Triple Threat
Most days in Ponyville could get pretty wild, though this as due to mostly outside events...or crusaders. But today was different, as it was being planned for a crazy event. The town had been decorated with banners, balloons and streamers, Ponyville's town hall now having a banner being put up by Flash and Twilight while Starlight placed a banner along the side of a bridge. As this was going on, Spike was pacing back and forth with a long checklist in his claws.
"Is the banner even?" He asked, looking up to see Twilight and Flash tie up a banner. "Are the flowers in place?" He turned to an unicorn mare ripping a bunch of flowers out, "By which I mean completely out of view." She added them to a cart of flowers being pulled by Berry Punch. "I'm pretty sure dragons don't like flowers..." He turned to a crystal bowl in front of the hall, "And what about the Ceremonial Dragon Fire Flame of Friendship?" He ran over and looked inside, "Is it still flaming?" He got his answer when a blast of whitish blue fire exploded in his face, knocking him back.
Flash and Twilight flew down at this as Spike sat himself up and brushed off the ash. "Spike..." Twilight spoke up, "Everything looks great! You're getting yourself worked up for no reason."
"Now where could he have learned that from?" Flash chuckled, Twilight glaring at him as Spike stood up.
"I have lots of reasons." Spike pulled out a piece of paper. "In fact, I wrote them down."
This resulted in a sigh from Starlight, "You've been hanging around Twilight for too long."
"Oh Celestia," Flash gulped. "It's spreading." Starlight giggled while Twilight continued to glare at Flash, Spike now beginning to read of his list.
"Reason number one: I invited Dragon Lord Ember to Ponyville today. Reason two: the Dragon Lord is a dragon."
"She is?!" Flash gasped, "That's embarrassing. I've been working under the assumption she was a gopher."
Twilight and Starlight both laughed as Spike rolled his eyes and said, "Reason three: She's coming here to learn more about friendship."
Twilight nodded at this, "That's right. According to Ember's letters, the dragons are trying to be friends, but competing is in their nature, and it's leading to more and more fights."
"Which brings me to to reason number four," Spike chimed in, "The Dragon Lord wants my advice, and as the new official Equestrian friendship ambassador to the dragons, I can't let her down."
Twilight patted his side, "I know you feel a lot of pressure, but you've got this Spike!"
"Yeah," Flash added, "You're the perfect version of a dragon in my opinion. You're both tough and kind, with a little bit of humor thrown into the mix. If more dragons were like you, the species would be in good hooves...claws...whatever."
Spike showed a small smile, only to slump over, "I...I just want things to be perfect." The ponies nodded back, only to go wide-eyed as they saw a certain fusion of insect and pony walk up and tap Spike on the shoulder. The drake spun around at this and gasped, "Thorax?! You're in Ponyville?!"
Thorax chuckled back, "Of course I am, silly!" He gave him a playful punch on the shoulder. "You invited me, remember? And I'm not one to back out of an invitation. Hey Twilight! Hey Starlight! Hey Flash!"
"Hey," the mares replied, Flash keeping his mouth shut as Thorax walked past them.
"Oh! I can't believe you did all this for me!" Thorax cheered as he stared at the decorations, "Great banner! Love the stage!" He then walked up to the fire-filled bowl. "What's this flame thingy?" His eyes went wide as his face slowly moved towards it. "It's pretty!"
"Whoa!" Flash ran over and pulled the changeling king away as Twilight turned to whisper to Spike.
"You invited Thorax over to Ponyville on the same day as Ember?!"
"Apparently..." Spike shrugged.
"That doesn't seem like a good idea," Starlight replied, "How are you gonna entertain them both?"
"I...have no idea," Spike responded before letting out a whimper, his calm facade vanishing as he started sweating buckets.
And as Flash was sure Thorax was far enough away from the fire, the stag pony creature smiling as he held up his hooves to allow the flames to warm them up. "Careful," he told the king, "I've seen enough moths around flames to know how this usually ends."
"Don't worry, I'm smarter then most moths." He then moved over to his dragon friend. "Spike," The little dragon turned to him, "I'm so glad you invited me! You are one of my closest, nicest, most caring, most understanding friends ever!" He wrapped a leg around Spike and pulled him into a hug, only to glance to the side and drop Spike, "Oh! Is that ice in the shape of a dragon?"
He ran off after it, Flash returning to the others as Starlight finished a conversation they had started without him, "Yeah, I see your point. They might not get each other."
"Or worse," Spike gulped, "What if they end up hating each other?! If the leader of the changelings and the Dragon Lord get into a fight..." His eyes shrunk at his next words, "I could be responsible for starting a war that could ruin Equestria as we know it!"
The ponies looked into Spike's eyes and saw he was beginning to imagine that exact event, leading him to hyperventilate as Twilight put a hoof on his shoulder, "I'm sure that won't happen. Now pull it together." Spike glanced up at her, trying to get his breathing under control before she directed him over to Thorax.
