Minty Image

by mintgreenconspiracy

Chapter 7-1: To the badlands!

Kenbroth Gilspotten Heathspike (the third) gave a deep sigh, as he trudged along through the thick layer of snow. After taking a brief moment to take a quick look at his watch, he came to a startling conclusion. "Oh my!" He exclaimed, to himself. "Has it really been seven months, since the promenade, already?" He said, double checking his watch to ensure he read it correctly. Oh it definitely was, though. On the other hand it probably shouldn't have surprised him so much that time had flowed so quickly for him. He had, after all, been cursed to sleep for twenty long years after he drank that magical fruit punch that had been giving to him by those spooky Belgians... or something... No wait... That was the other guy... (Though he had just been asleep for one thousand years waiting for someone to touch his flower and become the princess of Ponyville... Oh what fun!)

He looked at the map, for what must have been the hundredth time, he should have been right on top of it. He was certain that Willy Nilly Mountain was around here somewhere! (Though he supposed it probably would have been easier to find without the thick fog of driving snow.) On the other hand, how could he be so sure? What inside him made him even think a dragon even lived up there? What made him so sure that she even existed? In fact, except for a nagging gut feeling, he was certain that he'd never met another dragon before... Ever! So why did he think that somebody had even told him explicitly about a dragoness at the top of said oddly named mountain? And yet, strangely enough, he was almost certain that he never had any such conversation... With a pony that had never existed, in the first place... Odd... Maybe he needed to go back to sleep for a while to clear his head? Like another fifty years?

... Where were those spooky dutch blokes when he needed them!? ...

No! He had to continue! He defiantly pushed forward, despite the raging blizzard. A frown, crept onto his face as he contemplated turning around again -- for the hundredth time... He meant: Why would Cherry Blossom even know about said dragoness? How could it even be possible that she, her sister Scootaloo, Triple Treat, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Toola-Roola, and... that other pony... had ever visited this place as young fillies. Furthermore, he knew, for a fact that none of the ponies had ever left Ponyville -- well except for the occasional trip to Breezie Blossom... And why did he have the nagging feeling that there were some problems with the list of ponies, from a moment ago?

And why did he think she was right? What dark, and dismal part of his mind continuously hissed loudly enough that the pony was right, that he kept searching, futilely, hoping that she was right... And that there was, indeed, another dragon? Despite the fact, that he liked to boast that he was from a long line of royal dragons, that was all behind him now, as there were, quite possibly, almost none of his kind left -- and he might, very well, be the very last one.) And that made things all that much worse, as it already pretty lonely being the only dragon in town (though he must admit that with Wysteria around, he didn't feel quite as lonely.)

So he pressed on further, into the snow, into the weeks past Christmas, when he promised that he'd be back. His hopes and dreams driving him along. For some reason, though Willy Nilly Mountain was proving to be harder to find than he ever could have dreamed...

**********

Heathspike sighed in frustration, how could he possibly have misread the map again? He followed every instruction, every twist, and turn to the 't'. And yet, he was completely, utterly lost. He should be up to his father's receding spikeline in fur trees, and instead he was staring at snow drifts. Instead of the chain of ascending mountains that led up to the summit of that mysterious Willy Nilly Mountain he had been searching for, he was staring at a gorge. How could he have possibly messed this one up? He never messed up his maps! And yet...

He looked up, "Ok... the North Star should be right there and..." He gave himself a face slap with his claw -- stars weren't visible during the day... He guessed the frustration was getting to him. And what was worse was that it was getting late, the birds were already flying back down from the south, and ...

Wait a second... It's new year's day! The birds wouldn't be coming back for at least a couple more months. So, what then was he looking at? He asked himself, as his face began to turn pale, a sense of dread coming over him. These definitely weren't birds, and they certainly weren't ponies. They looked more like bugs then ponies, and their pony traits looked wrong -- their muzzle was too small, and their eyes were too big (and that wasn't even considering whatever was going on with their legs, ears, wings, and tails.)

And he wasn't even sure they were friendly, one of them looked down at him, and gave a frightful shriek... Well, up until the point he made himself scarce (a talent of his normally reserved for the delightful, if albeit perverse, romp of sneaking up on ponies, and giving them a good fright.) Yeah, part of him wanted to jump out and roar 'roar', and give them a fright, however, that part was quickly drown out by the part that said those beasts were scary...

After a few minutes of looking, the bugaboo left him be, as a third of the horde headed off towards Ponyville, and Breezie Blossom, another third headed off towards Butterfly Island, and the last third towards Unicornia... Wait... how did he know it was that way, without his map?... Maybe his memory was better than he thought it was...

Maybe he should go back towards Ponyville, and see what's going down. After all, these could be magical woodland creatures that were actually friendly -- despite not looking that way -- and grant wishes, but only if they are treated kindly, and ... no wait... that was somebody else....

Actually he should probably still get the lead out... Something inside him told him that there was trouble...

