Inside the clubhouse, Sweetie Belle walked around trying to figure out what to do while Button Mash quietly sat there. He didn’t mind helping out Sweetie Belle and Sweetie Belle had nothing wrong with having his help, but she also knew this was some sort setup. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon had been trying to push Button Mash and Sweetie Belle together for nearly a year now. To date, this was the twentieth time they had pulled something like this. At first Sweetie Belle didn’t mind it. She saw Button Mash as sweet. But the ex-bully’s stubbornness at pushing them together made it hard for them to move closer than simply being close friends. And because of that it created a major awkwardness about things, especially since Button Mash was already shy to begin with.
“So who’s idea was it this time?” said Sweetie Belle. The letter had been from Diamond Tiara, but it was often both their ideas.
“Well….I received a letter from Silver Spoon,” said Button Mash.
“Fine let’s go talk to them,” said Sweetie Belle.
“But….I thought we were going to go spy on your sister and her new stallion?” said Button Mash.
“What? How did you know my original plan?” Sweetie Belle was understandably caught of guard by this.
“That’s what my letter said,” Button Mash showed her the letter. Sweetie Belle grabbed it with her magic and read it.
“What? How do they know about Rarity’s new stallion Spark Speagle before me, when I just barely found out myself a few hours ago?” said Sweetie Belle getting increasingly annoyed. “Okay we’re going to go see them right now,” Sweetie Belle ran out of the clubhouse.
“Oh… alright,” said Button Mash as he followed after her.
******
….The two left so quickly they didn’t notice a blue box spinning in the sky overhead. The doors open and two male voices were arguing inside. “I told you to get away from my controls,” one male voice said. “No, this is too much fun,” said the other male voice with a familiar giggle. Suddenly a gray pegasus mare started falling towards the doorway, as the blue box flew out of sight….
******
Sweetie Belle and Button Mash arrived at Diamond Tiara’s mansion. It stood four stories tall and had too many rooms to count. Sweetie Belle knocked on the ivory doors. A brown earth pony with a white mane walked out. It was Diamond Tiara’s family butler. “May I help you,” he asked them.
“Yeah, we are looking for Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon,” said Sweetie Belle.
“I shall get their attention,” said the butler as he left. The two stood there and waited for Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon.
After a few moments of waiting, Sweetie Belle was getting annoyed. Button Mash stood thinking to himself, ‘Ask her already, no, ask her already, no,’ Finally he gave in and spoke. “Uh, Sweetie Belle -- ”
But before he could finish, Diamond Tiara walked out. “Oh hey you two. Enjoying yourselves?” asked Diamond Tiara, giggling.
“You know very well how annoying this is,” said Sweetie Belle.
“What? But I thought this was your idea,” said Diamond Tiara.
“What are you talking about?” Sweetie Belle asked.
“You sent me a letter to set this up,” said Diamond Tiara.
“What? No I didn’t,” Sweetie Belle protested, even more confused.
“Yeah, you did,” said Diamond Tiara as she grabbed the letter with her magic. “See?”
“What?” said Sweetie Belle. She grabbed it with her own magic and read it. It was her words and her writing style. But this made no sense! It was obviously a fake, done by either Diamond Tiara, Silver Spoon or most likely Rarity. Rarity had copied Sweetie Belle's writing style before. Sweetie Belle figured that this must some attempt to distract her from finding out anything on this Spark Speagle.
But Sweetie Belle was not going to be having any of that. There was obviously something going on and now she was more determined then ever to find out what.
After a fruitless talk with Diamond Tiara, Sweetie Belle decided to go ahead and let Button Mash help out. They left the mansion. “So… where are we going?” he asked.
“To go see Spike personally.”
“But didn’t you say that he was at…. a bar,” said Button Mash with obvious uneasiness.
“Yeah.”
“But we’re too young to….drink,” said Button Mash, growing more and more nervous.
“Button we are not going there to drink,” said Sweetie Belle. “We’re going there to talk to Spike and tell him something is wrong.”
“But I thought Starlight already told you he was fine with it?”
“But it’s clear something is wrong and Spike can’t find out what hiding in a bar all day.”
“Okay,” said Button Mash. “But how will we know which bar he is in?”
“Button, there is only one bar near Ponyville where a dragon can actually get a good drink,” said Sweetie Belle. “And that’s the Garble’s Grub.”
“And… that is where?”
“Just outside the Everfree Forest.”
******
The two arrived at the Garble’s Grub. It was a dragon’s bar run by a tall, thin red dragon name Garble. He had run the place there for nearly a year now, ever since him and Spike had met back during the last dragon migration. The two had fixed their problems and become good friends.
Sweetie Belle and Button Mash walked up to the door and ignored the sign on it, walking into the bar. “Hey you two!” said Garble from the other side of the bar. “Did you not read the sign, no underage drinkers? Now get out here. This stuff is twice as strong as pony’s hard cider.”
