Spike hopped in place excitedly in an ornate crystalline room, with a comic book held gingerly between his claws. Behind him was a well-organized shelf that receded into the crystal wall with numerous comic books on it, properly coded by series and ordered by issue number.
Spike said, “So, in this one, Fili-Second just came back to life, right? So she, the original Fili-Second, the new Fili-Second that filled in for her when she was dead, the original’s old mentor Heather Hydragyrum, Foal Fili-Second and the youngest Fili-Second’s foals all have to team up to fight the original Doctor Flash who’s come back to life too!”
He threw his arms into the air, flopping the comic around. “It has all these references to old stuff that happened too. It’s like this huge capstone on like… years of comics!”
Able Wing, the grey and orange pegasus who was sitting on a fancy cushion, looked at Spike and cocked an ear. “So… you read a lot of comics just so you could read this one?”
Spike rubbed the back of his head with his free claw. “Well… no. But it makes me wish I could! It’s probably a lot of comics, though…”
Able sighed. “I’m sorry, Spike. I just don’t… really see what the big deal is.”
“But the Power Ponies are so cool! They’re superheroes!”
Able shook his head. “They’re not heroes, Spike. They’re just stories.”
Spike frowned. “But they’re really good stories.”
“They’re not as amazing as the ponies that really lived, though,” Able said, his ears perking up in excitement.
“Well, I really like the Power Ponies," Spike said. "History is kinda boring."
Able’s ears laid flat against his head. “O-oh. Okay.”
The air hung between Spike and Able. Able put his head down on his sitting cushion. “When do you think Twilight and Blueblood will be back?”
Spike grunted. “I don’t know. Just like… read this, I guess.” He dropped the Fili-Second comic by Able’s head.
Able flipped open the first page and mumbled, “Okay.”
Spike turned his attention back to the bookshelf, looking for another suitable comic book for him to reread. ‘Maybe… 365? Planet Rager?’
Choosing a comic book, he sat down, rereading it for the fifth time. Able, however, read his comic book very slowly, his lips sometimes twitching downward for a second. Spike kept one eye on Able, who eventually stopped turning the pages, began staring off into space, a dour expression on his face.
Spike furrowed his brow at this and sighed. He got up and walked over to Able. “So, uh, Able?”
Able turned a glazed face to Spike. “Yes...”
“So… you said you really liked historical heroes.”
Able nodded, slowly coming out of his daze.
“Do you, uh… have a favorite?”
Able blinked a few times, and smiled faintly. “Commander Uplift.”
Spike tilted his head. “Who?”
“He was a hero in the last Griffon-Pegasus war.” Able shifted around to face Spike, his tone lightening. “Towards the last part of the war, when the ponies wanted the war to finally end, they sent Uplift, who was their greatest warrior, to escort the captured griffon princess to her homeland, making peace.”
Spike raised an eyebrow. “Alright. It’s cool but not that cool.”
“That’s not all, though,” Able said, smiling. “The reason they had to send the best was because some griffons didn’t want the war to end, so he had to dodge and fight tons of griffons, and even some ponies, on the way to her kingdom. It took him nearly a whole year to make it there.”
Able scooted closer to Spike. “But that wasn’t the best part of him. The best part is…” Able held his hoof to his mouth.
Spike leaned closer to hear.
“He hated griffons,” Able Wing whispered.
Spike blinked.
“He trained his entire life to fight the griffons, and then his commander ordered him to deliver the princess straight to the heart of enemy territory on a peace mission. He’d done nothing but fought his entire life, and then he does this mission so they can stop fighting. And he did it because he trusted his commander’s wisdom.” Able looked off into the distance, stars in his eyes. “Because it wasn’t his duty to fight griffons, it was his duty to do what his commander asks, and because he did this he started peace that lasted to this very day.”
“You really like him?” Spike said.
Able nodded enthusiastically. “He’s my favorite.”
Spike rubbed his chin. “I guess… it’s pretty cool. What, uh, other cool historical figures do you like?”
Able smiled widely and launched into a long, rambling tale of all his favorite historical heroes.
Spike tried to keep a smile on his face the whole time, and he found it wasn't as difficult as he thought it would be.
It was later in the evening, and Spike was sharing his limited knowledge of historical heroes, mostly of the unicorn scholars that Twilight idolized, when both he and Able heard a distant echoing door close.
Able shot up off his cushion. “Is it them?” He took off out of Spike’s room toward the front door. Spike got up and huffed on two legs behind him. He finally caught up with Able near the throne room, to find Twilight Sparkle plodding into the room. She was a wreck. Her mane was unkempt and wet, with twigs and leaves stuck to it, and her wings were in a similar condition.
“Twilight! Are you okay?”
