Songs of Unity

by Avid Fiction

Dreams, Teasing and Magical Mistakes

Chapter Two

I could hear the soft crashing of the waves. I could smell the salt in the air coming from the vast ocean spread out in front of me. I could feel the warm, soft white sand between my toes.

‘Toes?’

I looked down and sure enough, I had toes. In fact, I was entirely human. I looked around, and it seemed that I was on some random beach in the middle of nowhere.

‘Am I dreaming?’ I always had trouble telling the difference between my dreams and reality. ‘This has to be a dream though.’

I look behind me, away from the water to see the biggest grassy meadow I had ever seen.

‘Definitely a dream. Wonder what’s going to happen.’

I look back towards the glimmering ocean that spread straight to the horizon. I had always felt the most comfortable and at ease when near or in the water. I eased myself down to sit on the beach to just watch the water and enjoy the breeze. I stayed like that for a while, just letting the sound of the waves wash away all my worries and stress. This was by far the most uneventful dream I had ever had, and I didn’t mind.

Then, as if I’d jinxed it, I heard a faint sound behind me. It was sort of a shimmering sound. I turned my head to look, but all I saw was the meadow. I stood up and turned around when I heard the sound again. This time when I looked, the air seemed to ripple and fluctuate, like seeing heat rise in the desert. The ripple started to shimmer blue and slowly came towards me. When it was about a meter and a half away from me, it stopped. I looked at the shimmer and realized that it had a shape, though what shape I couldn’t identify.

‘Hey there,’ the shimmer said suddenly, in a bright and happy, yet masculine voice.

I blinked in surprise and stared at the shimmer, not knowing if I should reply or not.

Figuring it wouldn’t cause any harm, I replied with a simple and hesitant, ‘Hi...’ completely confused by what was going on.

‘Why do you look so confused? It’s me.”

‘Me, who?’

Before I could get an answer, the shimmer vanished and everything turned dark. I looked up, but the sun was still in the sky. I looked a little lower, and saw a tidal wave as tall as a skyscraper coming towards me. I just stood there, dumbfounded by the sheer size of the wave. I didn't even try to move. The wall of water that was coming for me, there was no way to escape it. Closer and closer it got, and all I could hear was the roar of the water as it started to descend upon me.

'Oh, crap...' Was all I could squeak out as the water hit me full force.

******************************

*GASP!!!*

I bolted upright in my bed. Sweat was pouring down my forehead and neck as the drowning sensations stayed with me, even after I woke up. I hugged my arms to myself and darted my eyes around the room. As I looked around, it took me a few minutes to remember where I was and what had happened the previous day. I slowly unwrapped my forelegs from my chest and took slow, deep breaths to calm my nerves. Looking down at my hooves, my expression became that of a small frown.

So that part wasn’t a dream. The longer I stared at my hooves, the more my frown deepened. Am I going to be stuck here forever? How long will it be before someone notices that I am missing?

I stayed like this until a low rumble brought me out of my thoughts. I looked down and, sure enough, my stomach was rumbling. Looking outside, I realized that it was around noon. I hadn’t eaten in almost 24 hours. I slowly pulled myself out of bed and made my way to the door after giving myself a quick refresher on how to walk as a quadruped. When I got to the door, I realized that I had no idea how to do things the pony way. I didn’t even know how to open a simple door. I definitely didn't want to use my mouth to open it, though that might have been the easiest route. I tried to use my hoof, which should have worked, but I just couldn't get the hang of it. So I sat on my haunches and stared at the door trying to figure out how to open it, when a realization dawned on me.

"Wait a minute. I can use magic." A grin formed on my face, as I looked at my forehead the best I could. "This should be interesting."

I stared at the doorknob and focused my entire mind on it. My horn started to tingle as I felt the magic finally build up. Just like they did on the show, I tried to concentrate better by closing my eyes, and surprisingly, it worked. I figured I was about five seconds from opening the door when I heard someone knock. With magic still built up, my focus changed from opening the door to wondering who was in the hallway. Before I could switch my focus back, there was a flash of royal blue and it felt like I was floating through nothingness. With another flash I found myself in the hallway, but something was off. I looked around and discovered that, not only was I about ten feet in the air, but I was also upside down. I looked down to the floor and uttered a small “Eep” before falling to the floor and landing on my back. I winced as the shock of pain went through me.

“Ow.”

Before I could get up, I heard someone say,in a young, but very masculine voice, “Are you okay?”

