glossy.

"It's okay Twilight." Spike smiled wryly, rolling onto his side. "I wasn't sleeping."

"You never are." Twilight observed, raising an eyebrow. "Are you alright, Spike? Your sleep schedule has been pretty poor since we moved in. It isn't good for you."

Spike sighed and sat up. They'd only been in the castle for about a month and a half, and Spike already wanted things to change. He hated to ask for things, Twilight had given him so much. He never felt like he deserved a life as good as he had, being a dragon and all, and asking for anything from Twilight always felt like he was going a step too far.

"Twilight can I....talk to you about something...kind of sensitive?" Spike slid off the mattress cover to the hard crystal floor, standing on his hind legs and waddling a bit closer to the lavender alicorn on the opposite end of the room.

Twilight gracefully stepped closer herself, sitting near the tiny dragon and closing her wings so as not to look as large and imposing. She smiled as warmly as she could, despite the adrenaline still coursing through her.

"Of course you may, Spike." Twilight whispered. "What's wrong? Something is obviously keeping you awake."

"I....." Spike began, feeling his conscience tell him to keep his mouth shut. He struggled for a moment, fighting an invisible war against his own good manners.

Twilight seemed to have noticed her ward's nervous disposition, extending one of her lavender wings around his chubby scaly body and bringing him just a bit closer.

"I don't like having my own room." Spike blurted, his voice cracking as he said it. A heat rose in his throat, a feeling of frustration pushing on his chest. He failed to keep his emotions in, large tears forming in his green eyes. "It's cold and its too quiet. I miss my basket! And my blanket! And our old tree!"

Twilight stared down at the little dragon as he sniffled and wiped his eyes with one of his rough forearms. So that's what the issue was. Even after more than a month of having his own room just down the hall from her own, Spike wasn't used to having so much independence. He had spent his entire life at her side, and at night slept in a woven basket meant for carrying bread. Within it had been a downy pillow he used for a mattress and a small blue blanket that Twilight's mother had given to him. All these things, despite being every day objects, were precious to Spike. And all had been incinerated in the fire. Twilight shivered as she remembered why she had woken up at this time of night in the first place.

"Can I sleep in your room?" Spike asked, desperation plastered on his chubby features, his claws reaching up toward her.

With a nod and a pinch of magic, Spike was riding on Twilight's back as he had done so hundreds of times before when she was doing errands around Canterlot or Ponyville. Twilight grinned as she felt Spike bury his snout into her back as he went slack, falling asleep almost instantly. Turning the corner into her own room, she smiled at her bed, which now seemed more inviting with the knowledge Spike was safe. She tried gently to lower the slumbering bundle onto her bed, but Spike immediately snorted and woke, trying to curl himself into a more comfortable position.

"Why can't you sleep, Twilight?" Spike mumbled.

Twilight gently laid down next to Spike, using her magic to pull the blanket over him, being careful not to get the cloth caught on his green quills.

"What do you mean, Spike?" Twilight asked, fluffing her pillow up with a spell before laying her head wearily into it. "I just thought I should make sure you were comfortable."

"Every night?" Spike asked, a thick layer of disbelief in his sleepy voice.

"It's just a bad dream, Spike." Twilight answered curtly. "Nothing more, nothing less."

Spike let out a quiet grunt. "Was it about Tirek?"

There were a few moments of silence before Twilight answered with a very understated, "Something like that."

Spike furrowed his brow. Twilight was still having nightmares about that monster Tirek, again. A sour note for the happy ending the fight had ended with. Twilight had even finally managed to make a friend out of Discord, the wicked god of chaos who had been tormenting everyone for the last year. But through it all, the entire ordeal had been terrifying. Spike hadn't even gotten a chance to see it himself, having spent most of his time locked in a cage with the rest of the Elements of Harmony, with Discord happily holding the key. But he had certainly heard about what had happened when it was all finally over. So many stories about Twilight flying through the air, splitting mountains in half, ripping great fissures through the earth with the power of the Sun itself, as she fought to the last tooth to prevent Tirek from hurting more innocent ponies. She was considered a hero to the countryside, and not for the first time. And although there had been a lot of relief and happiness in the aftermath, she was still unable to sleep from the ordeal.