The ponies of Ponyville might be in need of his wisdom, and quick wit! And how could he possibly deprive them of that! He meant that it was almost a catastrophe when he stopped giving his princessing advice to Wysteria!

He shook his head, a frown growing on his face. What was he talking about? It was horrible! How he rode the poor girl like that, driving her into a deep depression. He frowned... not one of his better moments... He really didn't know what came over him. All he knew is that he felt the insatiable need to give her princess advice, and then he couldn't seem to get the gravity of the situation through his thick skull in a timely manner.

He felt something odd. What in the heck was happening in Ponyville? And why were these creatures interested in Unicornia, and it's unicorns?

His face turned pale, as his eyes glazed over in terror. It couldn't be! What had he done...

He staggered backwards, holding his chest with his claw. He never should have given that flower to poor Wysteria! There was no way she'll be able to handle the flower's gastly spell! Heck! There was no telling what manner of horrors it was already unleashing on her! He was a fool! Why was he unable to remember the magics that it wielded!

'The alicorn lilly!' He thought to himself, his eyes rolling back in his head, as everything faded to black. He was sorry for her... She should have never had to endure this...

**********

The wind whistled through the small abandoned train station, which was now reduced to little more than a mound of ice and snow, the remnants of it's single building still holding on, though completely abandoned now... But Why? The building looking pretty sad. He squinted his eyes, and took another look at the sign. And what happened to the writing on that sign? It looked like someone scratched off the english writing on the sign, leaving only a picture of a train... What could have possibly happened? Had Armageddon occurred while he was blacked out? Had everything come to an end? Wow!... The aftermath of the apocalypse was just as bleak as he always imagined it would be!

He paused for a second to think, an important thought occurring to him: it had finally happened! He finally had time to read! He finally had all the time in the world! No wait... That was that other guy... Book in hand, coke bottle frames... Former boxer! Uptight Welsh Dragon for a wife!... No wait... That particular bloke was Italian...

And you know what was even worse? He still couldn't find his dragoness! Even though he had spent well over two weeks looking for her... Nonstop! He frowned sternly, as he took a moment to brush himself off. This snow was unseemly, and being covered in it made him look like a peasant dragon (not an upstanding member of the illustrious clan of 'royal dragons', that he always reminded everyone, that he was a member of.) "Blast it all!" He exclaimed to himself, calmly, taking note of all the defeats he had suffered today. "And I was certain that I would have found her in that little green house that sits on top of that goat hill..." He did a double take, something didn't add up. "No wait..." He exclaimed, figuring it out, waving his hand in correction. "That was someone else!"

He took a moment to think before coming to a firm conclusion. "Well..." He said, to himself calmly. "I can't much stay here! It's freezing!" He exclaimed, a shiver going down his spine as a cold breeze blowed across him. "I wouldn't last for very long in this weather... Hypothermia, and all that..." He reminded himself, calmly, as he started to search around for shelter, or civilization (supposing, of course, that civilization survived the apocalypse...) "I may be colored blue, but I am, in fact, very much warm blooded... Or was that the mammals? Oh well... This weather can't be good for me either..."

He looked around, civilization didn't seem close by (of course, if this was after the end of the world, then he wasn't likely to find it anyway -- but that was the chance he had to take.) He could try following the tracks, but there was no telling how far he would have to walk, and large towns were more likely to disappear, in the apocalypse, then smaller ones. Maybe he would see something from the top of that rather large hill, he saw nearby. So, instead he opted to leave the train tracks behind instead of following them for an uncertain amount of time (yeah, this was probably a bad move, but all his books said... Wait.. maybe that wasn't what they said... Oh well! This was, after all, after the end of the earth!)

"Oh my!" He exclaimed, in mortal terror, noticing a shaking mound of snow. "These must be the hordes of the unchurched, forced to wander the earth forever, because they were never baptised! They've come to haunt me... Or something..." He said to himself, shivering in fear, up until the point where a pair of antennae stuck out of the snow, ending his panic. "No wait..." He exclaimed, waving his claw, his eyes closed in embarrassment. "The hordes of unchurched don't have antennae..." He said, stopping cold halfway through his sentence. "Oh dear..." He exclaimed, desperately digging in the snow to extract its inhabitants. "But breezies do..." He said, hoping to unearth the tiny ponies with their fairy like wings, before it was too late.

"Breezies?" Spike asked nervously, staring at the snow covered forms. "Is that you?" He asked, pulling back some, as the bug-like ponies began to lift themselves out of the snow, their expressions far from their normal carefree, and childish glee.

"We're here!" The collection of mini fairy-bug ponies shouted, in unison, as they slowly ascended into the air. They may have all looked quite cold, and miserable, but everyone seemed to be there (Spike feared that some of the tiny bug-fairy ponies might have been lost to exposure, by now, but it appeared as if this wasn't the case.)

"It's cold!" Whined a purple breezie with a blue mane, green wings, and a orange flower symbol; a light pink breezie, with a rose colored mane, cream wings, and a purple flower symbol; and an orange breezie with a dark red mane, blue wings and a purple bouquet for a symbol -- as they took their turns shivering, it was much colder here than in Breezie Blossom, not to mention that they normally hibernated through January, anyway.

