//------------------------------// // ...How Many Days has it Been? // Story: The Days Passed // by SilverEyedWolf //------------------------------// Spike stirred slowly, pulling his head away from the little ball of soft he’d wrapped himself around. His eyes closed, her pressed his nose between a pair of ears, snuffling affectionately. With a yawn, the pony in the middle shivered, slowly pushing her head up. His chin scraping along her pelt, he chuckled at the tickling, then they were nose to nose, breathing along each-other. Opening his eyes, he looked into half-lidded blue eyes, crusty with sleep and fogged with gentle unawareness. A spark in his mind telling him he had no reason not to, he leaned forward the extra space and met warm lips with his own. The lips under his smiled, the eyes in front of his fluttered slowly, the nose still touching his snout pulled heavily at the air. For a second, his pressure was returned, and he even felt a tongue prod at his lips. He closed his eyes again, reveling in the soft press of… His tired mind lurched, and he pulled away as he tried to look down at the mare, his mind a swirling mess of images; a white pegasus with the most gentle blue eyes and a purple swath of mostly straight hair hiding the precious face, blue butterflies flying on her flank… He looked down, into her wide blue eyes, her yellow face blazing with red. Her pink hair strayed in his breath, strands dancing over her face as they stared at each other. Her ears twitched, almost straight up most of the time. Spike reached up, running a claw over her hairline and tucking the wayward hair behind and ear. “Good morning,” he croaked. Her ears splayed back, laying against her skull. “Spike, I’m not...” she started, stuttering to a halt. “Not in your bed?” he tried to finish, blinking down at her. “N-no-not ready for…” She glanced purposefully at her croup, trying to pull her chest closer to their already touching bodies. “Not…” He couldn’t think, his mind was being slower than normal… “Is something wrong with your… tail…” He stopped trying to think, and simply moved his hips away from hers. “I am so sorry,” he whispered. “I assure you, I have no control over… that…” “I know,” she murmured, looking slightly less panicked now. “Uhm, I need to use the bathroom, but if you need to first…?” “No, no, feel free...” He pulled his wing from over her, and quickly turned away, tucking himself into a wing pod as he waited for Fluttershy to slip away. Instead of hoofsteps away, he felt a warm weight press into his back, and then felt all of himself stiffen when she whispered into his ear. “You’re so warm,” she said, then kissed him between his ear and his jaw. With a quick clatter, she had dashed away. He sat there for a minute, his mind full of fuzz again, before he turned his head and called, “That did nothing to help, I’ll have you know!” The only response he received was a stream of giggles, followed by the quiet shutting of a door in the hall. Shaking himself, he made sure he was alone in the room, then carefully stretched his limbs, briefly becoming a seven-pointed star on the floor. Rolling over, he worked at raising himself, still stretching out the kinks of sleeping in a ball. Moving into the kitchen, he looked over Fluttershy’s calendar, noticing the mostly blank squares, and taking note of the few special things she had planned out. Animals need vaccine booster Checkup: Mr Bear Picnic w/friends, bring fruit He smiled at the last one, set for this afternoon. He hoped to come along, and maybe see… He froze. This was the first time today he’d thought of Rarity. There was that brief confusion of who he’d been kissing this morning, but this was the first time her name had consciously crossed his mind. He hadn’t felt any sort of pain in his chest. Looking at the calendar, he did a quick count of the days, twitching when he realized that he couldn’t just remember the number from yesterday without thought.. This is the first day I can think her name without hurting… He felt a phantom pain, almost like a longing, and wondered briefly if he was missing the missing her. Shaking his head, he emptied his thoughts, taking a deep breath and releasing it slowly. “Spike?” He turned, and felt himself smile. Her mane was a bit of a mess, most of it sticking to the side of her face and neck in a frizz of static, the rest floating through the air with a mind of their own. “Sorry, just being neurotic,” he said, attempting to reassure her. With a blush, he asked, “Speaking of, how’s your tail?” She coughed roughly, looking away as her face lit up. She muttered something under her breath, and Spike’s ear perked. He took a step closer, cocking his head to the side. She smiled widely, shaking her head. “Nothing, I just said it’s fine. But, um, I need to bathe real quick… Are you okay with