A Herd of my Own

by Dafaddah

In the Evening

A Herd of my Own

by
Dafaddah

Chapter two: In the Evening

Edited by Sharp Logic, Microshazm and Mythee

---

Spike woke up to the rather loud grumblings of his stomach. Twilight tittered at the sound.

“O, great and powerful burger dragon,” she intoned from her balcony window, "I heard your stomach all the way from out here!" Further tittering ensued in higher registers. Obviously Twilight wasn’t alone.

Spike groaned and stretched, then stepped out of his basket. “We must’ve served half a ton of food this afternoon, and I didn’t get to eat so much as a single hay fry!” he groused.

“Well, you most certainly deserve some! I asked Sweetie Belle and her friends to stop by the Hay Burger and pick up some take-out for us.”

“Sweet!” Grinning ear-to-ear, Spike waddled over to the balcony as fast as his little legs could move. He waved as he caught sight of Sweetie, Scoots and Bloom sitting at a round table with Twilight. At its center, a pile of paper-wrapped hay burgers and boxes of fries spilled from a silver platter. China plates and silverware lay ignored in another pile, while empty wrappers showed that the feast was already in full swing before he even woke up.

He hopped up onto the empty chair next to Twilight, grabbing two burgers and a box of fries. Sweetie Belle’s horn glowed and a salt shaker levitated out of an elegant saddle bag leaning against one of the table’s legs.

“Here, Spike.” said Sweetie. “My sister asked me to give this to you.” She batted her eyes at him while the two other Cutie Mark Crusaders oohed, aahed and giggled behind little filly hooves.

Blushing, he examined the shaker. There was a reddish powder inside. His eyes grew big as saucers. “Is that what I think it is?”

“Uh-huhn,” said Sweetie. “It’s ruby dust! Rarity had some extra gems after making an ensemble for Countess Carmine Cantrip, so she ground them up, put the powder in a salt shaker, and asked me to bring it to you, –” she explained, while Spike opened up a burger package and removed the upper bun. He shook a thick layer of the powder onto the hay burger and put the bun back on. Then with a smack of his lips he took a bite. “– saying you shouldn’t put too much on your food because these were all fire rubies.”

Spike chewed, a look of bliss on his face. Then his eyes popped open, his face growing scarlet. Pushing back from the table he turned his head away and opened his mouth wide. A gout of deep red flame shot out a full three ponylengths long. It left a dark scorch mark on the otherwise pristine castle wall.

He stared up at the scoring. “Sorry, Twi!” he said, each word coming out accompanied by a puff of smoke. Of course this only made the girls laugh even louder. Twilight bent over and hugged him with a wing.

“Don’t worry, I’ll fix it,” she said. “That was very sweet of Rarity, wasn’t it Spike?”

He licked his lips as smoke escaped from his mouth and nostrils. “Yeah.” Then he grabbed a glass of water from the table and drank it down in one gulp. Eying the laughing fillies, he tried his best to regain his dignity and turned back towards Sweetie.

“Please tell Lady Rarity that I am truly grateful for her most profound generosity. I will treasure it forever.”

“Or,” said Applebloom, “at least for another four burgers, if you keep puttin’ that much fire ruby dust on ‘em!”

Spike sighed and looked around for some way to change the topic. "Hey Twi, did you order any onion rings?"

The mare's horn glowed and a bag with the Hay Burger logo floated over from a side table. "I saved these just for you."

"Yeah," laughed Scootaloo. "After she ate three from the bag!"

All three fillies must have thought the look on his face was hilarious, because they shook with laughter so hard that they dropped hay fries onto the table and even the balcony floor.

Twilight's cheeks glowed red as she glared at the three. "Hey! It's not nice to rat on your princess!" she said in mock anger.

"It’s okay, Twi," replied Spike with a wink. "I'm happy to share, unlike somepony." He stuck his forked tongue out at Scootaloo.

"Ooh!" said Sweetie with a smirk. "No wonder you get along so well with my sister, you sound just like her!"

The comment actually pleased him, but he certainly wasn’t going to show it to these three. Luckily, Twilight decided to come to his rescue.

“By the way, Applebloom,” she asked, “are we still on for that visit to Zecora's tomorrow morning?”