"I'm freezing!" Whined a pink breezie with a light blue mane, light pink wings, and a chrysanthemum symbol on her flank, shaking in an exaggerated fashion. Definitely not their normal kind of fun.

Spike looked back, they did have a point. He tapped his claw against his mouth to think about things for a moment.

"We simply can't stay here!" Cautioned a light purple breezie, with a blond mane, white wings, and a pair of red flowers for her symbol. "We'll freeze out antenna off!" She whined, causing a cascade of whining and moaning from the horde of breezies.

Spike nodded -- this was definitely not a good place, or time, to be stopping for the day. Or probably... ever... for that matter...

A yellow breezie, with an orange and yellow bi-color mane and an orange tail chimed in. "Well maybe we can find directions back to Ponyville in that giant spooky crystally place over there!" She exclaimed, standing up on her back two hooves, her white flower and red flower symbol visible for all to see.

"Good idea Zipzee!" exclaimed a purple breezie with a bi-color purple and light purple mane and tail, and a pink flower symbol, waving her hoof eagerly. "And that sounds like fun!" She said, pointing her hoof at the large crystalline structure jutting over the snow. "Let's go there!" She said, waving her hoof in an exaggerated 'come along' motion. "I bet it'll be a blast!"

"I love it, Tiddly Wink!" A pink breezie with a pink and dark pink mane exclaimed, raising both of her front hooves in glee. "But who should lead the way?" She asked, turning to her other two friends.

"I vote that you, Zipzee." Tiddly Wink replied, politely, to her yellow friend. "You should lead the way."

"Oh no! no! no!" Zipzee protested, politely, an eager smile on her face. "I think Tra-La-La should lead the way!" She exclaimed, pointing to the pink breezie.

"No Zipzee, I insist!" She said, waving her hoof in polite protest, like she would be imposing on her friends by doing this, a smile posted on her face. "I think Tiddly Wink should lead the way!" Exclaimed, pointing back to her purple friend.

All three breezies gathered together in the circle, as they touched their antennae together, causing sparks to start shooting out of them. "Then it's settled!" They shouted, slowly rising from the ground. "Together it is!!!" They exclaimed eagerly, motioning for the rest of the breezies to come along, before they started flying off together -- the other breezies, dutifully, following shortly behind.

"Splendid!" Spike exclaimed, happily, walking slowly behind, his claws behind his back as he used his regal gaut. "Together it is, then, " he said, with a sigh. "What... fun..."

**********

Shining Armor shook his head, his face looking pale. "What, in Celestia's name, could possibly have driven Spike to go wandering around, unprotected, in the middle of the arctic wilderness?" Twilight's BBBFF asked, taking the fifteenth or twentieth trip around the throne room (which now started to show signs of a rut forming.) "And, for that matter, how long was he wandering around out there?"

Shining Armor's wife, Cadance, came over to give him a comforting muzzle. "Relax Shiny, fretting and worrying will only drive you to an early grave." She said, cooly (or, at least she appeared to be.) "Remember! If you aren't careful, your subjects will pick up on your fears, like it or not..." She cautioned, motioning to the palace guard, the youngest of whom seemed to share the prince's anxiety.

"Didn't you hear the guards who found him?" Shining Armor said, his voice quaking. "They found him wracked with hypothermia, his skin blue, and his scales on a back were a bizarre purple color, and a hair like texture! Heck! They started splitting, like hairs!" He announced, shaking noticeably. "And not just his body! His mind was also affected! Cadance, he had gone completely delusional! Babbling endlessly about flowers and princesses!" He said, slipping out of his wife's comforting grip to resume his pacing. "You don't think something could have happened to Twily could you?" He asked, turning back, his eyes looking a little damp.

"I know it's hard Shiny," his wife replied, returning to muzzle her husband again. "But we'll figure it out!" She said, pointing to one of their guards. "I've already sent letters to both Celestia, and Twily! We'll get to the bottom of this," she said, stroking his mane with her hoof. "I promise!" She announced, tenderly, taking a good look into his eyes.

Her husband's expression softened slightly, as he returned the gesture. "Maybe it would help me if I went to see him?" He asked, taking a soothing breath.

"I think you should," she replied affirmatively.

Her husband looked down, and blushed, silently.

She returned a playful smile, and 'booped' his muzzle, with her hoof, and let him go from her embrace.

Her husband, however, only made it halfway out the door, before a voice stopped him.

"But I do think I should warning you," She said, her voice growing serious. "Whatever happened seems to have affected his memory," she cautioned. "And now, it's as if he's suffering from some kind of amnesia, opting to call himself Kenbrothe Gilspotten Heathspike, or some such nonsense -- for some weird reason."