"Have you talked to Luna about it?" Spike asked innocently. "I bet she could help, since she controls dreams n' stuff."

"No. Maybe I'll pay her a visit." Twilight let out a sigh. "Just get some sleep, Spike. We have a lot of work to do tomorrow."

"We do?" Spike asked. Celestia had given both of them a break ever since the move. Outside of daily chores, there hadn't been much to worry about.

"Mmm Hmm." Twilight yawned, her eyelids starting to droop. "Cadance is sending over some help tomorrow."

"Help?"

"To keep the castle clean." burbled Twilight, sleep finally overtaking her. "I'll have to show them around."

The room grew quiet and Spike, on any other night, would finally have been able to relax and turn in. He could hear Twilight snoring quietly, sounding like a very lazy bee going for a stroll, and he could feel the warmth of her wing on his side, which was still a new sensation but one he had come to enjoy. But now these things brought him little comfort as he stared wide eyed into the darkness, unable to sleep. Only now it was for another reason entirely.

Why did Twilight need help? Spike had always been there, helping as best as he could. He was her number one assistant for as long as he could remember. And he was good at it, too. Wasn't he? He always kept everything organized as best he could. Shelving books, fixing categories, repairing broken spines on their covers, fetching ink, getting the right type of quills Twilight liked the most. Why did they need help for cleaning? Spike cleaned well enough. Didn't he? Back in the Canterlot dormitories Spike had always made sure Twilight's reading area was tidy, no dust or cobwebs nearby to disturb her studies. When they had moved to Ponyville, he assumed his role would continue, sweeping all the dirt and leaves from the tree branches out the door. Keeping the windows wiped so the sunlight could filter in. Never letting the candles burn all night. Ready to make dinner for himself and Twilight on those nights where she was too busy reading to do it herself. Spike was always there and always helpful. Sure he had screwed up sometimes. He had tried helping Twilight's friend Applejack for a while and he'd been a bit too clumsy, causing the farmer to deny any further services from him. And sure, Twilight had gotten her pet owl, Owlowiscious, specifically because Spike was worn out. Twilight had assured him the owl wouldn't replace him and everything was fine.

But that was in the old house. In the old tree. This new castle was larger, that much was obvious. But surely not large enough to make Spike's contributions to Twilight's life not matter as much right? He would still be her number one assistant, even after she got hired help. Wouldn't he?

Silence answered Spike's internal questions as he stared wide eyed at the wall. He felt his stomach clench as he thought of his brief time at Cadance's home in the Crystal Empire. He had come out of that situation a hero, a crystal statue erected in his likeness. A minor celebrity even, having saved hundreds of crystal ponies. But he had walked away from that battle with a very personal scar. A scar left from an emotional wound inflicted by a cursed door, designed to show whoever walked through it their worst fear. Spike had seen his terrors spring to life that day. Visions of being alone and lost, living like the monster he was, with Twilight and her friends and family neither loving him or wanting him near. They feared him, because he was a dragon, and dragons were wicked and powerful. It had hurt. Hurt more than anything. And even after Twilight had calmed Spike down when he escaped the door, even after she had held him in her arms and told him she would always want him by her side, that feeling of rejection and fear hadn't really gone away.

It had been some months since he'd felt it again. As the anxiety built, Spike felt himself gnawing on the end of his flat spiny tail, something he had done since he was an infant. Twilight had always told him it was bad for his teeth. His eyes roved to the calendar Twilight kept on the wall next to her doorframe. And almost all at once he felt his fears ebb, and his heart grow light. He thanked the stars that Twilight was so punctual and kept this calendar right in her room. For there it was: the answer.

In a couple of weeks it would be Mother's Day. In all the bother since Tirek, Spike had almost forgotten. And he knew Twilight wouldn't forget. She would busy herself with finding the perfect gift for her mother, while letting these strangers from the Crystal Empire into their home. It would be a grand opportunity for Spike to show them up. Show them how a REAL number on assistant gets things done. Could these so-called "helper" ponies keep Twilight's things in order like Spike did? Work like Spike did? Of course not. And then, when he had shown them up to be unprepared amateurs as he knew they would be, Twilight would see just how special Spike truly was. Then it would culminate in Spike giving her the best Mother's Day present ever...which was...

....what was it?