“Ayyup!” said the filly. “She told me she’d have something real special that was real hard to git. I cain’t wait to see what it is!”

“Wow!” Twilight’s eyebrows rose. “That’s saying something for a mare that gets most of her potions and medicinal supplies from the Everfree!”

“Shore is!” agreed the filly. She looked down at the pile of spent wrappers in front of her and burped loudly, causing Sweetie to look shocked and Scootaloo to laugh. “I guess that’s enough fries fer me. I’d better git home if I wanna finish ma chores before sundown.” She slid out of her chair.

The other Crusaders followed suit. At the entrance to Twilight’s chambers they formed a line, pirouetted in synchronicity, and curtsied very properly to Twilight.

“Good evening, Your Majesty!” they called in unison, and then trotted away in whirlwind of exclamations, gasps and filly laughter.

Spike looked at the pile of remaining burgers. He struck a heroic pose, one claw lifted before his face. “Everydragon needs to believe in something,” he said in his patented fake Marechester accent. “I believe I’ll have another hay burger!” He pulled another sandwich from the pile and was about to take a big bite when he saw a wistful expression on Twilight's face.

"What's the matter, Twi?" he asked.

She sighed. "Them too."

"Them too what?" He put the burger down.

"They're starting to treat me like royalty." She smiled sadly. "It starts like a game, but with every day that passes all this formal stuff just becomes the new normal. Soon, nopony will remember to treat me the way they did before. Like a friend."

Spike put a claw on her forehoof. "I will."

Twilight hugged him tightly. "I thank Celestia every day that you're here with me."

"And I always will be, Twi."

She smiled gently and gave him a peck on the forehead. "That's one promise I won't hold you to. But still, hearing you say it means a lot to me!"

Together they went inside to wash up and have yet another quiet evening of reading all about Twilight's duties as a reigning princess.

---

In her bedchamber, Twilight snuggled under the covers of her bed listening to Spike’s gentle snores as he slept next to her in his basket. The events of the day kept replaying in her head, as well as feelings of anxiety about the increasing isolation between her and the other residents of Ponyville, and her growing feeling that she might not be able to meet their expectations.

I wonder if Princess Celestia ever had to go through this? she thought. She rolled onto her belly, unable to find comfort in her usual sleeping position on her back. Was she ever not an Alicorn?

The thought of Celestia not being one was vaguely unsettling. It brought to the fore questions about who, or what, came before. Questions that her mentor had always resisted answering.

If she did go through ascension, then was she subject to the same feelings of self-doubt as I am? She breathed slowly in and then out. Even if she had, she also had her sister Luna to share them with, somepony with whom she could talk things out and just be herself.

A glance out her window showed a thin strip of a crescent moon.

At least she did, until she had to banish Luna to the moon.

The thought made her ears rise up. Certain things came into focus all of a sudden : Celestia taking her on as her own pupil, all that that time spent not just on lessons but doing everyday things never discussed except when in private, the princess having tea and cake with her and Smartypants, talking about feelings and aspirations, gossiping and playing gentle pranks on the castle's denizens and each other.

A memory surfaced of one such incident and its aftermath.

Celestia had surreptitiously cast a spell that made it impossible for Twilight to open any book in her bedroom at night. The thought of blaming the princess didn't even enter Twilight’s mind when she discovered that she had been magically impaired. For her part Celestia acted concerned and perplexed when, the very next morning, Twilight told her about the vexing problem. Her mentor then proceeded with the day’s lessons as usual.

After the second evening, Twilight complained at length about the intolerable situation. They had discovered that Spike had no difficulty opening books in their shared bedroom, but only as long as Twilight was at least three pony lengths away. Celestia good naturedly suggested that Twilight simply read in the common areas of the castle or of her parents’ house.

On the third evening Twilight came up with the idea of placing a reading stand with a book against the far wall of her room, and having Spike stand nearby to turn the pages while she peered at them through a telescope. She quickly found out that the mirror inside the telescope reversed everything she saw. She also discovered that reading mirrored text for even an hour or two gave her a pounding headache.

On the fourth day she related these events and her frustration to Princess Celestia, who at that point motioned for her to come close and then whispered in her ear.