"Whatever happened to him must have been pretty bad, to do that!" He replied, the rage beginning to grow in his heart, slowly creeping onto his face, which wrinkled like a prune, his hoof stamping loudly against the tile, leaving a mark. "If I find out that some terrible monster did something to Twily, then he's going to wish he was never born," the BBBFF replied, snorting angrily.

Cadance nodded, lovingly. "I know dear, but we'll do what we can," she said, calmly, blowing him a kiss, to send him off.

"Oh Shiney!" She shouted, interrupting his exit again. "While you're at it, Shiney, can you do me a favor, and keep an eye at the tiny ponies that he's surrounded himself with," she cautioned, to her husband, having already posted a guard as well as a dozen mages around the room. "They are the oddest creatures I've ever seen: the size of a small rodent, the body, and mane of a pony, stallion's muzzles. antennae of a Breezie, and the wings of a parasprite," she warned, having creatures like coacatrice comming to her mind. "It just all seems so suspicious to me, " she warned wondering if she'd just invited a new threat to Equestria under her roof.

He nodded, trotting slowly towards the door -- taking his wife's warnings about frightening their subjects to mind (he knew she was right! Heck! It had happened once already, with the ghost scare the year before, and, predictably, it almost ground the governance of the empire to a complete halt as panic and superstition almost completely took over.)

"By the way, Shiney, "Cadance stated loudly, stopping him for a minute. "They claim to be Breezies," she replied, a quizzical expression appearing on her face. "But they look nothing like the tiny sleek creatures, other than their antennae and size."

"Do you think they could be Changelings or some other kind of predator?" He replied, himself growing suspicious of the creatures. "Like some kind of mini-changeling, or tiny curse bearing rodent?"

"I don't know, Shiney, I just want you to be safe," she replied, a sad expression growing on her face. "I'd hate to have you end up in the same condition as 'blue spike', " she said, softly, the concern showing in her eyes.

"I know, Cadance, but I have to do this," he said, sternly, trotting out the door, as it slammed behind him. "If they did something to Twily..." He muttered under his breath, as ground one of his hooves against the crystal floors.

**********

"Excuse me gents," Shining Armor stated calmly, as he slowly approaching his guards, who remained at attention, their spears crossed to prevent any pony from getting into, or out of, the infirmary, which now wore had a sign marked with the face of a very sick pony, whose face wore a strange shade of green, and was equipped with a thermometer, and an ice bag. "I wish to have a conversation with 'Master Kenbroth Gilspotten Heathspike'," the prince said, motioning for the guards to move out of the way.

The guards nodded, quickly stepping aside so that their prince could pass through, their wings returning to attention. "Of course, sire," they replied, bowing their heads as their prince proceeded to pass on by.

The prince only got so far as touching the door with his hoof, when one of his guards chimed in. "I do feel I should warn you, sire," the guard stated, shaking like a leaf as the prince turned to face him. "Master Spike seems to be acting a little odd, majesty. And I, also, feel that I should warn you that -- " he said, with trepidation, as if he would lose his head.

Shining armor nodded, firmly, putting his hoof up to interrupt the guard, in a truly inspiring show of faux confidence. "I'm aware, my good stallions, but I wish entry anyway, " he continued, his resolve firm, and his focus stealed for the job ahead.

"Very well," the guards agreed in unison, their bodies returning to attention. "But you shouldn't you go with a couple of unicorn mages, in case 'the breezies' decide to try something?" The second guard asked, reiterating his compatriots concerns.

The prince shook his head, confidently, or at least pretending it was confidence, anyway. He'd already been warned, of these 'breezies', and even then, it still felt weird to hear the phrase 'breezies', even for cheap imposters, especially in the dead of winter when the real creatures were still in their own world! He returned his hoof to it's position in front of the guard's faces in a firm gesture reassuring the guards that he was not afraid, despite the spiralling pit in his own heart. "That won't be necessary gentlecolts," he said, waving his hoof. "I wish to speak to spike alone, " he said, half out of a desire not to have his cousin seen this way, and half out of concern for his own men. He would face these fake 'breezies', and his mad cousin, and he would do it alone!

"Very well, majesty," the guards replied, bending their front legs, into a bow. "Just be careful, " they continued, hindering their majesty no longer.

"Don't worry about that," Shining Armor replied, with a chuckle. "I wasn't the captain of the guard under Celestia, for nothing. And besides, I would like to believe that I learned a thing or two about magic from the princess herself, while I was still working for her."

The guards dutifully returned to attention as the prince proceeded into the dragon's lion's den, their faces, unmoving, their focus on ensuring that nopony would get in his way.

The door slowly creaked to a close behind him, heightening the tension he felt, and making him further question his decision not to bring along those mages... However, it was too late for that now, as the door had already slammed shut, and the guard's spears had probably already returned to their positions barring access to the door. "Ok, Shining Armor," he said to himself, quietly, trying very hard not to psyche himself out. "Do you sense any magic emanating from anypony?" No? Ok! No dark magic, or frightful curses, check. "Do you feel anything, or anypony, trying to intrude into your psyche?" He asked, taking a scan of the room. Ok, no magical mind control! Check! "Any sign of hostile magic?" No? Check.

