//------------------------------// // Chapter 4: The Third Day // Story: Spike De Lis // by That Drunk Pony //------------------------------// Chapter 4: Carnival Day Spike finds himself in the room where all the stained glass is located. Each tells a story of equestrian history to remind them of these times and to learn from them. He was looking at the glass where he was the savior of the crystal heart and the crystal empire. Spike looks behind him to find a hooded pony standing behind him. He jumped in shock and fell on his back to the floor. The pony then runs away out of the corridor. Spike’s impulsively chased after the pony. He was yelling, “HEY STOP!!” and even tried calling for some guards. It seems though the castle was empty. Spike chased this odd pony outside and into the maze garden. When he saw the pony rush in, he was skeptical of going in, but decided to anyways. In the maze, Spike did his best to keep up with the pony only narrowly catching the sight of cloak’s end each turn. The pony finally stopped in the center of the garden where only a fountain that had a few famous heroes of Equestria spitting out water. He noticed the pony was a little taller than regular ponies. Spike gasping for air demanded, “Wh- Why were you- running away?” The pony under the hood turn to face him. They seemed unfazed by the running that took place. It finally spoke with a distinct mare’s voice. “Spike. I have been watching you for some time.” Spike gave a confused look. She then used a yellow magical aura to pull out a crumpled up piece of paper and levitated it to Spike. To his surprise, it was the missing plans to woo Rarity. Spike reacted excitedly, then with confusion. “Where did you find this!?” The mare responded, “That does not matter. It is important to you right?” Spike nodded. “Then all is right. I must go now.” Spike stopped her. “Wait! I still have questions! Who are you?” Just before she spoke, a sound of cracking thundered. Spike looked around confused and in terror. The mare quickly said, “You are waking up. Do not be alarmed.” Spike then replied, “Wait. If this is a dream, then getting this list doesn’t even matter right?” The mare then said, “Don’t worry. It will be in your hands when you wake up. Next time we meet we can talk in full, but it’s time for you to wake up now.” A gust of wind then swept up and revealed she was just a pony with reflective skin and no features on her face. It was the mirror mare. Spike was a little alarmed by the stories of her, but if she returned his list, how bad could she be? Not to mention how nice she seems. Just then, Spike woke up in bed. He noticed in his hand that he had the list. Whether or not it was the mirror mare, he will never know, but at least he got his list back and is very thankful to her if she exists. Spike hadn’t noticed it, but a reflection in the mirror of his room had the shadow of the mare. One more shine of magic from her and she gradually faded as the sun rose. Spike was overjoyed to recover his list again. He then begins to get ready for breakfast again doing his morning routine happily. Before the new butler could knock on the door, Spike bursted through, letting the door knock out the butler. Spike dashed away to the dining room while reading the next thing to do on the list, which is to invite Rarity to the Carnival. Normally it would be odd to ask her to do that, but this is a famous Carnival that comes to each city semi-annually for a day. Spike realizes when he reaches the dining room, that he was the first to be there. Shortly after the Princess comes around, but looks a little tired. Spike asks, “Are you alright Princess?” The Princess opened her eyes a bit, but calmly replied, “No. I am usually tired after using magic to lift the sun. It takes tremendous magical power to do so. Why are you up so early?” Spike decided to trust Celestia to tell her about the dream, but he didn’t want to tell her about the paper. “Well I had a very weird dream last night. I chased some pony around the castle and the garden. When it stopped, everything started cracking and I didn’t get to know its name. I think it was the Mirror Mare though.” Celestia wanted to continue their conversation, but Rarity came down and Spike’s attention became preoccupied. She chuckled a bit and sat at the table. Rarity was first to greet, “Hello Spikey and Celestia!” Rarity headed to her chair which was already pulled out by Spike. Spike sat in his chair and now they waited for the breakfast to come. They waited… and waited… and waited. It wasn’t until they saw the new butler dizzily come around the corner and fell to the ground. Everyone gasped in surprise. Celestia rushed to his side and asked, “What happened!? Who did this to you!?” The butler whispered into her ear as he pointed at Spike, “The