“Gotcha!”, she said, and burst out laughing. She then admitted to her wide-eyed student to being the perpetrator of the prank.

Twilight fumed for almost a minute before, livid, she held an admonishing hoof up to her mentor. “How could you deprive me of books at night? This is so unfair! I was so bored! I actually had to talk to my brother and parents after supper!” She then went on with further recriminations. “As my teacher you’re supposed to encourage me to study! You're supposed to be my roll model and a shining example of the moral standard to which I should aspire!" She went on for a quarter hour in that vein, saying things that later she couldn’t quite recall. Through it all Princess Celestia wore the same sweet, infuriating smile.

When Twilight finally wound down, Celestia did something that thoroughly surprised her. She looked into her eyes, her expression very serious, and said “Thank you!”

Twilight sputtered while trying to come up with a coherent response. “Thank me? Whatever for?”

“For caring enough about me to get angry when I don't live up to your expectations.”

She had then hugged Twilight warmly and dissolved the spell. She also extracted from Twilight a promise to spend at least thirty minutes each day talking with the other members of her family.

I get it now, Princess! she thought. It wasn’t long afterwards that my relationship with Shiny really took off, and he became my BBBFF.

Twilight rolled onto her back, pulled the covers up to her chin, and thought of all the things Princess Celestia had done for her in a brand new light.

Princess Celestia must have known this was coming. Even though there were no guarantees that I would work out as her student, she made all of these efforts just in case I would. Maybe that's why, of all the unicorn foals applying for entrance at her school, she gave me the task of hatching Spike's egg. She wasn’t just preparing me to become an alicorn, she was laying down the things that I would need to be happy afterwards. As a dragon Spike might live thousands of years. Who better as a companion for a near immortal!

Wow! she thought. Princess Celestia had planned out her moves years in advance, all out of concern for Twilight. She smiled in the dark, totally impressed by her mentor once again.

Finally, her heart full of warm feelings, Twilight drifted off to sleep.

---

“An' then ah told ‘em to just use dish soap ‘cause soap is soap, an' Scoots poured the whole bottle into the washin’ machine, an' Sweetie cast the heavy duty cycle spell on it, an' then bubbles filled the entire ground floor o’ the Boutique.” Apple Bloom’s ears dropped to half mast, and she halted on the path that led through the outskirts of the Everfree to Zecora’s cottage. “That’s when Rarity chased us out an' Sweetie was grounded for a whole month!”

Twilight turned her head away so the filly wouldn’t catch her smiling at the Crusaders’ latest disaster. In fact, Rarity had already related the event to her in full, including dramatic highlights. Nevertheless, no lasting damage has resulted to either the Boutique or her collections, so the fashionista wasn’t too upset.

“Least she accepted my apology when ah told her usin’ the dish soap were my idea, an' Sweetie weren’t ta blame for what happened, ah was. She still told Sweetie no crusadin’ for a week, so if it weren’t for you this all woulda been one powerful borin’ day!”

“Telling Rarity was very honest of you, Apple Bloom. I’m proud you did the right thing.”

“Really?” The filly beamed up at her. “Well thank you for sayin’ so, Your Majesty!”

Twilight lowered an ear. “Now Apple Bloom, didn’t I ask you to drop the majesty stuff when we’re alone?”

“Yeah. But it’s kinda fun to get all formal an' princessy once in a while.” She grinned mischievously. “Besides, that’s Zecora’s place right over yonder, so technically we ain’t alone no more!”

Twilight sighed as Apple Bloom galloped on ahead to the cottage’s door. Being a frequent visitor of the Zebra mare, the filly rushed right in without knocking. She reappeared before Twilight even got to the door, looking somewhat disappointed.

“Aw, she ain’t here!”

“That’s odd,” said Twilight. “Zecora’s usually pretty punctual with commitments.” She scanned the area and didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary. “Did she leave a note inside?”

“Naw. Ah looked.” The filly sat on her haunches, her withers and ears drooping. “An' everythin’s squared away ‘n locked up like she ain’t home at all.”

“Apple Bloom, I’m sure she was just delayed.” Twilight tried to smile reassuringly. “Tell you what! I’ll leave her a note she can send back to me via Spike’s dragon mail. That way I’ll know as soon as she’s returned, and I’ll let you know too. Are you okay with that?”