"My hooves aren't blue are they?" He asked looking down at his fetlocks, and hooves, which were still white. "Ok!" He exclaimed, in relief. "That's always a good sign!" He continued scanning the room, searching for signs of hostile magic. The royal doctors had already assured him that they found no sign of disease, but that didn't mean that magical mischief wasn't out of the realm of possibility, though.

After a few minutes, he shook his head. Nope... That was always a decent sign. Either nopony had any kind of mind magic, hexes, or jinxes, or they weren't overtly hostile -- either way, it was a good sign.

Another scan revealed no sign of arcane magic being used recently, which was either a sign that the tiny ponies either didn't know any arcane magic, or weren't going to use any on him, at this time. Once again, either way it was a good sign.

The tiny ponies began flying around him curiously. One quick glance under their tails told him that they were all mares, though it puzzled him why their muzzles appeared more like a stallion's. Oh well! He kept his scan up as the cloud of tiny ponies started talking to him, all at once, in a cacophony of racket.

At least they seemed friendly, though!

Yup, no sign of arcane magic, from the 'breezies', though their lack of horns should have also been a clue. He did, however, notice that 'the breezies' were giving off a strong signature of natural magic, not unlike an earth pony's magic (although their signature was maybe twice or thrice what a normal earth pony's magical signature would normally be, even more so considering their diminutive stature...)

Ok... It looked like it should be safe to approach the dragon. But first, he needed a moment to steel his nerves, as he prepared to walk forwards towards the bizarre looking blue Spike, his mind still aflutter as the fears resurfaced that in his head that something horrific might have become his beloved sister.

After a few quick breaths, he approached the dragon slowly, and cautiously. "Excuse me Spike," he said, as calmly as he was able, approaching him from behind. "I just wanted to ask you some questions, and -- "

Spike spun around, and opened his mouth, interrupting the captain of Celestia's royal guards turned prince, in mid sentence. Was it Shining Armor, or did he get the impression the drake would have wanted to sneak up behind him, and surprise him with a 'roar'?

"My dear man," the dragon replied, sounding positively giddy. "You look like a prince!" He said, walking over to the white unicorn, slowly making laps around him, enthusiastically examining every square inch of the stallion.

"Well I technically am, since I married princess -- " Shining started, with a role of his eyes. Why was Spike asking silly questions like these? He didn't get to finish his sentence, though, before being interrupted by the drake, again.

"Wait..." the dragon replied, quizzically. "You weren't a prince until you married the princess?" He asked like he'd just stepped through a portal into a different magical plane.

"Correct," Shining said, shaking his head. What was Spike talking about? Didn't he remember anything at all? "Remember! You were at the wedding! You gave me a bachelor party... Three weeks later!" He said, getting uneasy. Spike didn't seem to remember anything. "We promised we'd never speak of it again!" He said, now about ready to break down into tears, here and now! "Don't you even remember all those creepy pictures of Rarity you put up at the party? The ones that made me run out of the room in abject terror?"

Princess Rarity? The drake shook his head, and resumed scratching his mouth with his claw, a gesture he had been performing for a few seconds now. "Interesting, " the drake asked, more in fascination now, then perplexion. "Then you must practice Matrilineal primogeniture here!" He buzzed, now sounding more like a snooty instructor from Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns, then Twilight's goofy younger brother. "How quaint..." The drake eagerly ruminated.

And didn't spike know? They practiced semi-elective matrilineal-uterine primogeniture here in Equestria! (Only the Changelings still practiced strict Matrilineal Primogeniture.) Shouldn't it be obvious to the drake? What other kind of inheritance would they use? Patrilineal Primogeniture like those barbarians, the elk or griffons? Maybe he should --

"Your majesty!" Stated one of the guards, slamming opening the door, in a hurry, as he galloped full bore into the room, stopping mere inches from the prince. "I don't mean to interrupt, Prince Shining Armor, but your wife has informed us that the Griffon Delegation will be arriving shortly. And she wishes you to attend the summit as the griffons will only be here for a short while before continuing on towards Canterlot, to speak with Celestia. And she wanted us to get you ready, before hoof, " they said, dutifully.

"Prince Shining Armor?" Asked the dragon, his curiosity quirked. "How utterly fascinating!"

Shining nodded, maybe something triggered a memory in the drake's head, and --

"Splendid!" The dragon replied, clapping his claws, eagerly. "We shall simply have to get started then!" He said, searching around for something.

"Get started?" Shining Armor asked, quizzically. What was Spike getting at? And, for that matter, what, in the hay, was he searching for?

"Ahh!" He said, finding something big and square, that he pulled out of Celestia knows where. "My prince book!" He said, with an eager smile, turning around to reveal a very large, and very childish looking tome, that looked like it was almost as big as the drake himself.

"What in the?" Shining asked, in confusion. "Is that a book for fillies?" He asked, looking at the bright colors, and the happy smiling filly on the front (well he thought it was a filly by head shape, and heavy makeup), oh, and girly wand on the front. Yeah, it definitely looked like one.