Twilight smiled weakly. “Yes, Spike. We’re okay.”
From behind Twilight stepped out a dingy, mud spattered unicorn. His tie and collar were in tatters, and he had a frazzled dirty mane. His eyes met Spike’s for a moment, and he quickly lifted his muzzle into the air. Closing his eyes he announced, “I have been promised the use of a bath.”
Spike’s jaw dropped. ‘That’s Blueblood?!’
The unicorn, only vaguely resembling Blueblood without his finely coiffed mane and white coat, snarled slightly. “Could we please get a move on,” he said through gritted teeth.
Twilight looked apologetically at Spike. “Could you show him to a guest bath? The one near the library. And then we can work on preparing some rooms for Blueblood and Able and handling dinner.”
Spike rolled his eyes and nodded, motioning for Blueblood to follow. He led Blueblood through the crystalline tree to the unoccupied bathroom. “Here it is.”
Blueblood sniffed haughtily, inhaling a leaf stuck to his snout, and screeched. He shook his head violently, trying to clear his nose, snorting and whipping his head around, whimpering the whole time.
Spike failed to bite back a snort of laughter.
Blueblood made a massive snort, expelling the offending leaf. Spike snickered again, and Blueblood whipped his head to face Spike, glaring at him.
Spike stifled his smile, pursing his lips and forcing the edges of his mouth down.
Blueblood huffed. “I presume the bath is stocked with soaps?”
“Ye–”
Blueblood stamped his hoof. “Nothing nice, I assume.”
“I do–”
“It will have to do.” Blueblood stomped into the bath, slamming the door behind him.
Spike stared at the shut door. “Sheesh, what’s his problem?”
As he returned, he heard the muffled voices of Twilight and Able conversing. Spike paused at the door. ‘Well… I guess this worked out well last time.’ He peered around the corner, seeing both Twilight and Able facing away from him
“...feel so stupid that I didn’t even think to look,” Twilight said.
“He doesn’t like talking about it,” came Able’s reply. “It always puts him in a bad mood.”
There was a pause, and the sound of hooves on the crystal floor as Twilight shifted around to face Able. Spike retreated around the corner, trying to poke out from it as little as possible. “Blueblood’s hurting, Able. And all his haughtiness and his pride are there to protect him from everypony else even though it doesn’t work, and it winds up hurting him and everypony around him instead. He thinks he’s all alone, and that nopony wants to help him.”
Able sat down on his haunches. “Mom and Dad and everypony else barely tolerate him… and I know they think the same thing about me. They sent me here to help him because I’m no good anywhere else.”
“Able…” Twilight said, and put one hoof on Able’s withers. “I’m sure nopony thinks that about you. You remind me of someone else who always sells himself short, when you’ve got all the potential in the world.”
Able flung his forehooves into the air, shifting Twilight’s hoof off his withers. “Then why do I have this stupid blank flank still!” Able exclaimed, gesturing to his flank. “If I was useful then I’d be good at something by now!”
Twilight smiled warmly at Able. “A cutie mark isn’t just something you’re good at, Able, it’s what’s important to you. If you can figure out what’s important to you, you’ll find it.”
Able sighed. Twilight looked up from Able, her eyes meeting Spike’s peering around the corner. Spike retreated around the corner, but felt the familiar tingling sensation of Twilight’s magic on his ear. He yelped as Twilight pulled him around the corner and, not missing a beat, announced, “There you are, Spike! You’re just in time to show Able to a guest room.”
Able turned around, the morose expression still on his face.
“Y-you betcha!” Spike said. “He can use the one near mine.”
“That sounds perfect.” Twilight smiled an exceptionally broad smile. “The walls are pretty thick, too, so he’ll have some privacy, right, Spike?”
Spike gulped. “Of course. Come on, Able…”
Spike showed Able to his room and then was off to the kitchen to help with dinner.
Spike sat down at the work desk, the product of six months of research resting on it. It was a comprehensive history of the night pegasi, taken from every source Spike could muster, from common knowledge to the rarest books Spike could get his claws on. It started way back at their appearance in Equestria millennia ago and detailed the rise and fall of their own kingdom. It covered when Luna reached out to the scattered remnants of their kingdom, gaining their allegiance. It covered their ostracization once Luna disappeared and they were blamed for taking part in her fall. Spike even took notes on the recent reintegration into Equestrian society, and the problems they were having after one of their own caused the disappearance of one of Equestria’s prime heroes.
In particular his section on the theoretical discussions as to how they crossed the barrier from their own world to Equestria was highly detailed, examining any links between the different theories and looking for oversights in old research.
And none of it pointed to a plausible solution as to how to cross the barrier between worlds.
