Interstate Rarity

by Flint Sparks

Merging.

“Five miiinutes!!” the train conductor yelled as he boarded the whistling train. Ponies finished their conversations with their loved ones and left them behind, off to travel to settlements elsewhere for their business. Many a foal cried for their daddy, not realizing they would be back later like they would each and every day.

Spike gripped his ticket and walked forth, only to hesitate on his second step. He furrowed his sweating brow and tried to step forward, but his legs had turned to lead. Gritting his teeth, he dragged his feet to trudge forward at a snail’s pace. He clutched his satchel and pushed forward. Nothing. Something caught onto his shoulder.

“Spike,” Twilight said as she lightly pulled him aside, allowing other ponies to walk past. She pulled him close and stared into his eyes, as if she was trying to discern any hidden doubts he had through the windows of his soul. Her stern glare eventually relaxed as she gave a weak smile.

“I see you’re finally doing something with yourself,” she said as she placed her front hooves onto his shoulders. “I’m proud of you, Spike. I’m so proud.” She wrapped her forelegs around his neck and drew him in close. The hug lingered; a few ponies stared as they trotted by, confused by the sight of an alicorn princess hugging a dragon with limp arms and a somber expression. Spike eventually pulled away and sighed.

Spike rubbed his arms and said, “Yeah…” He looked over at the station’s clock, noting his dwindling time left. He returned his gaze at Twilight as he hugged himself, despite not feeling chilled in the slightest. “It’s just a job, Twi. I’m going to be back in a few days. No big deal, really.”

“Um, Spike, about that…” Twilight’s eyes dropped to the floor, averting her previously stern gaze. She shuffled her hooves, her eyes scanning the station’s floorboards as if an answer was scribbled underhoof. Sighing, she looked up back into Spike’s eyes. “Spike, I’m moving to the Crystal Empire. I’ll probably be gone by the time you return…”

Spike nodded, recalling his hazy memories of the previous night. “Yeah, I remember that. Princess Cadence teaching you how to rule and all that.” He fidgeted, pondering a certain implication. “Does that mean I should just head over when I’m done? Or are you going to leave my bed here for the week?”

Twilight’s wings fluttered in place, her grimace revealing quiet turmoil. “I… Spike, you’re always welcome to join me. You will always be my number one assistant, and that will never change. But—”

“But what?” Spike said, his voice trembling as his fists clenched. “You’re not telling to leave you alone, are you? You aren’t—”

“Spike!” she shouted, her wings twitching in fury. She swallowed and returned his worrisome frown with a determined glare. She stepped forward, breaching his personal space, nearly nose to nose. “Spike, I said I would never leave you. Never. And I will stand by that as long as I stand for all that is friendship and magic.”

A heartbeat passed before she broke gaze, bending her neck to look over her shoulder. “Spike, I do mean that. But it’s time you move on, maybe make your own home-” Twilight turned to stare at Spike’s feet, refusing to meet his eyes “-somewhere else…?” Her voice wavered, her pupils widened, but Spike dispelled her fears by waving her off.

“I’ll, uh, think about it I guess,” he said, scratching the back of his neck and looking toward the clock. Time was just about up. “Just, er, give me some time to think about it?”

Twilight closed her eyes and smiled. “Thank you, Spike. Good luck, and I hope to see you soon.”

Beaming in return, Spike answered, “Thanks Twi—Oof!”

Her wings shot out and Twilight pounced, tacking Spike in a proper, loving hug. Complete with nuzzles. She squeezed with her forelegs, forcing out the negativity in Spike, forcing him to surrender and return the hug by wrapping his arms around her barrel. She giggled as he spun around, something she found exciting and fun since Spike’s growth spurt in his teens.

The train whistled as the two’s moment came to a close. Spike set Twilight back down on her hooves and gave her a small, quick hug goodbye. Twilight pecked his cheek, her eyes becoming damp as he pulled away and turned. Turned to face his destiny: a train.

He took one step, and another, and another as his legs unpetrified and became light. He broke into a light jog as the train began to move, jumping onto the first step as the last few ponies boarded. He turned as he walked through the door, watching Twilight wave one last time.

“Goodbye, Spike!” she cried, her mane blowing in the warm, summer wind. “I love you!”