Spike scratched his head, thinking. Usually on Mother's Day he gave Twilight and sometimes Twilight's mother an awkward hug. But this was an emergency. And the stakes were higher than ever. Twilight wasn't just some unicorn bookworm sitting in a dusty library anymore. She was a Princess, wings and crown and all. She had the whole world at her hooves now. She could have anything she wanted. If tomorrow Twilight demanded that a group of performing walruses be brought to her doorstep to put on a fancy play just for her, it would be done in a fortnight. If Twilight told the entire town to jump, most of them would hop in the air immediately, looking confused. By all accounts, Twilight had everything.

So what does one get the pony who has everything? And that was the last thing Spike thought about before sleep finally claimed him and he curled into a ball next to the alicorn in the bed, dreaming of candied gems.

"Ah dunno, Sweetie. I don't think Granny Smith would want a tuba."

Two young fillies sat amongst a field of daisies atop a hill, both staring down at a parchment and a pile of crayons. On the parchment was a list of Mother's Day gift ideas they had gone through in their collaboration. And as with many ideas these two came up with, most were implausible and occasionally nonsense.

"Well maybe Granny Smith would like some cider?" Sweetie offered as she crossed out the word "tooba" on the parchment and underlined the word "sider".

"We already make all the cider in town, Sweetie Belle!" Applebloom groaned, crossing out more suggestions on the list. "Why would I give Gran somethin' I can get for free?"

"Hmmm. Well... Granny Smith really liked that goo the Flim Flam Brothers were selling didn't she? Why not get her some other kinds of goo?"

"Cause that goo ended up being fake anyway! I don't even know where to find goo that actually works."

Applebloom sighed and turned to look at Spike who had been lying on his back nearby, his face very serious as if he were in deep concentration. Applebloom took this to mean he was trying to come up with an idea himself.

"What do ya think I oughta do, Spike?" Applebloom asked.

Spike blinked twice, coming out of his trance. "Do what? Where? Who?"

"What should I get Granny Smith for Mother's Day?"

"Uhhh....." Spike rose to a sitting position and scratched his head. It wasn't every day he was asked by little fillies for advice. "A tuba?"

"Really?" Applebloom deadpanned, rolling her eyes. "For goodness sakes!"

"My turn!" Sweetie squeaked, shoving Applebloom aside to sit in front of Spike. "Rarity's birthday is really far way, Spike, and she's been taking care of me while mom and dad are away on business! So I kinda wanna get her something for Mother's Day, too!"

"Why not just get something for your mom?" Spike asked, confused as to why these fillies were suddenly hounding him with questions.

"I already did!" Sweetie jumped up and down, her pastel pink and purple mane bouncing on her head. "I got her a Canterlot Symphony Orchestra record! But I need something for Rarity now! And you know her better than anyone!"

Spike blushed at the comment. "Well yeah, I guess I do know Rarity pretty well. Someone as beautiful and amazing and awe-inspiring as Rarity deserves something special..."

Spike crossed his arms and furrowed his scaly brow, thinking intently. Then his eyes lit up.

"Why don't you write her a song, Sweetie Belle? You seem pretty good at singing. And I'm sure she'd rather you do something you're good at then buy her more stuff for her cramped shop as it is."

Sweetie Belle stopped jumping up and down for several seconds, her face blank. Sweetie wasn't brightest of ponies. Even amongst all the other small children in town, she was generally a bit slow, but made up for it in spades with endless enthusiasm. But the simplicity of the idea, plus how good it was, slowly dawned on her as her minty green eyes dilated.

"That's a great idea Spike! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" Sweetie squeaked, grabbing the parchment and all the crayons in her mouth, and rushing down the hill towards Rarity's home, a small cloud of dirt in her wake.

"Why were you two asking me for advice anyway?" Spike laid back down in the daisies, giving Apple Bloom a curious glance.

The yellow filly grinned warmly at him. "Well shucks, Spike, ain't dragons supposed to be wise and such? You seemed like the best critter to ask!"

"Applebloom, you've known me long enough to know I'm not wise. Clever, maybe. Brave, yes. Handsome probably too. But not wise."

"Oh shoot!" Applebloom said under her breath looking past Spike into the distance. "I better go. I don't wanna git yelled at again!"