"Why of course not!" Heathspike replied, dismissively, waving his claw. "This is most definitely a book for princes! And a guide to proper princely behavior, good sir! And you, Shining Armor, are a prince!" He said, opening the book to page one.

"Uh Huh..." Replied Shining Armor, the face hoof happening, now, in slow motion. Apparently not just did Spike have amnesia, but it looks like whatever happened drove him a little bit crazy.

**********

Shining Armor trotted slowly into his chambers, his head moving in dejection, as he creaked the door to a close behind him, mumbling to himself the whole way. That couldn't have been worse (well, it could have been worse, but it certainly didn't feel that way right now.) The conversation he just finished definitely didn't help to assuage his fears much..

"So?" His wife asked eagerly, her expression looking like the one a foal has when they asked to open their Hearth's Warming Eve Treasures early... "Any words on Spike?" She asked, getting close enough to look her husband in the eyes. "Is he feeling better?"

Her husband didn't respond, instead he simply shook his head, his neck slowly lowering as he did so -- his face scrunching into a pained look. 'No...' his lips said, even though no sounds came out of his voice.

"Shiney!?" She asked, herself starting to sound anxious. "What's going on?" She asked, her voice raising a couple of octaves, and a few decibels as she grew closer, her voice getting louder, and more frantic by the second as her husband didn't respond, instead, mouthing words silently.

Finally Shining Armor shook his head, sadly, finally composed his words. "He's definitely got amnesia, but what's even worse is that he is acting really odd..."

"What do you mean 'he's acting odd'?" She inquired, of her husband, her voice beginning to become frantic again. She stopped herself, taking a moment to calm down. If she wasn't careful, she'd give birth to a nightmare, and she'd rather name her first child 'Skyla', or 'Flurry Heart' then 'Fractured Crystal', as Celestia had nicknamed the monster, after seeing it in that truth pond of theirs...

"He doesn't seem to know, or understand, anything about Equestrian history, or culture, " Shining replied, receiving astounded expressions from everypony in the room. Even the guards knew all about the specific oddities of Equestrian Culture, and they had been sealed away for one thousand years. "And then for that matter, he keeps going on, and on, and on, and on, endlessly, about how much stuff I need to be doing because I'm a prince, or something, " he said, waving his hoof around, in a familiar family gesture.

"Did you tell him about me?" Cadance asked, uncomfortably -- maybe hoping that her name would fix the dragon's wounded psyche.

Shining shook his head. "I couldn't bring myself to do it..." He said, with a concerned frown. "I couldn't do that to you..." he lamented, giving his wife a comforting nuzzle. "Not after he wouldn't stop pestering me about the 'prince book', and started boasting, at great lengths of a 'princess book', " he continued, looking away. "I couldn't bring myself to subject you to all that," he replied, firmly. "I'm sorry Cadance," he said in a very apologetic voice, as he looked slowly away. "I just couldn't do that to you..."

"I understand, sweetie," She said, returned his nuzzle from earlier. "But I'm still going to have a talk with Spike later, " she said, her voice growing stern, as she took a step back, and looked her husband in the eye, a resolute expression on her face. "Are you still worried about Twilight, Shiney?" She asked putting a hoof to his muzzle.

He nodded. "Now more than ever!" He stated, his voice growing cold. "I mean, what could have happened to Spike not just to make him forget about almost everything, but to make him do a one hundred and eighty degree personality shift, from Twilight's childish, sarcastic younger brother/assistant to a stuffy prudish old curmudgeon that would make even Kibitz look positively spontaneous in comparison?" he stated loudly, the concern in his voice growing. "Could something equally horribly have happened to Twily?" He asked, his focus becoming distant.

Cadance simply continued to nuzzle him nervously. "I'll be ok, Shiney!" She said, repeatedly. "I'm sure Twily's ok!"

"What next?" He shouted in frustration, interrupting her, his voice dripping indignation. "Is hick Twilight going to show up next?" He asked, flailing his hooves wildly.

Cadance put a hoof on his mouth, shushing him silently, with an affectionate smile on her face. "Well, maybe I can take a look?" She asked, her demeanor remaining relatively calm.

"Could you Cadance?" Cadance's husband asked, in relief. "I mean, I'm starting to get real nervous over here."

She nodded, trotting out of the room. "I'll talk to him right after my meeting with the Gryphon delegation, " she said, opening the door. "Maybe there's something I can do?"

**********

Spike sat around, waxing nostalgic. It'd been awhile since he'd last been able to train a princess, let alone a prince, and Spike was looking forward not just to the change in pace, but also to the chance to make up for his abysmal failure last spring.

He shook his head, slowly, feeling sorry for himself, as he made another lap around the room. What was he thinking last spring? He'd almost driven poor Wysteria to an early grave. And he regretted it so...

But maybe that was why this this opportunity was a blessing in disguise? Not just was it the perfect opportunity to help that Shining Armor chap out, and also to make up for his earlier failure with Wysteria!