Spike chuckled, and couldn’t help but wave back as the station turned to grass under his standing. He leaned away from the train, hanging on with one claw. He cupped his mouth and shouted “I love you too, Twilight!”

He couldn’t hear her response, if there was any, but he saw her wipe her eyes in the distance. Eventually, as the wind blew through his spines, she became nothing but a speck on the horizon.

Scenes of the town blurred past as the train accelerated, the sight eventually turning into wild grasslands. Spike held onto the door to watch the passing scenery for a few minutes.

A snort and a puff of smoke dissipating to the strong wind prompted Spike to finally enter the train, and into the hallway. He pocketed the train ticket into his satchel, a simple midnight blue sack with a denim strap, and walked past the several occupied compartments. Families traveling to the city, entrepreneur ponies traveling to Appleloosa to strike it rich with their business, and a few student unicorns hoping to cram for their exams on the journey to Canterlot.

Spike grinned, fond memories of his friends invoked by ponies living their lives. He stopped by one train compartment, listening to a mare talk to her coltfriend. He didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but she spoke loudly, spoke of her dreams to pass her final exams and earn her degree, becoming a licensed teacher. Her coltfriend scoffed and began an argument, driving the mare to hysterics. Spike grimaced and continued on, not wanting to meddle in other’s affairs.

Eventually he found an empty compartment at the end of the train cart and plopped down on the cushioned seat, stretching his back and resting on the wall. He considered opening the window and letting the wind blow in, but shook his head and merely rested it against the cool glass. His eyes dulled as they stared into the passing wildlands, from trees to deer to the occasional timberwolf as the the train journeyed to Canterlot.

He watched a few farms breeze by. The farmers, plowing as hard as they could with their earth pony vitality, stopped to wave at the passing train. Spike could hear a few ponies in the compartments behind him shout out their windows, greeting any loved ones they saw.

Clop clop clop.

Spike looked up from the window as the tell-tale hoofsteps of pony stepped into his compartment. A mare walked inside and climbed the opposite seat. He opened his jaw to question her breach of privacy, but the mare had a sleeping foal on her back. She laid on the seat in front of him and turned her head, biting the scruff of the foal’s neck to lift him and place him at her side.

It’d be rude to ask a mother to leave… Spike thought as he twiddled his thumbs, trying to keep his gaze toward the floor. A thick air filled the department as the two adults shared the occasional glance at each other. She seemed familiar, with her pinkish and blue hues and a well-filed horn. Her sister, a fellow unicorn, had a remarkable resemblance to the mailmare.

The mare was the first to speak, uttering a simple, “Hello.” Spike flinched from the silence breaking, nearly smacking the back of his head against the wall.

“Uh, hi. Nice to meet you,” Spike said, rubbing his arms as his scales prickled to the compartment’s draft. “You and your, er, daughter.”

The mare giggled, giving the sleeping filly a small stroke on the mane with a gentle hoof. “No, no, no,” -she shook her head- “she’s just my little sister. Not that I love her any less, of course.”

“Of course,” Spike parroted, trying to place where he had seen this mare. She lived in Ponyville, he presumed, but she was hard to remember. Like if she had been living in the background. Spike chuckled, amused at the irony.

“What’s so funny?” she asked, cocking her head. She pawed the edges of the cushion, still lying on her side, and laid her head down next to her sister.

Spike waved her off. “Uh, nothing,” he said as he turned his head toward the hall, something catching his eye. A single matron pulling a trolley asked the family in the other compartment if they wanted refreshments, but they turned it down. The matron, an aged mint pegasus, turned toward Spike.

“Anything from the trolley, dears?” she asked, her middle age wrinkling her forehead as she stepped into the compartment opening. She wasn’t ‘old’ by any means, but she was obviously past her prime. Still, Spike couldn’t help but grin as the lady beamed at the girls, her smile lathered with warmth and honey.

The mare checked herself for bits, then shook her head. “No, no thank you. I don’t have any bits.”

Lady Matron, or as Spike pretended to believe was her name, shook her head and clicked her tongue. “Tsk tsk, deary. It’s perfectly fine.” She reached into the trolley and pulled out a tiny hay sandwich, placing it on the cushion right next to the mare. “It’s on the house, dear. That little filly needs food to grow up big and strong, you hear?”