Spike carefully opened his latest temporary acquisition: a seven century old journal of a night pegasus researcher who was obsessed with finding the way back to their home world, on loan from an archivist in Baltimare. Unfortunately, the further Spike progressed in the journal the more unhinged the researcher became. The personal notes from the researcher disintegrated into crazy rants as he made more and more elaborate and risky plays at knowledge but still managed to consistently get nowhere. The failure ate at him for the rest of his days, until he eventually lost his life in a research related accident. One where he took a risk that he never should have, out of desperation.
Meanwhile, from elsewhere in the castle a loud din was raised, followed by a happy-sounding shriek. The latest Official Welcome To Ponyville Pinkie Party had started for a new member of the castle’s staff.
He could hear another cheer from the party. No doubt it would be spectacular, like all the parties Pinkie Pie had been throwing for the new employees, with a delicious cupcakes, fun party games, and Spike knew that Pinkie had more than a few cupcakes with gems baked in, just in case he showed up...
Spike rested his head on his claw and sighed. “This isn’t getting me anywhere…”
Pinkie Pie’s voice rang out from the door. “Spikey! Theeere you are!”
Spike jumped up with a yelp. “Pinkie!” he said, wheeling around to face her, his heart racing. “You’re gonna give me a heart attack!”
Pinkie Pie just giggled.
Spike panted heavily, with his claw on his chest. He inhaled one last time deeply, and said, “Okay. What do you want?”
“Yooou–” she closed the distance between her and Spike with a slide “–are missing the welcome party.” She bopped Spike on the nose.
Spike wrinkled his nose in discomfort. “I’m busy. There have been too many new employees and too many Pinkie Parties.”
Pinkie smiled broadly. “There can never be too many parties, Spikey! The castle’s bustling all the time now. Everypony wants to have their party here at the crystal friendship castle. It’s the swankiest joint in all of Ponyville! It needs more ponies to help clean and run the place.”
Spike groaned. “But they just keep coming! The first staff that arrived six months ago were all rotated out, and the new staff is just replacing them!”
Pinkie laughed. “I know, isn’t it great! You get to meet all these new ponies, even if it’s sad they leave later. So, it’s important to get to know her now, while the gettin’s good!”
“I’m just going to have to show her around the castle and get her trained anyway,” Spike said. “She doesn’t have any experience, like a lot of the workers set here.”
Pinkie Pie threw her forehooves up into the air. “But Spike! You have to get to know her now! Nobody wants to be friends with someone who only talks to them when they’re working!”
“Pinkie…” Spike said, turning away from her. “I don’t need any more friends.”
Pinkie gasped in horror. “Spike! How could you say that?”
Spike picked up the quill on his desk. “It's fine. I’ll be okay.”
“Cooped up in this dark room all day, all alone with nothing but books for company?”
“Twilight had nothing but books for company plenty of times” Spike dipped his quill into ink.
“Nuh-uh!” Pinkie twisted Spike, chair and all, around. “Twilight always had company, because she always had you.”
Spike lifted himself in his chair, and turned around in place back around to face his desk. “And I’m trying to keep it that way, wherever she is she still needs my help, even a year and a half later.”
“Aww, come on, Spike. You need to take a break.” Pinkie spun Spike’s chair around again.
Spike twisted back to the table. “I can’t take any breaks! I haven’t got any closer to an answer.”
“Because you haven’t been taking breaks, silly!”
“I… huh?” Spike looked back at Pinkie.
“How are you supposed to get any work done if you never take a break? Your brain’ll be too pooped to get anything done!”
Spike moved his mouth wordlessly for a few seconds, before finally saying, “Pinkie… I have to keep working.”
Spike put pen to paper, scrawling something about the madness of the diary owner. It was unimportant, really. Just documenting another dead end.
“Spike…” Pinkie didn’t spin Spike around, and just put a hoof on his shoulder. “Twilight wouldn’t want you to do this to yourself.”
Spike’s face screwed up in anger for a moment, but it fell into a morose frown quickly. “I-I know… I just… I couldn’t help her when she needed it most. Wherever she is… I should be there with her. She needs... she needs my help.”
He slammed his fists on the table. “But I can’t help! I’m working in circles! Each lead is as useless as the next one!”
Spike banged his head on the table in front of him.
Pinkie rubbed Spike’s shoulder lightly. “If you’re feeling up to it, I’ve made sapphire cupcakes for you. You should come by and party with the other ponies that will be helping you run the castle, you’ll feel better.”
Spike listened to the fading sounds of Pinkie’s hooves on the crystal floors. He sighed and reopened the journal he was reading.
The journal of the madpony who let his failures consume his life, making himself miserable until he eventually died without finishing his life's work.
Spike blinked at the diary, put it down, and went out to the party.