Yes! That was it! He would make a perfect prince out of the man yet! And The Lord as his witness, he would succeed in his newfound goal of making Shining Armor the prince-liest prince, who ever prince-ed!!! He decided, resolutely, his chest puffed out, filled with new resolve.

A soft rapping could be heard on the other side of the door, interrupting Spike's thoughts. "Would it be ok, if I came in?" Daintily asked a female voice from behind the door. Her tone was quiet, meek, and best of all, formal -- just about everything he expected from a proper princess.

Spike could only smile eagerly, as the giddy feeling welled up within him. "Oh excellent!" He exclaimed, sprinting just short of the door, before finally coming to a full stop, and finishing with a saunter, so that he wouldn't be panting when he opening the door for the lady, as was proper. "Do come in, my dear!" He exclaimed, taking a bow for the lady, his eyes closed ostentatiously, as he waved his left claw and arm for the lady, as she passed through the door.

"Thank you, " she said, politely, a proper expression on her face. "You are such a gentle colt, " she exclaimed, playing along. Her husband wasn't exaggerating about Spike. And, if anything, he understated how confused the drake seemed to be!

The drake paused for a second, a strange thought crossing his mind. Did she say 'colt'? Why would this fine example of a proper lady be referring to him in such strange terms? Didn't she know that the proper term is 'gentleman', not 'gentlecolt'? Oh well... When in Rome! He took a long look at both her wings, and horn, a perplexed expression on his face -- why would a pegasus pony have a horn like a unicorn does? And why could he almost see three ponies, Wysteria, another mare, and a young foal?

Some distant voices echoed in his head, demanding to be heard, even though it sounded more like they were speaking from behind a wall. "I need you to do that right now! Spike, Wysteria, hold onto her, --" The voices continued to echo in the ether, though, by this point, they started to trail off into the nothingness they came from. Spike shook his head. That was definitely queer.... What could he possibly be hearing?

Cadance gave a sneaky smile, a thought occurring to her. Did something she said start to stir in his memory? Was he starting to remember her? Maybe the drake could be reached yet? She paused, for a moment to strategize internally. Maybe she should hit while the iron was hot? The question was which question should she ask to reach him?

Her thoughts, however, were, unfortunately, interrupted, as the drake interjected, again, his headache, once again, abating. "And whom would you be, my dear?" The now blue dragon asked The Princess of Love, almost making her lose her composure.

Her face dropped like a stone -- nuts!!! She was sure he was on the verge of remembering her, apparently he was remembering something else instead!!! She was, however, very sure that she was on the verge of a breakthrough!!! "Cadance?" She asked futily, 'reminding' the drake of her name, hoping that he would recognize her name, and begin to remember Twilight.

The dragon shrugged his shoulders, the name not ringing a bell to him. "Nice to make your acquaintance, though, Cadance, " he replied politely, kissing her hoof, formally. "A real pleasure!" He said, a legitimate, and extremely polite smile.

"You remember me, right?" She said, a single drop of sweat starting to drip down her brow, as the panic threatened to creep back in. "I was Twilight's foal sitter?" She asked, her voice quivering almost imperceptibly as the concern beginning to creep into her voice.

"Twinkle?" He asked, curiously, his headache returning again. "Can't say that I have!" He replied, enthusiastically, holding his head with one claw. "But it's nice to meet you!" He said, holding out his other claw, for some reason, like he was expecting her to do something with her hoof. "Shake?"

Cadance sighed to herself, silently. "The princess of love?" She asked, astounded about how Spike couldn't seem to remember this. She meant, even old nags, whose memory had failed them knew who she was. She was a walking deity, the bucking Princess of Love!

"Ahhh!" The tiny blue Spike replied, sounding pleasantly surprised. "A princess!" He exclaimed, reaching down to kiss her hoof.

Cadance backed her hoof back quickly playfully, and gave him a chastising hoof wag. "Uh! Uh! Uh! Young drake, " she commented, in a childish tone. "I'm a married mare!" She said, teasing the drake slightly, who simply responded with a shrug.

The drake gave a healthy chuckle. "And a fine one too!" He exclaimed, pompously. "And would it be too presumptuous to ask if your husband is that Shining Armor chap?" He said with a polite chuckle, his body at attention, except for his claws which sat behind the small of his back.

Cadance resisted the urge to roll her eyes, Shiney was definitely not kidding when he said that the new blue Spike (how long would it take for his colors to return?) was not acting like himself. Could magic be involved here? She didn't sense any, but it was the only thing that made any sense. After all, the doctors said they couldn't find traces of disease, or trauma, so what other explanation could there be?

She decided to play along, and answered the drake's question with a firm nod.

The drake nodded himself, deciding that it was definitely time to get back to work. "So, princess?" He asked the strange looking pegasus-unicorn, who seemed to be hovering around like a concerned mother. That Shining Armor chap definitely chose well... "Do you need a refresher course from my princess book?" He asked, dragging out a very childish book, adorned with a well drawn, if albeit childish, wand on it, and a pair of smiling fillies (at least she thought they were fillies -- though with those muzzles, nopony could be sure.)