I looked towards the door, but since I was still on my back, everything was still upside down. As I looked, all I saw was a pair of scaly, purple feet. My eyes drifted upward to see Spike with a rather confused expression on his face. I just blinked at him as I realized something.

How did I not see how tall he is?

This perplexed me, because he was nearly as tall as me, and I was taller than the girls. I also noticed that, compared to last time I saw him on the show, he was leaner and had toned quite a bit. I had to admit that he looked good. I looked at his face again and he looked even more confused. I was wondering why, when I realized that I was still laying in my back after my fall. I rolled over and pushed myself up onto my hooves, a little light headed after the teleportation and laying on my back that long.

Note to self: no more magic till you learn how to use it.

I looked over at Spike, gave him a small wave and a lopsided grin and said, "Morning... Afternoon... whatever. What's up?"

“Uh… Twilight asked me to come see if you were awake yet. Are you ok? That looked like it hurt.”

“Yeah, I’m ok. I was just trying to open the door. Didn’t expect to teleport." I blushed and rubbed my mane. "I don't actually know how to use magic, but I thought I would give it a try."

"Maybe you should get Twilight to teach you. She loves to teach, especially when it comes to magic. You just need to keep in mind that she has her royal duties.”

“Sounds like a good idea.” My stomach rumbled again. “Though I think some lunch might be in order.”

“Not a problem. Follow me.”

Spike started leading me down the hallway. I didn’t know whether he was taking me to the kitchen or to the dining area, but it didn’t really matter, I guess. We walked for a few minutes before I decided to ask a few questions.

“So, out of curiousity, how long has it been since you and Twilight got back from Canterlot High?”

“It’s been about two years.”

“Anything exciting happen since then?”

“Not really. Been pretty boring actually.”

“You mean besides the fact that you don’t look like a baby dragon anymore and have gotten quite studly?” I said with a smirk and an exaggerated wiggle of my eyebrows.

He blushed and rubbed his neck, “Yeah, besides that.”

Interesting. No comment about not swinging that way. Hehe.

I giggled at his blush, “Relax, I’m just teasing. As cute as you are, and as awesome as dragons are, you’re not really my type and a little young for me. I don’t really want to start anything right now anyways. Not until I am absolutely sure that there is no way for me to get back home.” I sighed, having bummed myself out again. I decided to be mischievous again to brighten my mood. “What did Rarity think of the new you?”

Spike sighed and looked down to his feet. I looked at his face and realized that I had struck a raw nerve. Before I could apologize, Spike spoke “About a year ago, after my growth spurt, I finally got the courage to tell her how I felt.”

---

One year ago...

I was wearing the bowtie she had made me and I had a bouquet of her favourite flowers. I was walking towards Carousel Boutique with a bit of a spring to my step. Right after I knocked on the door I felt my courage slowly slipping away. So, when the door opened, I thrusted the flowers forward and asked if she would do me the honour of going out on a date sometime. I had my eyes closed for fear that I would lose my nerve. It wasn’t until I heard a giggle that I opened my eyes and realized that I had just asked out Sweetie Belle.

She giggled again and said, “Why Spike. I didn’t know you cared.”

I just stood there completely flabbergasted until she giggled again. I figured out that she was teasing me. She then asked, “Those are for Rarity, right?” I just nodded and she let me in, calling for her sister to come downstairs.

When Rarity came down the stairs, she had her sewing glasses on and had her hair in a bun. She wasn’t really paying attention as she was mumbling to herself about how she could make her latest design better. When she noticed me, her eyes lit up with surprise, but when she caught sight of the flowers her expression dropped. I barely noticed it though because I was too nervous to look at her. She greeted me, and when she got close enough, I did the same thing I did at the door. After a few minutes of silence, I looked up to see that Rarity had tears in her eyes, but they weren’t tears of joy.

“Oh Spike.” She whispered. I just looked at her confused by her reaction. “I knew that this would happen, but I hoped you would outgrow this.” She closed her eyes and collected herself before continuing. “I-I’m afraid that I must decline”

To say I was devastated would have been an understatement. It felt like my whole world had come crashing down around me. For the first few minutes, all I could do was stand there stuttering.

Eventually, my head cleared enough to speak. “Bu-But w-why? I didn’t ask before now because of how small I was, but now that I actually look older now… Why?”

“Oh Spike. I’m afraid that your size was never the issue. You are a perfect gentledrake, but the age difference is something that I just can’t look past. I’m sorry. Like I said, I was hoping that you would grow out of these feelings. I’m sure that you will be able to some lovely mare happy someday.”