“I appreciate your kindness, but I can’t accept this without paying,” the mare said, shaking her head. She moved her hind leg to push the sandwich back, until Spike abruptly stood up and commanded their attention. The mares watched the dragon turn to his bag on the seat, ruffle through his belongings until the jingling of coins became audible, and turn around with a handful of bits.

“Here,” he said, dropping four bits into the matron’s hoof. “I’ll take four, two for them and two for me.”

“Oh my,” the matron gasped, her cheeks glowing red. “How gallant of you, sir! How generous!” She smiled and shoved the treats into his claws, dropping a few extra on the sly, turned around and hurried off before he could even utter a word of protest. She reared her head back and called out, “And tell your fillyfriend that you’re a keeper!”

Spike blushed to the mare’s amusement, her laughs hearty and strong. She snorted and giggled, wiping her nose clear once she was done. Even then, she let out the occasional snort as Spike sat down. He tossed her the treats, allowing her to catch them in her field of magic and set them aside. Eyeing the mare, Spike nibbled on a sandwich.

The mare took a small bite and perked her ears in interest. “So, mister dragon, thank for your little act of generosity. Dinky is going to love it when she wakes up. Nice to meet ya, name’s Sparkler.”

He adjusted his seating, finding his long tail numbing in the tightly closed seat. “Uh, hi. I’m Spike.”

Sparkler gasped, her eyes sparkling and her mouth widening into a knowing smile. “I know you! I saw you at the station, hugging your marefriend and saying goodbye!” She held a hoof to her mouth and giggled. “I love you, Spike!” she chirped, mimicking Twilight’s voice. She sat up in her seat and wiped her eye. “Man, you two are cute.”

“Uh…” Spike crossed his legs and arms, looking down at his lap. “She’s not, er, my marefriend…”

“Oh phooey. You two would’ve been great for each other,” she said, her ears drooping. They immediately perked up as she leaned forward in her seat. “Unless you have a crush on her! Or maybe there’s somepony else…”

“She’s like my sister, okay?” Spike threw his arms up, rolling his eyes and dropping arms back to his sides. “I mean, we’re practically family. We grew up together since the day I was hatched. So, yeah, kinda weird.”

Sparkler nodded. “Okay, I see. But I’m guessing there’s a mare in your life, huh? Come on-” she scooted to the very edge of her seat, threatening to topple over “-spill the beans!”

“Well…” Spike twiddled his claws. “I—”

Dinky, the previously sleeping filly, yawned and interrupted Spike. She smacked her lips and wiggled next to Sparkler, snuggling as close as she could for warmth. Sparkler adjusted, leaving the edge of her seat, and wrapped her tail so the very edge covered all but Dinky’s head.

Sparkler looked up and frowned. “Uh, she’s kinda tired after a long day. We’re heading up to see our grandparents, and she overexcited herself into exhaustion. Mind if we, you know?” She jerked her head to the sleeping filly, receiving a knowing nod from Spike.

He lifted a claw to his pursed lips and blew, “Shh…” Sparkler nodded and laid her head down by Dinky, closing her eyes to join her sister in the oblivion of sleep.

Spike leaned against the window, returning to his dull gaze of the wilderness. Canterlot was in sight, and the train was still going strong. Soon, they would enter the tunnel, and that would signal the final hour of the journey. Spike’s eyes drooped, the snores of the girls lulling him to sleep. His eyelids grew heavier and heavier, his vision growing hazy with a grey mist, until the jaws of Morpheus swallowed his consciousness.

The train entered the dark tunnel.

---

Spike’s eyelids fluttered as he dreamt. Flickers of blue hues of light, diamonds and jewels, a mare screaming his name and crying, a solar eclipse, and a falling wheel. A chaotic slideshow, seemingly orchestrated by Discord himself, troubled the young dragon’s dreams. Spike whimpered, shifting in his sleep and turning over.

Only to fall on a marble floor.

The cold plunge back into the waking world startled him, much more than the dull throbbing from contact. Spike groaned and picked himself up from the floor, wondering how in Equestria somepony removed the soft carpet. He reached out to the seat for support, but instead of a nice cushion he felt the hard surface of wood. He blinked rapidly, clearing his sleep inertia-ridden vision.