feeding my animals, after…?” Laughing, Spike nodded. “I hope I’ve gotten a little better, I’ve only helped you four times now.” He opened a cabinet, looking over the contents for a moment before pulling out a box of dry, ground oats. “Feel like breakfast first?” When she shook her head, he shrugged. “I’ll leave you some on the stove.” She smiled, nodding… Then moved closer. “Thank you,” she murmured, looking up into his eyes. Reaching up, she slowly pulled him down to her waiting muzzle, kissing without much force, but not without passion. “For feeding both me, and my animals.” He nodded, smiling. “Careful,” he muttered, meeting her nose with his. “Dragon breath is a real issue in the morning.” “I’ve had worse from Mr. Bear,” she said, kissing him again and turning away. He watched her leave, smiling at the door frame, then turned to the stove. ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, She spooned the last of the honey drizzled oats into her muzzle just as Spike opened the door, stomping in with a weary look, and pausing to stretch his back. He left the door open, and a pleasant breeze blew into the warm kitchen. “How do you do all that bending over?” he asked, kneading his spine with a claw. “Doing it every day helps,” she laughed. “Plus, weekly visits to the spa help a lot.” “I might need a trip, if I try and keep up with that,” he complained, twisting his back to release a series of cracks and pops. “Speaking of trips, I saw that the girls were having a picnic today. Do you think they’d mind if I joined?” “I can’t imagine they would,” she said slowly, “but, if we went, we’d either have to be really careful about each other, or make sure AJ and Pinkie know.” “And Rarity,” he said, resolutely. “I was thinking, while I was weeding the garden...” “Oh, thank you, Spike,” Fluttershy interrupted, quietly. He nodded, then continued, “I was thinking, and I’m not really comfortable spending too much more time without her knowing. I’d like to tell her about us.” Fluttershy nodded. “Are we going today?” she asked. “Before the picnic?” He gave her a strange look. “I was going to, yeah. You don’t have to come along. It may be better if you didn’t, you know?” Fluttershy shook her head, a hurt look crossing her face. “Rarity can get a little… impassioned, right?” he said. “If she starts getting upset, she may yell. At both of us.” Fluttershy frowned, having an internal debate. She really didn’t want to be yelled at, especially if it was coming from one of her best friends, one of the few she hung out with regularly. But then, she didn’t want to let her gentledrake face what could be a yelling spree by himself… “And besides, if we both show up and one of us slips, she could be devastated,” he pointed out with a shrug. “I don’t know how delicate she might still be…” “Are you sure you’ll be alright?” Fluttershy asked, almost flinching at the relief she felt about not having to go. “A hundred percent,” Spike said, nodding his head and smiling. “She may be upset, but I think she’ll be okay hearing it from me. Or, more okay, at least.” “I mean, are we even sure she needs to know? Are we babying her?” Fluttershy snorted, shaking her head and looking into the table, shamed by her sudden outburst. Spike looked at her carefully, then smiled. “I don’t know if she needs to know or not. But, I,” he said, stressing the vowel, “need her to know. And yeah, we may be over worrying about her a bit, but that’s because she’s one of our dear friends. We should always worry about our friends, especially over situations like these.” “Sorry,” she muttered. “I just… It almost feels like you’re trying to keep her a part of your life… I mean, your love life,” she said. “A little,” he admitted. “But not in any romantic capacity. I worry about her feelings, more than a normal friend would…” He shrugged. “But we’re pretty far from normal friends, right now. I’m going to worry about her an extra bit, probably forever. “But,” he said, strength and heat flowing in his voice, his hand warm as he reached out and cupped one of her cheeks in a claw, “That does not mean she will ever take precedence over you, Fluttershy. I’ll never abandon you to run to her, ever.” She blushed, pushing his arm away. “You’re making me feel clingy,” she giggled. “Though I guess you’ve more than proved your point. I’ll let you handle Rarity, and I’ll take the time to prepare for the picnic.” “See you there?” he asked. “You better,” she said, giving him a practiced smirk, promptly dissolved into a warm smile. They kissed, and he left the cottage, smiling over his shoulder as his tail caught the door and closed it behind him. ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, “This is a bad idea,” Spike said aloud finally, staring at the familiar, now gaudy carousel once again. “What’s a bad idea?” asked a bright voice from his side, one he was entirely unsurprised to hear. “Well Pinks, I was just about to go tell my exmare-friend about my new mare-friend, and hope she doesn’t splatter me with her needles,” he said, smiling down at the excitable mare. “And I guess I’ll make sure you know, as well.” Pinkie released her lungful of air through pursed lips, blowing a loud raspberry. “Psh, that’s old news, Spike-O. How’s it going?” “Well, it’s a bit too early to tell, honestly,” he said. “I like it, of course. Very low key, low maintenance, low stress. And she’s sweet, in a lovey way. I look forward to knowing her better.” “As do I, dear Spikey Wikey,” called a honeyed voice behind him, much too much sweetness and laughter in it for his taste. “Of bucking course,” he moaned, slapping a hand over his eyes. “You know, I’ve been standing here for, like, an hour trying to figure out how to tell you.” “Oh, I know,” Rarity said with a giggle, appearing on the opposite side of Pinkie. She wore a large-brimmed hat, with big sunglasses, both matching her coat. The hat had a ribbon around the base that matched her cutie mark. The glasses had been custom ordered with her mark on the corners of the lenses, were they met the earpieces. “I watched you for about fifteen minutes of it,” she said, pointing a hoof at the window on the second floor, the only one with its blinds down. “And then I snuck out of the back door, and I’ve been behind you with Pinkie for...” Rarity turned to her, and Pinkie chimed, “Thirteen minutes, twenty-three seconds.” “Yes, dear, thank you. Anyhow, I wondered what you were working up the courage for.” She smiled up at him, taking off her sunglasses to look directly into his eyes. “I’m happy for you, Spike. I look forward to meeting the mare who managed to steal the heart I broke.” His chest twinged, but he easily ignored it. “Well, you’ve already met her,” he muttered, scratching the back of his neck. She scoffed, waving her glasses along with her fore-hoof. “Of course I have darling, I’ve met and gossiped with every mare in town.” “You’re already well and intimately friends with her.” “Well now, that certainly narrows it down,” she muttered, tapping her bottom lip with her glasses. “You didn’t join Bon Bon ’s herd, did you?” “No, no, monogamous still,” he chuckled, thinking of the fifteen-odd ponies that made up that bunch. Rarity hemmed, still tapping at her lip. She gasped, looking at up at Spike. “She’s not another bearer, is she?” Spike cocked his head, looking at her. “Not that that’s a problem, of course,” she said hurriedly. “It’s just… Well, it looks a little strange to me, is all.” Spike chuckled, shaking his head. “It is indeed an Element,” he told her. She stared up at him, and he could see her brain throwing itself into high gear, what she called, “Revving my gossip engines.” “Not me, not Twilight of course,” she murmured out loud. “Pinkie would be all over you if it was her, I can’t imagine Fluttershy being up for dating anyone...” Spike held his poker face well, but he knew Rarity had memorized all of his faces. Luckily for him, she was gazing into the clouds just above his head, deep within her own mind. “Is it Applejack?” “Rainbow has her claim on AJ, I believe,” he said with a smile. Her eyes widened, her muzzle splitting into a happy grin. “Really now? I have so been looking forward to those two finally…” She paused, blinking. Pulling her head away a bit, she looked back up into his smiling face. “She got iiiiiiiiit,” Pinkie sing-songed at the pebble she was currently rolling between her hooves, looking everything like a large, pink cat. “Boulder two-point-oh, you’re pretty boring compared to your progenitor…” she mumbled. “Fluttershy?” she asked, strangely inflection-less. “The one and only,” he said, watching her carefully. “Huh,” she said, then turned, staring at her boutique. “Fluttershy...” They stayed that way for a minute, two bodies looking vacantly at a building, a third playing with a small stone. “So, you chased her?” Rarity asked, suspiciously warmly. Spike twitched his head to his left, looking directly at the mare. He waited until she looked at him, meeting his gaze. “Are you really okay, or do you have your mask on?” he asked softly. They stared at each other for a minute, before she looked away. “Mostly I’m okay, darling,” she said, the last word a little breathy. “I admit, I’m using my, ‘Socialite’, mask a bit, but honestly… I’m okay with you dating, Spike. I have to be,” she said with a chuckle. “After all, I’m the one...” Spike shushed her, shaking his head. “You did me a kindness Rarity, we both know that.” “You know,” she started, “you dodged my question, Spikey. Did you chase her?” He rubbed the spines on the back of his head, looking away. “Actually, she kissed me first,” he admitted, blushing. Spike waited for a