"Oh no!" She replied, in her most formal tone -- learned at Celestia's hooves while watching the elder alicorn play poker, while she was still a filly. "That simply won't be necessary." She continued, playing along -- her voice quiet, and demure. "After all, a princess' time needs to be planned, and spent, conservatively!" She said, quoting that old buzzard Kabitz.

"Excellent!" He exclaimed, with a smile. "More time for your husband then," he exclaimed, eagerly, putting 'The Princess Book' away and bringing back out 'The Prince Book'. He gave an eager smile, taking a quick glance around the room. "Speaking of which," he asked, stepping on one claw, to get a look behind the princess' back. Sadly, the prince wasn't there. "We simply must start his training, if he is to be a proper prince."

"I'm not sure, " the pink alicorn lied, seamlessly, with a very convincing smile. She didn't want to give up on the drake just yet! Not until she'd tried a couple more lines of conversation. "But I'll make sure to send him your way, " she replied, with a smile -- maybe she needed to give him a harder question to jog his memory?

"Splendid!" He exclaimed, putting his claws behind his back. "I shall be waiting, but he must hurry! The princeing won't do itself!" he cautioned, wagging his talon, and taking another peek at the pocket watch he hung around his neck.

"Oh course!" She replied, laying it on thick. "But I was wondering one thing," she asked, turning to him, and batting her eyes, laying on the charm.

"And that would be?" The drake responded, curiously. What could this fine specimen of a princess need? Had she come around about the concept of princess training?

"I was wondering if you've seen a purple unicorn recently?" Cadance replied, hoping to spark the drake's memory. "She has a horn, like mine," she said, hoping that something from the almost decade of memories the two made together, before her ascension would fire. She meant, if the site of a living deity didn't fire some neurons, may be some very infant memories of the unicorn who spent over a year raising him as a newborn foal would do the job.

"A purple pony with a horn?" He asked himself, his mind growing hazy. The faint voices began to echo in his head again, this time as if shouting through a solid brick wall. "A unicorn?... You are a very special pony..." The voices shouted so loud that he began to hold his head, in pain. "Cheerilee?" He asked, the name of a pony that he never met before, and swore never existed, entered his head.

Cadance began to smile noticeably, something was definitely happening in the drake's head. Maybe just a little more...

The drake shook the stray thoughts from his head. He had work to do! And couldn't be distracted by the voices of phantoms now! "I can't say that I have! But she sounds delightful!" He replied, gleefully, waving his claw in a display of enthusiasm.

Cadance turned her head to hide the smile that was starting to creep onto it, every time she thought this memory wall would be breached, something would get in the way of the drake's recovery. Something about the mention of the purple pony jogged his memory... But what? It had to be the mention of the purple alicorn. "Well you simply should meet her!" Cadance said, with a smile. "Yes, she's a really nice unicorn!"

"Oh?" Asked the blue dragon curiously.

"Oh yes!" Replied Cadance, practicing her formalities. "You simply must meet her!" She said, motioning her hoof. "I believe you've met her, her name is Twilight Sparkle," she continued hoping that the name might finally plow a way through that wall.

"Oh that sounds delightful, " he said, with a vacant smile, apparently the word 'unicorn' seemed to spur something in his memory, but his sister's name did nothing. "Can't say I recognize the name though, are you sure I've met her?" He asked, curiously.

Cadance's face dropped noticeably... nuts! Only one word came from her mouth... "Shame!" She said, turning away -- her eyes starting to get a little moist. Maybe it was best if she withdrew for now, her heart might not take more disappointment, at the moment.

"Well princess, " he said, formally, yet another bad sign. "It's been splendid talking to a superlative example of princesshood, like you, " he said, putting his claw out again, and giving a slight bow. "But I have business to attend to, with your husband, and you have a long list of things not to do -- and books to balance on your head." He said, taking a bow, as the princess solemnly turned to leave, considerably less confident now, than ever.

'Things not to do', what was the drake thinking? Cadance's life was nothing, if not busy. Such was the way of the princesses, even when they weren't busy, they were busy, how else could they keep Equestria operating so efficiently? Nevertheless, it was best to play along for now, she'd try again later. "But of course, " she replied, giving one more bow -- it was an excellent thing that Celestia gave her all those lessons, in etiquette, as a foal, she'd be lost without them.

After a couple of minutes, the princess returned to her chambers, to spread the bad news, and to finish the rest of her royal business. Disappointment now being the order of the day.

She barely closed the door, before her husband rushed up, chewing his lip nervously. "Any word?" He asked, his eyes, and face begging for good news. "Please tell me you got through to spike!" He asked, anxiously, hoping for some kind of good news.

She shook her head sadly. "No..." She replied, forlornly. No dice... The drake's head remained unpenetrated, and seemly corrupted beyond reason.