“Where—Where am I?” He slowly spun in place, taking in his surroundings: white marble floors, white marble walls, four corners ridden in shadows, only a single wooden chair and desk in the middle, and not a single door in sight. A single light bulb rocked ahead, casting the shadows of the dimly lit room. Spike walked to the wall and brushed his claws against it as he traversed the edge of the room, searching and feelings for a false wall or hidden door. Nothing.

He returned to the middle and pushed the chair aside, leaned against the desk, and searched for anything that’d tell him where he was. Not a single document on top of the desk, not even an ornament or name tag.

Spike grinded his teeth, his blood beginning to boil. He clenched his fists and locked his jaws, magically charged flames threatening to burst from within. I swear to Celestia, if this isn’t a prank I’m gonna—

“Sleep well, I hope?” a voice called from behind. Spike spun, just in time to see a white, flat door close behind an approaching stallion. The dark seams disappeared in the shadows, masked and invisible to the naked eye. Obscurity as camouflage.

So that’s why I couldn’t find it, Spike thought with a grimace. Kinda creepy if you ask me.

“Sorry for the long wait,” the stallion apologized as he checked his pocket watch from his blue polo’s pocket. He nodded and rolled his eyes, shoving the watch back inside. He turned to Spike and held an apologetic hoof to his chest. “I’m terribly sorry, I kept you waiting so long you fell asleep!”

Spike bit his lip and turned his head side to side, looking around the room with awkward jerks. “Uh… how did I even get here?” He scratched his head, honestly not remembering how he had arrived in the waiting room. No exit from the train, leaving the station, or traveling across Canterlot in search of the correct address.

Oh, the letter! Spike reached into his bag at his side and searched for the rolled up letter. It was rather small, about the size of his palm, and contained all the little information he knew. He unrolled it and presented it to the stallion, who took it and scanned the tiny letters.

“Ah, I remember this,” the stallion said as he adjusted his bowtie. He pocketed the letter into his polo pocket and turned around to trot off. He flicked his tail and ordered, “Come, we have much to talk about in my office!”

Spike hesitated as the stallion looked back, raising an eyebrow. Every fiber of his being screamed to turn down the offer, run back to Ponyville, and help Twilight move to the Crystal Empire. He wanted nothing more to go back to his chores, helping his friends out with their work, especially—he clenched his fists and continued onward, following the strange stallion into the widening door in front of them. If Twilight trusted the source, then so could he.

He needed to do this.

Comments

[Skeeter The Lurker]

And so...

It begins.

~Skeeter The Lurker

[Avox]

Oh my god, Interstate 60 was the best movie ever!

Ahem. Excuse me while I go read.

[Scootareader]

Shoot... I have to read every single mind trip I come across.

*looks at clock*

Just 30 minutes... to read 9,000 words? And hourly checks are due?

I'll read it tomorrow. Pinkie promise.

[LtMajorDude]

This seems interesting...Haven't read it yet, but have my like and fav anyway.

[DARKPHANTOM13]

Through a doorway to an unknown path he sets out, in hopes of finding hisd place in the world.

[Scootareader]

Don't you dare not see this through to completion. I will be the most incredibly dissatisfied reader in the world if you half-bake this story or put it on hiatus or any of that crap.

If you stop writing it, I will destroy you.

On a more personal note, comedy is great and all, but I much prefer serious stories, particularly those that have to do with mental trips--which this most certainly is. This is exactly the kind of story that I've been wishing you would write... and now I finally have it.

I know this isn't your normal type of fanfic, but you have to do this. Please, Flint Sparks.
hope.houptlab.org/OnlyHopeSticker.png
You're exactly who I want to write this story, so please keep writing it.

[Flint Sparks]

4233201
This is my pet project, so I enjoy writing it.

[Scootareader]

4239655
You better continue to enjoy writing it, then.

img4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20121227181357/ben10fanfiction/images/1/1b/0148964-3d-4th_wall-animated-derp-duplicate-gif-nightmare_fuel-pinkamena-pinkamena_diane_pie-pinkie_pie-stare.gif

You don't wanna know what happens to authors who don't complete stories that I want them to keep writing.

[randomsurprise]

Ok, interestin fic so far; mite follow . Besides that i'm wonderin is where t buck did spike end up at n' what was that freaky dream earlier too ?