dragon o-.” The butler keeled over. The attention was now directed at Spike. Questions buzzed around the mares minds. Before they asked, the head butler came in and said “Breakfast is served!” Chefs came in putting platters on the table. The head butler then noticed the new butler was on the floor with Celestia’s attention focused on Spike. “What has happened here?” Celestia replied, “We are about to find out.” Her voice became more serious, “Spike! What did you do to this stallion?” Spike had no clue what that stallion was talking about, “I didn’t do anything! I only woke up early, got ready for breakfast, rushed to the table, and that’s when you saw me in here.” The stallion slowly groaned and finished what he was saying before. “The dragon… opened the door and it hit me pretty hard.” Celestia then added, “So… it was accidental.” The stallion gave his last few words before passing out again, “Yes. I am sorry to have failed you head butler.” The head butler rushed to his side, “I will take him to the infirmary. He is just being over dramatic.” Spike thought to himself ‘Well that was a waste of time. At least the food is here.’ They all returned to their seats and began eating. While Celestia and guests began eating, Spike was thinking of how to invite Rarity to the carnival. Back in Ponyville it sounded like a great idea, but thinking about it now… it probably wasn’t the best idea. She wouldn’t like a carnival. Maybe he should just spend the day with her or something. Celestia then asked, “Say Spike. I hear the carnival is in town today for a few days. Maybe we can go? You loved the carnival when you were younger.” Spike blushed feeling a little embarrassed by Celestia talking about his younger self. Before Spike could object to the idea since he felt Rarity wouldn’t be up to it, Rarity replied “Oh! That sounds like a smashing idea.” Spike was a little shocked, but decided to go with it. He still questioned her however, “Are you sure Rarity?” She quickly answered, “Of course! We can finally have time to enjoy ourselves.” Spike smiled, “That’s great! I’ll go excuse myself and get ready!” Spike was glad she was willing to do this and rushed out. Rarity then said to herself, “I’m glad to finally spend some time with Spike with no distractions. I’m a little unsure about a carnival, but if that’s what it takes then I am willing to put up with it. Also that other pony won’t be around that kind of place.” She walked off to get ready. Spike and Rarity met up in front of the castle. Spike came out casual with a bowtie and a detachable collar, while Rarity wore garment around her neck surrounded by her usual jewels, but had one large amethyst in the middle. Even for a carnival, she will still look fashionable. Spike couldn’t help peeking glances at her as they walked towards the carnival. She noticed this and giggled silently to herself. Once they arrived, she noticed something odd about the carnival. She expected less of the high class society, but there were quite a few high standing ponies around. They all seemed to have came with their family so it sort of made sense, but this put Rarity in a bit of a bind. She might be here if this many high class ponies are here. Rarity then heard a voice that she wasn’t too particularly happy to hear. “Hello Lady Rarity!” Blueblood said. “I am surprised to see you here and might I add, you look ravishing today.” Rarity rolled her eyes from the annoying creature next to her. Spike wasn’t exactly pleased with his appearance either. Rarity decided to dispel this annoying prince without offending the crown, “Prince Blueblood, I don’t mean this in any offensive way, but I am here with my good friend and I wish to enjoy it together with him.” Prince Blueblood was shocked, “You would rather be with this little peasant than with royalty!?” Rarity firmly replied, “No. Spike isn’t a peasant. He is a true chivalrous noble and knows how to treat a lady.” Rarity then pulled Spike away with that comment, so they can leave while Blueblood just stood there shocked. Rarity felt so great telling the snob off and Spike was surprised at how she handled things. He began blushing a lot. Spike then saw the first ride he wanted to go on and ran to it yelling, “Come on!” Rarity was not too pleased to go on a roller coaster for their first ride. She had a bad experience before with it. The speed, drops, and loops were terrible, but what made her fear them was how they messed up her hair. “Uh, Spike. Are you sure you want to go on this first?” Rarity asked trying to convince him to not do it. Spike was waiting for this. Unfortunately for Rarity, Spike was waiting for this ride, “Of course! I have been waiting for this ride for a long time! Why do you ask?” “Well… I don’t want to ruin my hair.” She explained. Spike didn’t think