I could tell just by looking into her eyes and by the tone of her voice that she was entirely serious and would not be changing her mind. I shut my eyes as tight as I could to fight back the tears and clenched my hand around the flowers tighter. After a few minutes, my sadness turned into anger. I felt all my muscles relax. I dropped the flowers to floor and looked up at the mare that had torn my heart to shreds with tears falling down my face. Even though I was fuming, it wasn’t showing on my face. My face was completely calm and my voice was steady.

“Thank you for your answer, Miss Rarity.” As I said this I reached up and pulled off the bowtie and dropped it on the floor next to the flowers.

I calmly walked out of the Boutique and made my way across Ponyville back to the castle. Once past the castle doors, I broke. I ran to my room bawling my eyes out. I spent the rest of the day laying on my bed sobbing until I finally cried myself to sleep. When I woke up the next day, I felt empty and alone, like there was a hole where my heart should have been.

---

“For the first week afterward, I was very unresponsive. I just did my daily chores around the castle to fill each day. My attitude changed for the better when Sweetie Belle, who had seen what happened, asked me to come hang out with her and the Crusaders. The change was slow and gradual, and after a month, I was pretty much back to my usual self. I became better friends with those three over that month. Now I hang out with them whenever I can get the chance. I was even there when all three of them got their cutie marks."

"I'm sorry that I brought that up." I felt bad for him. Telling that must have brought back the pain. Then I realized something. "You know, you didn't have to tell me all that. You could have just told me that it didn't work out and left it at that."

Spike blushed, "Oh... Sorry."

"Not a problem. I just feel bad that you reminded yourself of that pain."

"Meh. It's okay. I've gotten over it. I mean, yeah, Rarity will always have a special place in my heart, but life goes on. Right?"

‘That is a very mature attitude from someone his age.’ I mused. Then his words hit home and they brought unpleasantness with them.

"Yeah... life goes on..." I looked down at the floor as we walked.

"You okay?"

"Yeah. Just remembering."

"Remembering what."

"Bad breakup."

"Sorry."

"It's okay. Like you said, life goes on."

We walked in silence for a few minutes before we stopped in front of a huge set of double doors. Spike pushed one of them open and when we stepped over the threshold, I was once again in awe. The dining room was gorgeous. It consisted of a long, carved table and matching chairs made out of the same crystal that the castle seemed to be made of. The chairs had very plush velvet cushions on the seats and the backs. The table itself looked to be at least twenty feet long with candelabras every five feet or so, and three crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling. The two outside chandeliers were smaller than the one in the middle but we're no less impressive. At one end of the table, Twilight sat, sipping a cup of tea and reading a book that levitated in front of her.

Spike looked to me and said, "Have a seat. I'll bring you something to eat."

Hearing him speak broke me out of my awe. "Thanks."

He walked across the room and exited through a door, which I was guessing lead to the kitchen in some way. I walked over towards Twilight and sat in the chair next to her. We sat in silence for a while, Twilight reading her book and me looking around the room in awe as I marveled at the beauty of the crystal construction. After sitting in silence for what felt like hours, Twilight closed her book and set it down on the table. She looked at me and smiled.

“Afternoon Avid. How did you sleep?”

“Besides an odd dream, really well. Thank you Twilight.”

“That’s good.” She took a sip of her tea, “So, yesterday, after the girls went home, I sent a message to Princess Celestia, informing her of the situation. I am expecting a reply soon, but until then, you are free to roam the castle. You are, of course, welcome to stay as long as you like. Considering the situation, I think it might be best.”

“I hate to impose, but you are right. It would be best if I stayed here. At least until I get a few things figured out. Speaking of for the best...”

Right then, Spike came in carrying a small bowl in his hands. He walked over and set it down in front of me.

“Here you go. One Spike Special Pick-me-up.”

I looked into the bowl and started to drool. At first glance, it looked like it was just a simple salad, but the closer I looked the more I saw that it was far from simple. It was a mixture of salad greens, tossed with several daisies, sliced strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries, and lightly drizzled in an aromatic raspberry vinaigrette. My stomach rumbled louder than it ever had in my life. Never before had my senses received such a foodgasm. Not knowing what I was doing, I levitated a forkful of the salad up to my lips. Slowly, I bit down into ambrosia. My mouth exploded with taste and my eyes closed halfway in bliss. The crispness of the various greens and daisies, the tang of the vinaigrette, and the sweetness of the berries, all blended perfectly into a blissful symphony on my tongue.

“Oh good Goddess above!! This is the best thing I have ever tasted in my life!”

Spike blushed, “Hehe… Thanks.”

I did not want the foodgasm to end, so I savoured every bite till the entire salad was gone, which wasn’t until about 20 minutes later. I looked into the empty bowl, hoping that more of the ambrosia would appear, but alas, it remained empty. It was then that something dawned on me. I was levitating the fork. I did not have a clue, however, as to how I was doing it. I could feel the tingle of the magic, and on a whim, I let the feeling go. The spoon clattered into the bowl a second later. I looked up at Spike and Twilight, who had been watching me eat the salad the entire time. My cheeks got a little warm from embarrassment.

Twilight was the first to speak. “I was going to ask what you were going to say, but you looked so absolutely enthralled by that salad, I just didn’t have the heart to speak.”

“Sorry. It was really good and I hadn’t eaten since just after lunch yesterday. Thank you Spike. It was amazing.”

Spike nodded. “My pleasure, Avid.”

“So, as I was saying, before I was so blissfully interrupted, I was wondering if you would be willing to teach me about magic.”

Twilight’s entire face lit up and donned a grin the Cheshire Cat would be jealous of. She started bouncing like a schoolfilly and clapping her forehooves together.

“EEEEEEEE!!!!!! That is a wonderful idea. You already seem to have a grasp of the basics, so we can go from there.”

“Actually, I have no idea what I am doing. In the case of the cup yesterday and the fork just now, I didn’t realize I was doing it until after the fact. Then there was the mishap earlier…”

“What happened earlier?” Twilight asked with a mask of worry.

Spike chuckled a little before explaining, “He teleported when I went to get him.” Some more chuckles, “Except that he ended up upside down and ten feet in the air.” The draconic chuckles continued.

Twilight gasped, “You tried teleporting without knowing what you were doing?! That’s extremely dangerous! You could have ended up inside a wall!” She glared at Spike, who was still chuckling. The glare made him stop, clear his throat and put on an air of seriousness. Though, when Twilight turned back to me, his smirk came back.

I looked down, a small blush creeping its way onto my face, “I wasn’t trying to teleport. I was experimenting trying to open the door when Spike knocked. My focus shifted for only a second and the next thing I know, I’m suspended in the air, upside down. In my defense,” I huffed, looking back at Twilight, “I’ve been a pony for less than 24 hours. I don’t know how to do simple things like open doors and pick up utensils with hooves. I’m used to having hands. So I tried to open the door with magic.”

Twilight’s expression softened, “I’m aware that this is all new to you. And I do sympathize. You just need to be patient. Everything will come in its own time.”

*HURP*

I looked over to Spike to see that his cheeks had bulged out like a chipmunks. He was also looking directly at me. I ducked knowing what was coming next.

*BUURP*

The green flame shot right over my head then swirled upwards where it coalesced into a scroll. Once the letter had materialized, it fell softly onto my head, where my horn just happened to slide into one end, lodging it there. Spike started laughing and Twilight was holding in her giggles.

I shot a glare at Spike, “Watch where you aim that.”

“S-sorry.” He stuttered as he tried to get control of his laughing.

Twilight levitated the scroll off my horn and over to her. She opened it and read for a few moments before speaking.

“Well, Avid. We’re in luck. Princess Celestia says that we can come see her today.”

“That’s… cool.” I chuckled nervously.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah. Just a little nervous. Things are a little different in my world. We don’t have immortal goddesses walking around.”

“Heehee. You don’t have anything to worry about. Princess Celestia is very kind and very laid back. At least she is when I’m around.”

“I know she is. Doesn’t mean I am not going to be nervous. Immortal goddess aside, I have never met royalty before either or any kind of V.I.P. for that matter.”

“Well, don’t let her status intimidate you. She’s just like everypony else. Why don’t we get going? And when we get back, we can start your magic lessons.”

“Okay. Sounds like a plan. How are we getting there? Train or teleportation?”

“We will be taking the train. I may be strong with magic, but I’m not very good with long distance teleportation. Not yet anyway.”

“Alright. In that case, could I possibly have a cloak to cover up with. I know I don’t have anything to worry about, but I feel a little self-conscience about walking through town with no cutie mark.”

“Not a problem. I understand. Spike, could you find a cloak large enough for Avid and meet us by the doors?

“I’m on it, Twilight.”

Spike turned and hopped out of his chair and left the dining hall. Twilight levitated the book she had been reading and deposited it in a bookshelf that was inside the dining hall. How did I not see that? She stood and motioned for me to follow, leaving her tea cup on the table after draining the few remaining sips. I followed her through the door I had entered in and we proceeded down the hall towards the exit.

“Any idea what Princess Celestia will ask me when we get there?”

“Most likely the same questions I asked you yesterday. Where you came from, how you got here, and she will probably want to know your real name as well. By the way, have you remembered anything else about how you got here?

I thought about for a moment, “No. It’s no use. Whenever I try to remember, it’s like a wall appears out of nowhere and blocks the memories from reaching me. I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright. Don’t worry too much about it. They will come back to when the time is right. The shock your system took during the transport is probably what is blocking the memories, so when your system recovers, they will come back. Who knows? They might tell you exactly why you were teleported to Equestria of all places.”

“Thanks, Twilight. I hope you are right.”

By this time we had reached the main exit where Spike was standing and holding a black cloak. He handed me the cloak, but I just stood there looking at it then back to him sheepishly.

“Um, would you mind helping me put it on? Like I said, I don’t know how to handle objects with my hooves yet, and I don’t want to try magic again.”

Spike nodded, smiling empathetically. He took a few steps closer to me then flung the cloak around my shoulders and over my body and clasped it together, bringing the hood up over my head. When he was finished, he went to the door and held it open for both me and Twilight. When I saw this, I decided to have a little fun to ease my nerves.

Putting on the most seductive grin I could muster, I walked towards the door and stopped in front of Spike and said in the best Southern Belle impression I could, “Why, thank you Spike. Ah have always relied on the kindness of strangers.”

I gave him a wink and watched as his entire face went red. This gave me a good laugh and eased my nerves quite a bit. I looked behind me as I walked out the door to see Twilight’s reaction to my little show. She was standing there next to a rather dumbfounded drake, giggling and shaking her head. She walked up to me and we went on our way to the train station and giggled some more at Spike’s reaction, leaving behind holding the door.

Once we heard the door close, Twilight turned to me and said, “Must you tease him like that? You’re going to confuse the poor guy.”

“Don’t worry. I’m just having a bit of fun. That wasn’t the first time and it certainly won’t be the last. After the first time, I told him that I’m not looking for any kind of relationship right now and that, as adorable as he is, he’s not really my type anyway. I like to see his reaction. A good laugh always calms my nerves.”

She gave a small chuckle, “Alright, but keep it clean and don’t do it at inappropriate times.”

I gave her a small, comical salute, “Yes ma’am.”

She giggled again at my antics, “Knock it off, ya goofball.”

I just grinned broadly and made a squeaky teddy bear sound. We continued walking to the train station in silence, and as we walked, I noticed a few of the ponies around us give me glances before going on their way. A few waved at Twilight and gave her a greeting, either casual or a small dip of the head in bow while saying, “Princess”. She just waved back and greeted them in return. All the attention was making me even more nervous than I already was, causing me to sweat profusely. Eventually, we reached the train station, and Twilight bought two tickets for the next train to Canterlot. When the train arrived, we boarded and waited for it to leave the station. Fortunately, the wait wasn’t long, and we were soon pulling away. I noticed that we were the only ones in the train car and looked at Twilight with a confused look.

She looked at me and understood my confusion. Blushing a little she stated, “This car is reserved for myself and the bearers of the Elements of Harmony. I don’t like being given special treatment, but the station manager insisted, so I couldn’t refuse. I did make one condition though. That the car be used by others if the train is especially busy, whether or not one of us is here.”

I just nodded in understanding and proceeded to look out the window to watch the scenery. I became mesmerized by the landscape rushing past, and seeing all the trees, valleys and mountains flying by eased my mind and let me forget my troubles for a while. As we approached a tunnel, I felt a tap on my shoulder. I looked at Twilight and saw that there was a question on mind.

“Since there is nopony else around, I was wondering if you could tell me your real name. I Pinkie Promise that I won’t tell anyone or call you by it.” She made the motions for the Pinkie Promise and smiled. I could tell by looking in her eyes that she really meant it and that it was a vow that she would never break.

I gave a small sigh and a similarly small smile and replied, “Sure. My real name is…”

Author's Note:

Here is the second chapter. Hope everyone likes it.

Let me know if you have any comments, questions or concerns

Comments

[An unknown_dragon]

nicely done

[Avid Fiction]

5690276 Thank you!