Apple Bloom nodded. “Thank you, Twilight. Ah sure hope she’s alright.”

“I’m sure she is. Nopony alive knows the Everfree better than Zecora.” She nodded in emphasis. Apple Bloom gave her a very tentative nod of her own.

Twilight focused on Zecora’s cottage, her horn glowing for an instant. “There! Now let’s get back to Apple Acres.”

She moved out with Apple Bloom in tow, the youngster’s pace much slower than on the trip out. I’m sure she’s alright, she said to herself, taking a last uneasy glance at Zecora’s cottage before it was lost from view.

---

“No news from Zecora, Spike?” Twilight asked for the tenth time that evening. She was at her reading stand. If Spike wasn’t mistaken, she had been staring at the same two pages of a book for almost an hour.

“Nope,” he replied with a shake of his head. He reclined, stumpy rear legs kicking idly over the edge in his basket where he’d been reading some comics. He’d already used all the platitudes at his command in response to her repeated queries, and she in turn had become progressively more nervous with each negative response. He could also see the edges of her mane beginning to frazzle, usually a sign that she was reaching the limits of her patience and might do something rash. On the other claw, she’d had far fewer such episodes since becoming a princess. Still, it paid to be careful where Twilight was concerned. He decided to try a different strategy: distraction.

“So what’s the news on the Summer Sun Celebration? Is the mayor still insisting on you doing a simultaneous replication of Princess Celestia’s invocation ceremony including lip-sync to an audio broadcast from Canterlot?”

Twilight stared at him aghast. “She what!?”

Bingo! he exulted internally while trying to keep a cool outer demeanor.

“Yeah!” Spike raised a single eyebrow. “She was even auditioning some of the more muscle-bound stallions to form an honour guard auxiliary for you, at least until you have your own royal guard detachment. Apparently Thunderlane and Bulk Biceps are already being fitted out with costume uniforms.”

Twilight took a deep breath, about ready to explode. But then her eyes narrowed, and she looked at the little dragon speculatively and slowly approached his basket. “Nice try, mister, but I don’t buy any of it! You’re inventing stuff to distract me from worrying about Zecora.” She gave him a pat on the head. “Which is a sweet thing to do, but it’s still lying, Spike, and you shouldn’t do that.”

He looked towards the ceiling and sighed dramatically.

“Busted!” he said, and smiled sheepishly. “But only partly. You’re right, I do want to get your mind off Zecora, but, Twi, do you really think I could invent something this crazy? It’s all true. I Pinkie swear!" He made the accompanying gestures with a claw. "You need to talk to the mayor before things get out of hoof.”

Her eyes grew wide again. “Oh my gosh! Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”

He scuffed the floor with a toe-claw. “Well you seemed to already have enough other problems on your plate, and I got caught up in all this worrying about Zecora and it... kinda... slipped my mind. Sorry!”

She eyed him sternly for a few seconds, and then sighed. The temperature in the room warmed up again.

“Okay, apology accepted. But go get your pen and a few scrolls. We’re going to draft out a set of instructions to Mayor Mare for the Friendship Rainbow Kingdom’s Summer Sun Celebration.”

“Right away, Twi!” He jumped out of his basket and ran to the writing desk. “Fire away!” he called. Twilight began to dictate her letter to the mayor. He grinned surreptitiously. He hadn’t lied, but he certainly knew how to get her to change track when she needed it. He risked a glance in her direction as she as she paced back and forth, dictating her message. Her mane was now unfrazzled.

Mission accomplished! he thought. This ought to keep her mind off Zecora, at least until tomorrow morning!

His smile faded as his tidy script filled the page. What he hadn’t told Twilight was that he had himself gone to see the Mayor. He was blocked at her door by her new assistant, who told him in no uncertain terms to keep his dragon snout out of pony business. He had been so shocked he hadn’t known what to do, other than run back to the castle. He debated telling Twilight about the incident, but decided not to. It would just frazzle her again.

The incident kept replaying in his mind after they shut the lights. He sighed in his basket and pulled the blanket over his head. It’s gonna be a long night.

Comments

[BenRG]

Something tells me that Zecora is on a special mission and Spike has the job of covering her trail.