moment, then a minute. When his blush went away, he turned back to them, finding them both staring at him, neither blinking. “What?” “You… You’re… You’ve already kissed?” Rarity asked, stone faced. “That took, like, years when you two were dating,” Pinkie whispered, sounding awestruck. Rarity’s head whipped towards the other mare. Spike couldn’t see their expressions, but he did see Pinkie’s ears droop. “Sorry,” she said, weakly looking back down and rolling the pebble again. Rarity sighed heavily, then leaned onto the mare’s shoulder, making Pinkie jump a bit before she returned the embrace. “I’m sorry too, Pinkie, I suppose this is getting to me more than I cared to admit,” Rarity sighed, nuzzling into their friend’s shoulder. “But please, Spike, please don’t feel badly. It’s not at all your fault.” She smiled up at him, her lip steady and her eyes mostly clear. Mostly. “But come now,” Rarity declared, lifting from Pinkie’s shoulder and sniffling lightly. “Let’s go inside, and discuss this in earnest.” She glanced up at Spike. “I simply must know how you got dear Fluttershy to go after you.” “Do we have enough time, with the picnic?” Spike asked, looking up at the sun. It hovered maybe a foot off of the horizon, still rising. “I’m not sure when it’s supposed to start...” “Pinkie, I trust you have desert ready and cooling?” Rarity asked, returning the baker’s nod. “And my salad is quite ready, the dressing can be mixed last minute… Yes, I believe we have the perfect amount of time!” Rarity crowed, giving a ladylike cheer of glee. Spike groaned, recognizing her smile and cheer. Still, he couldn’t wipe the smile from his face as he was drug into her house, a mare pulling each foreleg. ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, “… And then she had her lips on me, and of course I froze, like I always do whenever I panic...” “True, darling, you always have...” “… And she smiled up at me, and she slurred like a drunken sailor, something about going to bed...” “Sleepy Flutters always has been a bit silly, ever since we had that sleepover with Rainbow...” “And thank you, Pinkie, for not inviting me to that, I’ve heard the worst things from the poor dear about it…” “And in the morning, I told her what had happened, and we had breakfast, and she asked me to kiss her there!” “So of course, our gentledrake decided to oblige the poor pegasus… Stop chortling Pinkie, it’s very distracting...” Spike pointed a claw at Rarity, nodding. “That’s just it, actually. We kissed, and we both liked it, and then I had to go dunk my head in a rain barrel.” Pinkie crowed with glee, rocking back into the couch she and Rarity were sitting on and wrapping her legs around her barrel, trying to hold her heaving ribs together. “Pinkie, please,” Rarity begged, a hoof almost stuffed into her muzzle. “It’s not ladylike to… to… to laugh like…” She finally lost it, rolling with the mare on the couch cushions, both being glared at by a faux-petulant dragon. After a minute, he relented, joining in on their laughter. They sat there for a few minutes, trying to recover only to dissolve in giggles again. Eventually, Rarity looked up at the clock on the wall. “Oh, shoot,” she muttered, standing up and walking towards the kitchen. “Pinkie, dear, you may want to go grab the desert. We’ve only fifteen minutes until the picnic...” Pinkie let out a squeaky, high-pitched gasp, before rocketing up from the couch and through Rarity’s front door. The bell jingled as the door closed. Spike, chuckling, stood from his chair and stretched, standing on his hind legs and reaching up with his forelegs. Popping his back, he relaxed his arms, letting his claws fall… And smacking them against the wooden beams of Rarity’s ceiling. Looking around, he tapped at the beams, bemusedly scuttling his claws over the tops of the wood. He scraped a claw over the top, looking down at the mound of dust on his digit. “Oh my, Spike…” He looked down at the unicorn, currently around waist-height to him. He lowered himself, letting his forelegs take his weight and walking like a pony again. “You’ve grown some more. I remember when your were...” She paused, then shook her head with a smile. “I can remember when you were as tall to me as I am to you, now. So cute and chubby,” she said, inflating her cheeks and making her voice pitch up at the end. “I guess it’s a good thing you haven’t gotten chubby, to replace mine,” he said, poking her nose and flicking up, making her cross her eyes and sniffle. “Well, I suppose it’s nice to know I haven’t, well... That I’ve stayed trim.” She rubbed at her nose daintily with a hoof, then levitated a basket over to him. “Are you still a gentledrake, Spike?” “I could never let a lady carry her own burdens,” he chuckled, taking the basket and securing it between two spines on his back. “Shall we, then?”