Applebloom turned and ran down the hill in the same direction Sweetie had gone. Spike lay confused as he saw the filly's big red hair bow disappear over the crest of the hill. What had Applebloom meant by getting yelled at? He turned to see what she'd been looking at, to be promptly greeted by another filly. A scrawny orange pegasus foal with a messy raspberry colored mane was trotting up the hill, frowning slightly, a tote bag hanging off her side.

"I thought they'd never leave." she mumbled, sitting next to Spike.

"I guess this means you're still upset with them?" Spike said quietly.

Scootaloo nodded, looking up at the clouds.

"I don't think I'll ever NOT be upset with those jerks." Scootaloo growled, pulling a grapefruit out of her backpack and munching on it. "Hey you want any?"

"Nah." Spike shook his head, making daisies fly everywhere. "I already ate some eggs and pebbles on my way over here."

"Why ARE you over here?" Scootaloo asked, her large purple eyes squinting at Spike in a very scrutinizing way. "You don't seem the type to sit on a hill and relax."

"I wasn't trying to relax, I was trying to think. Then those two showed up asking me for advice."

"Ooh! That reminds me!" Scootaloo stuffed the rest of the grapefruit in her mouth and pulled out a few pieces of paper, which had been scribbled on with some of the worst art Spike had ever seen. "Which of these do you think is better?"

"I can't really say. I'm not even sure what I'm looking at."

"Well one of these is gonna be a painting I make for Rainbow Dash! This one over here is Rainbow Dash as a superhero. See? She's punching a big robot spider and breaking all its legs and it's crying money all over the happy townsponies. And this one in the middle is Rainbow Dash as a Wonderbolt, leading a squad in a cool flight pattern. And Celestia and Luna are watching her and really jealous cause they aren't as cool. And then this last one... well this is just me hugging Rainbow Dash and her pet tortoise is there and this stuff is her cloud house. See?"

"I vote the last one." Spike nodded. "Also uhhh, why are you asking me for my advice on art?"

"Aren't dragons supposed to be wise?" Scootaloo asked as she shoved the mess of paper and charcoal pencils back into her backpack.

"Second time today I've had someone ask me that." Spike sat back down in the daisies, as Scootaloo pulled a graham cracker out of her bag and began to slowly eat it, staring into the sky.

It was an awkward feeling, having this noisy kid sitting near him silently eating. At first he had been somewhat bothered by Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle pestering him, but this was the complete opposite. It seemed rude to just lay here and not strike up some sort of conversation with Scootaloo.

"So..." Spike began. "How are things at Rainbow's place?"

"Pretty great." Scootaloo responded cheerfully as she began gnawing on another cracker.

Spike nodded at the short answer. "How long has it been since you started living with her? Seems like it's been a while already."

"Three months I think." Scootaloo's eyes searched the sky. "Why are you out here anyway, Spike? Is it your day off or somethin'?"

"Day off?" Spike snorted. "Nah Twilight's just preparing for some... guests. And I wanted to be out of the castle for a bit."

"Is living in the castle cool?" Scootaloo asked, her ears pricking up. "Are there like, secret hallways and stuff?"

"So far, no. Nothing really special about it, despite being made of crystals." Spike sighed. "I don't really like it very much."

"Why not?"

"It's too quiet. And feels too big for just me and Twi. Plus we don't have any of our stuff around. Pretty much all our belongings got blown up."

"Oh! Sorry for bringing that up." Scootaloo said quietly, shifting her eyes away.

Suddenly Spike sat up. An idea had entered his brain, crackling like a firework on a holiday. Since the day Tirek had destroyed the Golden Oak Library, the decimated tree and surrounding area had been mostly marked off as a dangerous area. The tree was burnt, ash was still everywhere inside, and sharp splinters of wood were numerous. Twilight and Mayor Mare had agreed it would be best to sweep it all away before the remains could harm someone. But nobody dared go near the old oak tree. Ponies claimed at night they could hear a hum come from it, even seeing sparks of fire come from the blackened wood, as if somehow Tirek's magic and rage somehow still lived on in the stump. These claims were passed off as rumors and imagination but it was enough to keep even the ponies who were skilled at demolition away from the area, superstition keeping them afraid. But despite that, Spike had made up his mind to go. Yes it was dangerous to go back, and technically it might have counted as breaking a local law to go past the guard rails, but inside that house might be some precious memories of a happier time. Old books, or some of Twilight's belongings from Canterlot. Maybe even her Friendship Diary, a tome that Twilight and her friends had all written entries in, could still be somewhere in the rubble.