Indeed it most likely it was. Dragons had a stronger tolerance for alcohol than ponies. Sweetie Belle remembered how one time Spike had gotten into a drinking contest with Applejack back at the farm and nearly won.
“We’re not here to drink. We’re here to see Spike,” said Sweetie Belle.
“Oh… well Spike,” said Garble, as he was stomping his foot rather loudly. Button Mash raised his eyebrow at this. Suddenly the door to the back room opened up. Inside could be seen several orange colored juices, most likely some sort of hard cider made for dragons. “There you are Spike. You got ponies here to see you.”
Spike wandered over, clearly drunk, a few times nearly falling over. He had grown some over the years, his wings even had finally come in. On all fours, which he was most of the time now, he was a little bit taller then Rarity. “Oh… Hi… Garble,” said Spike slurring his words as he walked over to his seat.
“Wow, Spike I said drink the stuff slow, not fast,” said Garble. “You’re drinking too many.”
“Too many… I’ll be fine,” said Spike. He looked at Sweetie Belle and Button Mash. “Oh hey look…. it’s the happy couple.”
“What?!?!” they both said.
“What do you….. two want?”
“We want to you to know that there is something wrong with Spark Speagle.”
“Spark Speagle….. Spark…. well you want to know the truth?” said Spike, who was switching back and forth between talking and shouting.
“Yeah,” said Sweetie Belle.
Spike stood on his back legs. Garble getting ready to catch him in case he fell. “WELL I --,” but before Spike could finish he puked all over the floor. “I don’t care who he is….. he treats Rarity perfectly and that all…. that matters,” he finished by returning to his sitting position.
“Oh Spike I told you you were pounding down the stuff too hard,” said Garble as he walked over with a mop.
“Actually I think…. I’m handling the stuff just….. fine,” said Spike.
“Okay, that’s enough for today,” said Garble.
“Fine.”
It was clear that Sweetie Belle was not going to get through to Spike. He was clearly too drunk. “Come on Button Mash, let’s go. We’re not going to get any answers from him.”
“Okay.”
The two left the Garble’s Grub, deciding the next stop should be back at Rarity’s. Maybe by now that Spark would be gone.
Meanwhile back in the bar.
“Come on Spike calm down,” said Garble. “SG can only make so much pumpkin hard cider. Here drink some water, it will calm you down.”
“Thanks…. you two are the best.”
******
Sweetie Belle and Button Mash arrived at the Carousel Boutique. Inside Rarity was still humming happily, but this time there was no Spark Speagle nearby. The two walked into the Carousel Boutique. “Rarity we need to talk. Is that Spark Speagle gone?”
“Why yes, he is dear. You just missed him. He left an hour ago,” said Rarity as she walked up to them. “Oh, you have Button Mash with you,” she said with a giggle.
“Yeah I do,” said Sweetie Belle in a knowing tone to try and indicate that she had a feeling that Rarity was the one who sent the letter to Diamond Tiara. “Anyway, can we talk?”
“Sure. About what, dear?”
“Spike.”
“Spi…. Spike,” said Rarity as she was caught off guard by the question. “What about Spike?”
“Now I know you two were getting close, and I want know why you all the sudden have your hooves on a new stallion?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Spike and I are….. just friends,” said Rarity. Sweetie Belle didn’t believe her. Her statement seemed forced. “Now come on I’ve got dinner ready, oh and I've got to go to bed early tonight.”
“What? But it’s Friday,” said Sweetie Belle.
“And I think I should head home,” said Button Mash as he headed for the door. Sweetie Belle followed after him.
As they got to the door, Sweetie Belle walked out with him to have a word. “Now what’s wrong? You’ve barely talked since we left Diamond Tiara’s place.”
Button Mash just stood there. ‘Ask her, ask her, ask her,’ the thoughts from before buzzing through his head. “Sweetie Belle do you think we could -- ”
But again before he could finish she shushed him with her hoof. This caused him to blush a little. Luckily Sweetie Belle didn’t see it as she had her mind on a new plan. “Hold that thought, I just got an idea.”
“Okay, what?”
“We’ll get answers by spying on Rarity’s date with Spark,” Sweetie Belle said as she removed her hoof.
“What?!?!” said Button Mash.
“Look Rarity only goes to bed early when she has a big date,” said Sweetie Belle. “So I say I find out where the date is, and then we go spy on her.”
“But what if they see us?”
“Good point,” said Sweetie Belle as she gave her plan another thought, slightly blushing. Button Mash didn’t notice. Sweetie Belle gritted her teeth. “We could say…. that we were on a date too.”
“A DATE -- ” again she stopped him with her hoof.
“But it’s not a date, we are only there to spy on them. Nothing more.” said Sweetie Belle. She removed her hoof. “Be here bright and early,” She walked back inside, closing the door behind her.
Button Mash meanwhile just stood there like a statue. Sure she said ‘not’ a date. But it was still the closest to what he had been trying to ask all day. And now he had his chance.
******