Dragon's Bane

by Sazura

Birthdays and Blessings

The golden age of dragons that once was

Is no longer

For the lineage of fierce Rulers and Kings

Is lost

Now, a race once feared and awed

Is fading

Remnants, ghosts and mockeries of their former selves

Is what they are

And now, the golden age of dragons what once was

Is returning

~~~

Twilight Sparkle awoke to the sound of songbirds. This was not the usual cacophony of chaotic melodies she usually heard when she forgot to erect her sound barrier spell. These songbirds were harmonising perfectly, each bird’s melody blending with the others to create a beautiful cascading symphony that few ponies (or birds) could hope to match. Bad thing about living in a tree? The loud neighbours. Temporarily dazed and confused, she hauled herself out of bed and staggered over to her bedroom window. She spotted the culprits responsible for her early awakening. Those birds looked familiar somehow…suddenly-

“HEY TWILIGHT WHAT’S UP ARE YOU EXCITED ABOUT TODAY? CAUSE I AM! WOAH YOU HAVE A MASSIVE BEDHEAD! DID YOU JUST WAKE UP!?”

Twilight lay on the floor painfully as her friend Pinkie Pie pinned her down. It had taken Pinkie half a second to jump through the window, pin Twilight down, and scream in her face with urgency that was reserved only for new kinds of cupcakes. While Twilight usually appreciated her friend’s overzealous behaviour, with her current state of confusion combined with lower back pain, her patience was short.

“Pinkie, just what is going on exactly? What’s with the birds today?” Twilight’s questions had come out snappier than she had meant them to.

Sensing Twilight’s tone, Pinkie helped her pull herself up and take in the situation. That’s when Fluttershy poked her head in. Then it hit Twilight; the birds were comprised of Fluttershy’s songbird choir.

“Oh Fluttershy, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to lose my temper with your birds. You too, Pinkie, sorry for snapping,” Twilight apologised.

“S’all good.”

“I-it’s okay Twilight…” Fluttershy squeaked.

“I mean, they sounded beautiful, and I really appreciate it, but why did you organise this?”

“Well, you see-”

“Twilight, dear. Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten what day it is,” Rarity interrupted as she strode in carrying a picnic basket and blanket.

“Err…why is everypony in my room?”

“Twilight, I thought you were supposed to be Ms. Organised and all,” AJ teased as she followed Rarity through the door, hoisting a massive sack.

“It’s the anniversary of when we all got our cutie marks, silly! How did you forget something like that?” Pinkie happily declared.

Things were coming back to Twilight now. How did she forget something like this? They were discussing plans for today literally the day before. She blamed it on the intense week of studying. After Spike had ventured on his self-discovery journey and safely returned, Twilight asked Princess Celestia to send all information she could spare in the Canterlot archives to aid in further studying Spike's origins. While she had learnt many fascinating facts about dragon history, none hinted at holding any clues to whom the baby dragon’s parents might be. Twilight needn’t worry about that today, though.

“So did everypony have a songbird alarm clock this morning?” Twilight asked.

“Actually, that was meant for Spikey-wikey,” Rarity cooed.

“It’s his birthday, today, after all. Technically,” AJ explained.

“Yeah, happy birthday Spike! Actually, do dragons celebrate their birthday on the day their eggs are laid, or when they hatch? OH! You know what would be cool? If they celebrated both. It would be like having TWO birthdays! Double the presents, and double the fun! Ohhhh I wanna be a dragon now!” Pinkie rambled.

“Uh-huh,” AJ sighed as she rolled her eyes. “So where is the birthday boy?”

“RIIIIGHT HERE!” Spike triumphantly exited the bathroom, attempting to look suave for Rarity despite having horrible bags under his eyes. He had been studying just as hard as Twilight in the effort of finding out his parent's identities.

“Happy birthday, Spike,” said Fluttershy, who had been mostly quiet to this point.

“Happy birthday,” AJ trotted past and dumped the sack she was carrying next to the baby dragon. “That there’s from Rarity and I, all the gems we could dig up in Sweet Apple Acres.”

Spike's eyes lit up and his mouth started watering.

“Um…the birds were my present…I mean…if you want something else…” Fluttershy stammered.

“Aw, that’s okay Fluttershy, they were great.”

Twilight smiled to herself. Ever since Spike's episode with hoarding he had been a lot more humble with gifts. Which reminded her. She didn’t get him anything.

“Umm, Spike…I forgot to get you a gift.”

“Twilight, you’ve been taking care of me my whole life, it would be unfair to ask for anything more.”

Twilight smiled at him, she was proud that Spike was maturing so fast, albeit sometimes violently.

“Wait, where’s Rainbow? She’s the reason we can all celebrate the fact that we got our cutie marks on the same day. Seems kind of strange she’s not here.”

“Actually, darling, I’m not quite sure. She said she’d be here with the rest of us to say happy birthday to Spike. But you know how she is with appointments,” Rarity scowled.

~~~

A fierce arctic wind came crashing in through Rainbow Dash's window. While this would be more than sufficient to wake any earth pony or unicorn, pegasi could shrug it off as a mere refreshing breeze. A prerequisite if you want to live several hundred feet above sea level. Rainbow rolled in her sleep and- FLUMP -fell in a heap beside her cloud bed. While the fall didn’t hurt owing to the fact that her house was made entirely of clouds, the fall shocked her awake.

“Wha-huh?” she mumbled. “Darn it, again? I need a bigger bed.”

A quick stroke of her wings and she righted herself so gracefully Rarity would have a hard time criticising her. She looked at the clock on her bedside table, and-

“PONY FEATHERS! I’M LATE!”

She streaked out her window, leaving a rainbow hued blur as she gave the definition of ‘fast’ a whole new revision. Seconds later, she located Twilight’s library on the ground below. She pulled up, looped, tucked her wings in and streamlined her body as she let gravity take its course. At the last second, her powerful wings extended as she narrowly avoided speeding through the window at near terminal velocity. It couldn’t be avoided that there were casualties, though. She had tackled Twilight to the floor rather violently.

“TWICE IN 20 MINUTES!? REALLY!?” Twilight yelled.

“Ah, geez, sorry, Twilight. It’s just…you know…I was late…”

“THIS LIBRARY IS EQUIPPED WITH A DOOR!”

“Yeeeah…I’ll keep that in mind…”

“Well, better late than never.” Twilight looked up at Rainbow.

She locked eyes with Twilight for a fraction of a second. The sudden eye contact made Rainbow flinch and look away.

“Um, Rainbow?”

“What’s up Twi?”

“Could you get off me please?”

Rainbow realised she had been sitting rather awkwardly on top of Twilight. If this were an anime she probably would have been slapped by now. She blushed as she stood up and helped Twilight to her feet.

“Yes, well…wonderful entry as always, Rainbow Dash.” Rarity gave a lopsided smile.

Rainbow hadn’t noticed everypony else in the room. Even more reason to be embarrassed.

“I know,” Rainbow said as she flicked her mane back and regained her usual brash demeanor, fully aware that Rarity was being somewhat sarcastic.

“Ohh, let’s get going. I wanna get to the park, but not too fast. That would be tiring. Maybe a nice trot, or canter, or stroll, or maybe good old fashioned walking!” the instant Pinkie finished her last word she ran through the door, down the stairs and headed straight for the park.

“I didn't know it was possible for her to get tired,” chuckled AJ as she and everypony else exited the library at a much more sensible pace.

Once Rainbow had time to properly wake up and regain her senses, she began to take in her surroundings properly. It’s a beautiful day she thought. She didn’t use that word often to describe something, but there was no other way to put it. The sky was a perfect azure hue, dotted with the rare wisp of cloud. Celestia’s sun was radiating a golden glow over Ponyville, where many of the residents had decided that the best way to enjoy their day off was to sleep as much as possible. A gentle breeze tickled Rainbow’s mane, ruffling it up more than it already was. It was too inviting.

“You guys go on ahead, I’ll meet you there. The weather team hardly ever makes flying conditions this awesome.”

The complaints of her friends were drowned out by the wind as Rainbow soared skywards. As she ascended she felt the joy that only flying could give her. The sky belonged to her, no one else. At least that’s what she felt. Rainbow gave a whoop of glee as she extended her wings and fell towards the ground. She pulled up, rolled, and accelerated as fast as she could towards the nearest patch of cloud. She didn’t bother to slow down; the cloud was punctured as Rainbow pierced it with about as much subtlety as an elephant on stilts. While flying through a cloud wasn’t the most glorious endeavor Rainbow had accomplished, it was fun. That’s the thing that mattered.

Laughing, she came to a steady glide and allowed her wings to recover. That’s when she spotted a dark figure near the horizon, amidst the Everfree Forest. Despite its name, the forest was filled with all manner of malicious creatures. While Rainbow knew of this fact, this creature particularly perturbed her. What the heck is that? It’s massive…a swarm? She thought to herself. It seemed to be moving as one being. Then, as quickly as she spotted it, it vanished. What the? Rainbow blinked several time and tried to spot it again, but to no avail. She quickly dismissed it as a trick of the light. She banked left and headed for the park where her friends should be arriving.

“Slowpokes,” Rainbow scoffed to herself.

~~~

Spike hurried to keep up with Twilight and the others. Not fair, he thought, you guys have longer legs, and four of them. His head had been throbbing ever since he had woken up that morning. He blamed it on the insane amount of books he had consumed over the course of the week. Not literally, of course. Twilight would go all motherly and be like “I’m disappointed in you, Spike.” on him if he ever did suffer a mental block and decide the best course of action would be to devour a book. Although his identity crisis was largely over, Spike was still frustratingly curious as to what his origins were. How long was he an egg for? Who is his mother? Or father? How did his egg come into pony possession? These were just some of the questions plaguing him recently.

He had decided to lay those questions to rest for today, however. It was his birthday, as well as a momentous occasion for his pony friends. Upon arriving at the picnic area in the park, he spotted a familiar blue pegasus sitting in one of the trees. It shouldn’t be a surprise Rainbow had traveled thrice the distance they had and still managed to arrive before them.

“HEY! SLOWPOKES, OVER HERE! GOT US THE BEST SPOT!” Rainbow frantically waved at the patch of ground underneath the tree. It was indeed a good picnic location, half in and half out of the sun.

“Rainbow, darling, please try not to act so barbaric in public. It’s unsightly,” Rarity huffed in her usual lofty manner. Her horn glowed and the picnic blanket arranged itself over the manicured grass perfectly.

“Rarity, where’s your couch?” Twilight teased.

“It’s called a chaise lounge, for your information. Also, it’s being reupholstered at the current time.”

Rarity looked genuinely upset. Then she gave the slightest hint of a smile. Then she finally burst out laughing, with everypony else joining her. Once the laughing fit was over, Spike wiped the tears from his eyes. The joke wasn’t even that funny. Yet, with them all together, it seemed hilarious. He had already said it once before, but he considered this mismatched group of friends closer than any family. Even if he did one day meet his true mother and father, they could never replace Twilight, Rarity, or any of the others.

“I would like to propose a toast,” Rarity raised her glass. “Here’s to Spikey-wikey, congratulations on another year down, and to all of us. I’m sure you all know this, but I consider you my family. I truly believe that we can make it through any obstacle together, no matter how difficult. No pony can argue that we all have a special bond with one another, and I hope that this day is just one of many to come.”

“Eugh.” Rainbow stuck out her tongue and made a face that made her look like she was about to hurl.

“Alright, mushiness line has been crossed for today, let’s get eatin!” AJ tore open the picnic basket and grabbed her first sandwich.

Laugher broke out once again amongst the group. The rest of the day was spent talking about everything and nothing, watching Rainbow and AJ have multiple hoof-races, witnessing Pinkie somehow manage to conjure a stage from thin air and single handedly re-enacting “The Rouge Princess,” being entertained from Twilight and Rarity as they performed magic feats after much encouragement. Spike caught himself wishing days like this could last forever. That nothing will change. Except for his headache. That had to go soon.

~~~

Fluttershy hung around the edge of the group. While she knew that they would be more than happy to include her in the conversation, they knew that this was how she preferred to behave at social gatherings. She laughed along with everypony else, and when the sun began to set, said her goodbyes and began the walk home. She could fly, but found a walk at sunset to be one of life’s simplest pleasures.

Fluttershy spotted Rainbow flying overhead, and as she was about to call her, she realised she was in the middle of Town Square. It would be rude to disturb everypony. As she put her hoof back to the ground Rainbow turned her head and spotted the coy pegasus on the ground below. Rainbow angled herself downwards, turned, and landed neatly in front of her.

“You know, Fluttershy, I never understood why you walk home instead of you know…just fly.” Rainbow smirked as she pointed at Fluttershy’s wings.

“Walking home is nice, Rainbow Dash. It’s relaxing. ”

“For you, maybe. I need speed.”

“Oh...it’s not safe to go too fast.”

“You forget who you’re talking to sometimes Fluttershy. I mean, c’mon, I’m Rainbow Dash.”

“True,” Fluttershy admitted, “but it doesn’t hurt to just go slowly sometimes.”

“Eh...I’ll see what the fuss is about.”

Rainbow joined Fluttershy on her stroll towards her house in silence. They were both drained from an entire day of play, and Rainbow actually felt content to match Fluttershy’s pace for now.

“Hey, Fluttershy?”

“What is it?”

“About this morning at Twilight’s place…”

“Oh, don’t worry about that, we’re all used to you being late by now,” Fluttershy giggled.

“I don’t mean that!”

The sudden change in Rainbow’s tone had taken her aback. “What is it, then?”

Fluttershy’s kind demeanour was enough to disarm even the hardest of ponies. “You don’t think she’s still mad I crashed into her, do you?” Rainbow asked worriedly.

Fluttershy raised an eyebrow questioningly. “Why would she still be mad? It was an accident, right?”

“Yeah, it was. Err…thanks for talking to me, Fluttershy. Catch you later”

Rainbow streaked off into the sky again. Fluttershy stared after her utterly nonplussed. The brash, confident pegasus pony was acting very strangely. She would have to ask again later to find out what was really troubling her friend.

For now, she had arrived at her home. A humble cottage on the edge of the Everfree forest, it was by no definition luxurious. She wouldn’t have it any other way. Neither would the woodland creatures residing in her homestead. As she walked in the door she was greeted with all manner of animal calls, all of which she could identify the owner.

The impatient bunny called Angel came running up to her and began demanding food. As always, Fluttershy obliged. Taking care of these creatures became easier once she learned to assert herself, and they had respected her differently ever since. She filled the food bowls, replenished the water, nursed the sick and injured, and finally said goodnight as she ventured upstairs to the inviting embrace of her bed.

It was early, but she was completely drained from today’s chores and play. As she closed her eyes, she glimpsed the last rays of Celestia’s sun as it set over the horizon. She was going to have pleasant dreams tonight.

~~~

Spike felt like his head was going to break apart on the way back to the library. As he rode on Twilight's back, the unicorn threw anxious glances back at him. Filled with worry, Twilight decided it would be better to teleport them to the local infirmary where she called for Nurse Redheart. The nurse told them to make sure he got plenty of bed rest, water, a hearty meal, and a few prescribed painkillers. Twilight wasn’t sure how effective pony medicine was going to be on a dragon, but it turned out enough to put Spike into a restless slumber for time being.

Spike reared on his hind legs to get a good view of the forest surrounding him. Over the wide horizon he spotted a small settlement. A primitive roar escaped him as he beat his hugely powerful wings, and rose above the clouds in one massive movement. There was nothing to hunt here. These creatures were all too small, too weak, not worthy of being his prey.

His hunger frustrated him, and he longed to destroy something. He knew that he shouldn’t. His presence was to go unnoticed until the due time. Another stroke of his wings, and he was speeding through the sky almost invisible with speed. He spotted a small cottage on the edge of the forest, and smelled that there was food there. Not nearly enough to fill him, but delicious nonetheless.

He peered at the horizon. The sun was just setting. The hunger had gotten the better of him, and he decided to have himself a quick meal once darkness had descended.

Comments

[Path_of_cloud]

Well... interesting ending. Twilight and Dashie seem to be getting shipped here. I'm hoping Rarity and Spike as well.

I'll take sad over a tragedy tag any day.

From a writing stand point you did each perspective quite well. Twilight used big intellectual words, Dash was rambunctious and fast, Fluttershy was calm and shy, and Spike was sarcastic, deep, and humorous. Very promising.

[Reaperman241]

Graceful as an elephant on stilts? Have to write that one down...
Definitely left me wondering where this is going though... Rainbow's behavior and whether Spike is just dreaming or not... probably not...

[Eagle Heart]

Very good so far over all, the only thing i noticed were quite a few but subtle, spelling mistakes and a few punctuation mistakes. Other than that, the personalities of the characters are well done, a good amount of description, and solid story telling.

[Fury of the Tempest]

Hmmmm... this is going to be interesting to see develop...