He knew it was foolish to get his hopes up, but it was better than nothing. And he knew nothing would mean more to Twilight than something she loved from the past. Something she might have thought lost in the battle. It would be the perfect gift. Spike rolled forward onto his hind legs and quickly began jogging down the hill, though it was more of a waddle since his legs were so short. Scootaloo watched him go for a moment before deciding to give chase, quickly catching up to the baby dragon as he ran.

"Where the heck are you running off to suddenly?" Scootaloo shouted as she ran alongside Spike. "Is this a race? I like races!"

"You bringing up the castle gave me an idea! I'm gonna search through whats left of the library and see if I can't find something to recover and give to Twilight for Mother's Day!"

"You're going into that deathtrap?" Scootaloo balked before grinning mischievously. "RADICAL! Hey I'll help lemme grab some tools for excavation!"

Spike was about to protest but Scootaloo had already split off, becoming an orange blur as she scampered through the town and vanished between two shops. Something he'd have to deal with later, probably. With the kind of speed usually reserved for an angry turtle, Spike ran through the town, noting how much quieter it was getting as he grew closer to his destination, the sandy cobblestone pathways growing noticeably darker due to the ash that had been rubbed into them over the months. Even the sound of the birds seemed to grow quieter, as if the birds themselves were scared of the tree as well. And they had every right to be, really. Scootaloo was right, it WAS a deathtrap. But dragons were tough! Or at least that was Spike's logic. He'd be ok. And it wasn't like he was planning to spend a long time inside, just long enough to find some buried treasures and get out.

But this string of enthusiasm came to a quiet end as Spike skidded to a stop, arriving at the cordoned area. A wooden fence, held together with some yarns of kernmantle rope loosely draped over the fence-posts. The posts had been painted with alternating washes of dark brown and yellow paint to simulate the caution tape police ponies in Manehattan would sometimes use, though baking in the hot sun day after day had lightened these colors considerably.

Beyond that was a few meters of soil and shattered cobblestone around the roots of the tree. And past the roots was the tree itself. A splintered crypt of burnt wood, branches, shattered glass, parchment, furniture and a few support beams sticking out amongst the rubble. Past some of the initial burnt boughs of the tree on the ground, lay the remains of the old sign that had once stood out front, bright apricot pink with an illustration of a book on it. Now snapped in half and covered in brown charred splotches. And further even past that was the door to the place that Spike and Twilight had called home for more than a year. At one time it had been bright red, a painted latch that looked like a candle with a quill lying alongside it on it's front, with two smaller doors on it's lower half that opened separately on their own hinges for foals to use. The resin had melted instantly in the fiery blast, mixing with the ash and turning the door pure black, nearly invisible against the scorched bark of the tree.

The large green eyes of Spike widened in fear as he really took in all the destruction that had occurred here. The library hadn't been some little wimpy tree. It had been a proud strong old oak tree, easily viewable from a mile away, standing much taller than most of the buildings in town. Anything that had managed to destroy it like this had to have been powerful. Frighteningly powerful, like Tirek had been. And Twilight had managed to beat him. It was no wonder this place hadn't been cleared away yet. It was like a monument to Twilight's struggle to save the ponies. A monument to her love for those around her, and the sacrifices she had made that day to keep them protected. But also a frightening reminder of the real power of magic. The magic that had created monsters like Sombra, Nightmare, and Tirek. The magic that could turn even harmless street magicians into insane warlocks of unfathomable power. The kind of magic that could bring books to life, their characters and contents walking amongst the citizens like living things. The magic that made and unmade the gods themselves. The kind of magic most unicorns used like playthings, for their everyday lives and chores. A cautious reminder of what happened when magic was practiced with little concern for others.

In front of the brown and yellow striped fence was a wooden rod, buried and sticking out of the ground, a square plank of wood nailed to its front with red twill cloth wrapped around it. Laminated paper had been nailed to this sign, giving out a warning to any who approached the site of the Tirek incident: