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Spike I1,729 words
Twilight I1,534 words
Fluttershy I1,982 words
Spike II1,794 words
Celestia I3,192 words
Twilight II4,038 words
Spike III3,228 words

Fluttershy I

The mares' celebratory mood was abruptly doused, as Fluttershy hurriedly flew out of the Golden Oak Library, concern cutting deep on her face.

The setting sun was no longer clouded by black smoke. With her firm admonition, the yellow pegasus had successfully convinced the snoring dragon to move away.

Yet to her shock, none of her animals could be seen inside the library.

Fluttershy was certain that she brought the animals there and entrusted them to Spike before leaving. However, the tree house was so pristine, orderly, and above all, empty. It was eerie that there was almost nary a sign of anyone living there currently, having been cleaned up so completely.

Flapping her wings with all her might, she streamed across the street, occasionally apologizing to the odd passers-by, and hurried towards her own cottage.

As she prepared to cross the small bridge towards her home, her pupils shrank to pins as a shocking sight entered her view.

A blazing pillar of orange flame shot out from behind the thatched roof. The nearby forest canopy was lit up as if it was under the midday sun.

She sniffed the sooty stench in the air, and widened her eyes.

That has to be dragon breath, the same smell as we were on the mountain!

Her palpitating heart skipped a beat. Fear seized her very being, as her mind went to the most worrying places. T- That red dragon! She thought. Was he lying? Was he merely putting up an act when I told him to move out? H- He can't be secretly plotting to take revenge on me and my animals because I told him off in front of everypony, can he?

Her breath stopped entirely at the worst possibility. Oh no, my animals!

The yellow pegasus summoned every bit of her strength and rushed forward. She frantically aimed for the small patch of grass behind her house, where the tongue of fire shot out.

But to her surprise, before she turned around the corner, a callow singing voice entered her ears first. She could not help but slow down and listen.

"Let the vivid tulips bloom,
clearing out the winter's gloom.
Give the daffodils a while,
they will bring us gentle smiles.

Make way, dour winter,
For the flowers of spring are here.
Make haste, cold winds,
And make way for our spring so dear..."

Fluttershy took in a breath. She was too concentrated on the sonorous singing and the curious lyrics. Realizing she had to investigate what actually was going on in her backyard, she overcame her lingering fear and popped her head out from the wall.

On a rock in a distance sat the purple dragon assistant of Twilight. Her woodland friends sat in a circle around him, all paying rapt attention.

The dragon hummed. He let out a sigh, and suddenly shifted into a more wistful tone.

"I sing about the sweet spring,
In the warm breeze murmurs ring,
What have you in store for me?
What will 'nother morrow bring-"

Angel, the bunny rabbit in the crowd, suddenly jumped up from the crowd and made an exaggerated yawning motion.

Spike made a sad smile. "Oh, I guess you don't like Flowers of Spring. Shame, that was an old classic. Alysanne sang it the best, I guess even a boy's voice doesn't cut it-"

Angel again interrupted the dragon's droning, and cupped his small paws around his mouth. He then repeatedly moved one of his paws to and fro from his mouth.

Spike chuckled. "Oh my, another fire breath? I don't think lil ol' me can make such a big fire twice in a row. My throat is dry as a rock from the red waste already."

Fluttershy looked on, and sighed a big breath. It appeared that the pillar of fire had nothing to do with the big red dragon, and was just Spike's handiwork. She was still a bit stunned that such a small dragon could make a blazing inferno like that, but she shrugged it off as her own lack of knowledge about dragons. Perhaps Spike brought the animals out of the library because he did not want to set it on fire? She pondered.

The bunny rabbit, on the other hand, grumbled after hearing Spike's words, and crossed his arms unhappily.

Spike threw his arms up with a defeated smile, and said. "Alright, alright. I can still sing, and I promise you this time I'll choose a song that's much more interesting."

The dragon tapped his chin as the animal friends looked at him expectantly. Angel, in particular, seemed unconvinced that a song would be in any way better than a fiery light show.

Spike's gaze swept across his audience, and when it stopped at the face of the large bear, his mouth curved up into a big smile.

"Ah... That one would do!"

He grinned. "How about I sing a song about a bear wooing a beautiful maiden, hmm?"

Angel Bunny and the other woodland critters all focused their gazes on Harry, Fluttershy's best ursine friend. The bear looked completely flustered, but the bunny simply smirked at his expense, and roused the other animals to cheer Spike on.

Spike laughed, and promptly began in a rowdy tone.

"A bear there was, a bear, a bear!
all black and brown, and covered with hair.
The bear! The bear!

Oh come they said, oh come to the fair!
The fair? Said he, but I'm a bear!
All black and brown, and covered with hair!

And down the road from here to there..."

As the song went more and more ribald, both the bear and the pegasus blushed glowingly in embarrassment. Finally, it was the yellow pegasus who could not bear it anymore, and hurriedly emerged from behind the corner.

"...But he lick-"

"S- Spike!" Fluttershy yelped as she approached him.

Spike stopped dead in the middle of his song and turned. "... Oh, my good Fluttershy. So you've come back safely, that's simply wonderful. I've-"

"H- Harry and I are just friends, like all the other woodland animals!"

Spike widened his eyes briefly, and then chortled. "Aha, the bear and the maiden are also just some unspecified bear and maiden as well."

Fluttershy let out another embarrassed 'eep', and promptly covered her own face with her mane.

"I merely jest, Fluttershy. Please do not take my song or my words seriously."

Fluttershy looked up. Spike's words were steady and strangely calming. With her mind returning to proper function, she let out a somewhat dissatisfied sigh and asked. "Spike, um, thank you very much for keeping my animal friends entertained. B- But why did you bring them away from the library?"

"Oh dear, the library was not really a place to keep so many animals in. For one, I know Twilight would dislike any resulting mess, especially if there is really any damage to her books. Also, a lot of games and activities that are suitable for our animal friends have to be done outdoor. Angel wanted to see my fire breath, and I figured that we might as well have a full-fledged campfire gathering out here. So after cleaning up the library, I followed Angel and his friends here to set things up."

He smiled. "I was about to do it after some ice-breaking activities, but since you're already back, perhaps I should hand the work back to you, our true animal expert."

Fluttershy softly sighed. "Spike, I appreciate your efforts very much, few ponies are so patient with my little animals. But... you should perhaps leave us a message, so that we know you've left with them."

Spike looked astounded, however. "Fluttershy, I'm pretty sure that I have stuck a big and striking note inside the library. It was on-"

The dragon's words were cut short by the abrupt arrival of a cyan pegasus. She dashed through the middle of Fluttershy and Spike, looped at a distance, and did a hard-landing on the muddy field nearby.

"Fluttershy, Spike! So you two really are here!"

"Rainbow, how do you know-" Fluttershy widened her eyes.

The cyan mare groaned aloud. "It was a silly mistake! It turned out that Spike did write a note telling us that he's bringing every critter to your cottage and pin it to the wall, but it was covered by a giant chocolate cake!"

"Y- You mean the one shot out from Pinkie's Party Cannon?"

"Yep. Pinkie felt a bit bad about it, and she's coming over as well. But of course I'm here first, cos I'm, you know-"

Rainbow Dash winked. "... the fastest pegasus in Equestria!"

Spike nodded. "... Much ado about nothing, it seems. Regardless, I must still apologize for indirectly putting a wet towel over your celebration."

He then offered. "How about this? Since we were about to have a campfire gathering anyway, you girls might consider continuing your celebration here."

"Huh?" Rainbow Dash tilted her head.

Spike grinned. "I do have a few tricks up my sleeves. At the very least, I can serenade you with my songs while you all chat and have fun."

"Huh, you really can sing-"

Fluttershy made a rare, emphatic interruption. "He really can, Rainbow. You should hear him sing as well."

Spike scratched his cheek, as Rainbow Dash looked back to her friend in surprise. "Well, if you say so. I guess that's alright by me as well. I will go back to the library and bring the other girls here."

After Rainbow Dash left again, Spike said diffidently. "Fluttershy, I again apologize-"

Fluttershy gently smiled. "No, Spike, I really think that your singing is quite pleasant to listen to. You must have a lot of practice, don't you?"

"Practice... I suppose you can say that."

Spike looked pensive for a while, and then smiled again. "Fluttershy, your voice are so silky and delicate. You should also be an excellent singer material yourself. Would you consider joining me in serenade later?"

The yellow pegasus immediately spluttered. "M- Me? In front of e- everypony? T- Th- That..."

Noticing the pegasus's reluctance, Spike nodded. "Well, if you don't feel comfortable, then-"

Drawing in a breath, Fluttershy said hurriedly. "N- No! I, um, I am fine. There'll just be friends, right? You've helped me tend to my animals, that's only a small thing that I can help you back with."

She then added with a smaller voice. "And y- you will be there nearby."

"Of course. I-"

Spike suddenly turned. Fluttershy looked to his back, and found a few animals, Angel included, that were urging him to continue with his campfire entertainment.

The yellow mare looked on, and said with a small smile. "I'd like to listen to more songs of yours as well, as long as it's n- not-"

Spike chuckled. "Naturally, no more bear and maiden fair. What about a song about travelling across the sea to a distant land?"

The pegasus nodded gingerly, and the dragon sat down on the rock again. Turning to look at the remaining blots of red on the horizons, he lulled.

"Off we sail on a swan ship,
The deck wobbles, the waves rip..."

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