about that. He was hoping to have a day of fun, but pleasing her was more important to him. “Oh. Well we can just go on an easier ride.” Rarity didn’t want to mess up her mane, but she also didn’t want to ruin their day. She then suggested, “Spike. Why don’t you go on ahead and I’ll wait here for you.” Spike didn’t like the idea of leaving her alone, “But I would never leave you behind. I promised.” Rarity and Spike were going nowhere with this constant bickering. Just then Rarity’s worse case scenario appeared, “Hello Spike!” Fleur yelled. Rarity eyes snapped to her and noticed Fancy was with her. Fancy greeted them as well, “Hello Rarity and Spike! Fancy meeting you here.” Spike and Rarity weren’t happy about this. Rarity responded, “Nice meeting you both here. I wasn’t expecting you to come to a place like this.” “Well Rarity, Fleur really wanted to come here. It was a nice change of pace from the high society.” Fancy said as his excuse. Fleur then went to Spike, “So Spike! How have you been?” Rarity became angered when she did this. Spike answered her, “I’ve been alright. I’m just debating on going on this ride or not.” Fleur asked, “Why? You should go! It looks fun. If you’re scared then I’ll come with you.” This sparked Rarity, “If anypony is going to go with Spike, it’s me!” All three were a little shocked by her outburst. “Sorry. I meant I want to go on the ride now Spike.” Spike then took Rarity and Fleur followed behind to the ride. Fancy stayed and watched from a distance. The moment they were seated in the ride, Rarity regretted it. The moment the ride started, she grabbed Spike. The higher they rose, the more she tightened her grip. Spike felt his eyes might be coming out his sockets. Just then they reached the top. Rarity opened her eyes for a second and shut them even tighter from how high they were. Spike thought a bone cracked when the descent began. Spike passed out before they even reached the first loop. Rarity was terrified and left the ride shaky. Fleur had to go and pick up an almost lifeless Spike from the ride. They went back to where Fancy was sitting. He chuckled as he saw them come closer. Fancy then began chatting with Rarity, while Fleur slipped away with Spike. Spike woke up spinning around and around and the sound of Fleur laughing. He looked around and noticed he was in a spinning teacup ride with just Fleur spinning it faster. Spike screamed, “WHAT’S GOING ON!!” All Fleur did was continue laughing maniacally. Spike then began feeling queasy. Once the ride stopped, they found the nearest bathroom and Spike began throwing up. Fleur felt bad about doing that to him. Spike finally left the bathroom feeling horrible. Fleur then began with, “I’m sorry Spike. I thought playing a little joke with you would be the best way to wake you up, but I didn’t expect you to get sick.” Spike didn’t really care about that. Well something else was more important than a prank. “Where is Rarity?” Fleur said, “We got separated when we were walking through some of the crowds. You shouldn’t worry too much. She is a grown mare. We should go and have fun!” Spike was too worried for fun. “Sorry Fleur, but I have to find Rarity. I don’t have time for fun.” “Why?” She asked. Spike then thought to himself, ‘Maybe I should just show her the list.’ Spike then pulled out the list and handed it to Fleur. She looked at the list and realized it must have been the list he was talking about before. “Is this the list you were talking about before?” He nodded in agreement. She thought to herself, ‘He really cares about her. Sorry I have to do this to you Spike.’ “I suppose we should go look for her then.” Fleur said. It made Spike happy that she was willing to help out. They searched all around the carnival, missing out on many games Spike really wanted to play again. Fleur then thought of an idea, “Hey Spike! How about we go on that ride?” She pointed to a ferris wheel. Without thinking Spike said, “We don’t have time for rides.” Fleur justified her point, “I meant we can use the ride to get a better view of things.” “Oh. That makes sense. Let’s go!” Spike was actually happy to go on a ride and search for Rarity. Fleur felt bad about what she was going to do next, but she doesn’t exactly have a choice in the matter. She and Spike went into the ferris wheel and Spike immediately began looking around for Rarity, but couldn’t see her anywhere. Just as they reached the top, the ride stopped working. They heard on an intercom, “We are sorry for the inconvenience, but the ride has suddenly stopped working. We will fix it as soon as possible just stay within your seats.” Spike began panicking. “What are we going to do now!?” Fleur calmly suggested, “Well there isn’t much we can do so how about we just talk? It can pass the time faster and hopefully you can calm your nerves.” Spike wasn’t exactly happy with that, but he had no other choice. All they could do is what she said. “Alright then. Not like we have any other choices.” Fleur finally calmed Spike down and got him in a stable setting. She then began asking him questions to get to know him better. “So Spike. Want to talk more about your friends in Ponyville?” “Sure I guess.” Spike said while having his head hang sadly. Spike went on to talk to her about all the Elements of Harmony. He began telling stories about his adventures with them. Spike was cheering up a little, but Fleur needed more to get his mind off of Rarity. Spike then continued and noticed how he was mentioning Rarity quite often. It stirred something inside her the wrong way. She then asked a personal question, “Spike. What’s your relationship with Rarity like?” Spike was embarrassed to answer the question. “Can we choose another question?” She shook her head in disagreement. She wanted to know badly. “Well Rarity and I are just friends. I mean we are good friends. I help her all the time with her work whenever she asks me to come. I even help with detail work. I have been learning a lot from her about being a tailor. Its been fun working together with her.” “But you don’t want to just be friends right?” Fleur asked bluntly and blindly. She didn’t even realized she asked the question. Even though Spike already told her about her crush on Rarity, it still felt a little surprising. “Well yeah, but I don’t want to mess up our relationship either. It feels wrong, but I would rather not mess up our current relationship.” She wanted to give him advice, but that would hinder her master’s plan. “Yeah. It would be better if you didn’t mess with it without knowing she likes you or even sees you as a romantic interest. Break ups hurt the most at the beginning, but it will get better.” Spike began feeling uncomfortable, “Can we not talk about this?” She was finally getting into Spike’s head. It made her sad to do a despicable thing to such an innocent guy. If someone wasn’t pulling her strings, she would rather he be happy. “Sorry Spike. How about any other crushes you had in your life?” Another personal question for Spike. He began wondering why she was this invested into his love life. “Well there was another mare, but that died out when I met Rarity. I had a few other minor crushes, but they didn’t last longer than a week at best. I’ve been in love with Rarity since I moved to Ponyville.” Fleur was losing him back to Rarity. She needed something quick. She then did a desperate move. “Say Spike. How does Rarity treat you when you help her?” Spike was confused, but answered anyway. “Well I guess I am treated like any other worker. She does treat me to some food and gives me gems if I do well.” She then decided to explore a little more. “What do your friends think?” Spike answered still confused, “Well Twilight says sometimes, that she is kind of asking me to help too much, but I never minded the work. I have fun.” “What things does she make you do outside of detail work? I am sure you don’t just work on dresses all day.” Spike then admitted to a few other daring things that most ponies wouldn’t do for her. “Well she sometimes has me go and join her out so we can hunt and mine gems under the ground. My dragon claws and tail are good for digging quickly. She also sometimes uses me as a pincushion, but that isn’t as bad as it sounds! My dragon scales are really tough so I don’t feel it!” Fleur was mortified. “Spike! That is dangerous! Do any of your other friends know about that!?” “Well yeah. They were scared when they first heard it, but I showed them it wasn’t that bad.” Fleur was now more worried for Spike’s safety now. More reason for her to split them up. “Well Spike. If you are ok with it, then I trust you to make the right choices. I just don’t want to see you get hurt by anything. Even though we have only been friends a few days, I still consider you an important friend of mine.” Spike felt happier hearing that. She then continued to flatter him. “Before you came into town, it was very boring and dull. The moment I met you, I had fun that I haven’t had since I was a filly. It has been great. I hope you and I can continue to be close for longer too. Just like you and your friend.” Spike was really happy to hear that. He grew a smile on his face. Fleur started getting the upper hand. They then continued their conversation, moving gradually away from the topic of Rarity until she was forgotten and lost in the chatting. They then were talking about fun times and embarrassing moments they had and were laughing a lot. Spike said something unexpected to Fleur, “I have to admit. This has been the most fun and relaxing thing I’ve done on this vacation.” Fleur let something slip out that she wasn’t planning to tell. “I wish we could have spent more time on this vacation of yours together. All those fun rides we missed.” Saying it gave her a little blush. Spike was fascinated by it, but tried to play it off like she was joking “What do you like me or something?” Those words put Fleur in a trance. Her body unconsciously moved in and she kissed Spike on the lips. The moment they kissed, the ride began moving again. They didn’t stop until they were near the bottom. Spike was really shocked and couldn’t say anything. Fleur realized what happened and left the ride, rushing past other ponies. Spike was still in a trance like state until the pony, who controls the ride, magically pulled Spike out of the ride. He then snapped out of it and now his thoughts were filled with Fleur. He said to himself, “What just happened?” Just then Rarity came out of nowhere with tears in her eyes. “SPIKE!” Where have you been!?” Spike’s body heard her, but it didn’t register into his head. She finally got close to him and wrapped him up in her hooves. He then realized what was going on. “Rarity!! Where did you go!?” “I should ask you the same thing! You vanished as soon as you got off the first ride!” Rarity exclaimed. “Last thing I remember before the ride ended was blacking out. I then woke up spinning around in a teacup ride with…” Spike paused as the vision of her kissing him had infected his mind. Rarity noticed the blush on his face and was slightly angered by it. “Who was with you?” Spike shook his head and answered, “It was just an old friend I knew from Canterlot a long time ago. Apparently they kidnapped me and dragged me around the carnival. I was trying to look for you the entire time. I even entered the ferris wheel in hopes to see you, but I got stuck up there all day. Now the day is almost over and I couldn’t even spend it with you like I wanted.” Rarity smiled, “Well Spike. We still have time so lets enjoy whatever time left together.” “That would be lovely.” Spike said realizing he just lied to the one he loved right to her face. This goes against his dragon code, but this is a special circumstance right? Spike and Rarity then began spending their day together, but something just felt wrong. Spike didn’t look as excited as he was before he got lost. He seemed to always be thinking hard. Rarity noticed it and it bothered her. She thought to herself, ‘Maybe he is just tired’, but Spike denied being tired. As the day ended, it was an awkward walk back. It was a little silent as they had small chats. The mood was definitely different than when they walked to the carnival. Spike then began noticing that his critical thinking is causing Rarity to feel sad. He had to do something to make her feel better. Spike noticed a little outdoor dance in the town square. He pulled Rarity to come join him. She was surprised by the gesture, but it was a good kind of surprise. He then took his lady by the hand and asked, “May I have this dance?” Rarity only nodded and they began dancing the evening light away. Rarity had tears on her face again, but they were tears of joy. Spike thought to himself, ‘That’s right. She is the girl I’m supposed to be pleasing. The one I want to be with’ He then whispered to her, “I’m sorry Rarity.” She smiled at him and whispered back, “It’s ok.” Once the dance had ended, it had become late and they went back to the castle. Spike let Rarity leave for her room and headed back to his room. As he headed back, he noticed a drama was on the magical TV in Celestia’s room. Celestia was sniffling just like her sister. She was watching a drama too, but this one had a story where the protagonist, who is a dragon, has to make a choice between his crush and his childhood friend like a lot of drama’s do. Spike recognized the drama and remembered it had a sad ending rather than a happy one like most people wanted. They fight so much that their friendship is gradually torn apart. He guesses that’s why it was called Torn Between. Spike then headed to bed. He after doing his nightly ritual of brushing and using the bathroom before bed, just laid in bed wondering about the events that happened today and every other day this week. He was even more confused and torn between his new friend and his lifelong crush. What would he say to Fleur tomorrow if he meets her again? Spike then noticed a quick little mist of stardust entered his room and he gradually fell asleep. Three tall hooded ponies entered the room. “You only have until sunrise so make this work as soon as possible. He needs just a little extra push in the right direction after all.” One of the ponies said as it opened a portal into his dreams. “Go now. I will watch over the night and good luck.” They entered Spike’s dreams and began to exercise their plans.