"So..." they heard Spike start, "Heh, Thorax uh...everything good with you?"
Thorax turned to Spike, showing a slight frown, "Well honestly...no. Not really. I have indigestion. Not sure if it's the new diet or stress. Or maybe it's both."
"NO!" They then heard Spike cry, making everypony flinch.
"Yeah, it really could be both." Thorax added, only to start ranting. And as he did this, Spike turned to the ponies and gestured as best he could to the sky, the ponies looking up to see a particular shape in the sky.
"Uh-oh!" Twilight gasped, the alicorn running over to Thorax.
"Sounds like you really need to unwind," Spike added, "How about a...uh...trip to the castle?" Spike zipped up to Thorax and pushed him forward, "Heh. You can't miss that view."
Twilight walked up next, "Yes, the castle! I'll give you a personal tour!"
They headed off, but Spike remained where he was. "Uh..." Thorax glanced back at him, "Aren't you coming?"
"Yeah, I'm just gonna...grab some ice cream for us and catch up. Heh-heh." Thorax nodded and went along with Twilight, Flash running up to him.
"So..." he asked the changeling, "How are things with Hiveena?" He noticed a blush appear on Thorax's face, making both him and Twilight laugh. "Come on, don't be shy. We've all been there. I remember how awkward things felt for me and Twilight the first time we got together."
"Yup," Twilight added, "I'm also curious how she's taking being co-rulers of the changelings."
"She's doing okay," he sighed, "She's trying to be as un-Chrysalis as possible, using methods we saw Cadance and Shining use to rule when we were living there, but..."
"But what?"
"Well..there's this renegade group of changelings who still feed off of love. I've been trying to tell them we shouldn't do that anymore, but they refuse to accept that. That's why I came to ask Spike for help."
Flash and Twilight exchanged glances, showing frowns before Twilight asked, "What does Hiveena say about it?"
"She wants me to find a solution," he replied, "But she won't tell me what I should do."
"Oh." Flash's frown disappeared at this, "Then I know what you need to do."
"Really?" Thorax gasped.
Flash nodded back, "Yeah. She probably knows you'd just do whatever she says. That's why she wants you to figure it out."
Twilight chimed in at this, "Flash is right. You'll never be able to flourish as a leader if you just take orders from somepony else. Hiveena wants to you figure out the best way to fix this your way."
"Really?" The two nodded again, making him hum. "Huh. Guess I gotta figure something out then..."
And as they said that, they reached the castle, Thorax glancing inside, "Wow..." the changeling's eyes went wide. "This place is amazing. I didn't get a good look at it the last few times I was here, but now I can't wait to see what secrets it holds."
"Well don't worry," Flash commented, "We'll give you the grand tour. What do you wanna see first? The training room? The map room?"
"How about the dining room," Twilight added, "Spike's said he was getting ice cream, so we can enjoy it in there." Thorax nodded and Twilight pointed in its direction, Thorax heading down the hallway while Flash whispered to Twilight.
"Is Spike really getting ice cream? I thought he was just using that as a cover."
"Hopefully he'll bring some once he's done with Ember," Twilight replied, "And if not...we've got some ice cream in the kitchen." Flash nodded and the pair followed Thorax, catching up to him as he made his way down the hall.
"It's times like this I wish Heart and Soul weren't in school right now. We could seriously use their help keeping him distracted."
They then got to the dinning room, which had been decorated and had a nice set of foods that were meant for Ember. The three took their seats and talked for a minute or so, Twilight soon deciding to get some refreshments, "So what about you Flash?" Thorax asked as he took an apple off the table and ate it. "How's life been for you?"
"Pretty good," Flash responded while leaning back in his chair, "I mean, how is it any different from other lives. I'm surrounded by a bunch of complex characters and constantly thrown into heavily serialized adventures that always end in mind-blowing twists that make me question the basic tenants of my reality. I mean, everypony has a life like that. Right?"
Thorax blinked at him with a blank stare, only for Twilight to slowly walk in, "Uh...you know what?" she slowly said, "I think this isn't the best place to wait for Spike. Let's go...to the library. I'm sure you'll love to see that." Before either could anything, she flew over, grabbed, and teleported them to the room.
"Uh...okay." Thorax commented as they appeared in the room.
Flash turned to his girlfriend, "What's wrong?"
"I saw Spike, Starlight and Ember out the window. They're heading here, and hopefully Ember won't want to look around the library." She turned to Thorax, who was staring intently at all the books. "Here," she trotted over to him, "Let me show you all my...chairs." Flash and Thorax both raised an eyebrow at this, Twilight telling them all about the different chairs in the library and what books they were best for reading in. "So this is my comfy chair for fictional reads..." She moved around in the chair before going to another chair made entirely of crystal, "This is my studying chair because the hard back keeps me awake."
Flash couldn't tell if Thorax was really interested or just being polite, only to brighten up when the doors opened and a certain dragon ran in, "Spike!" He went over to him. "I'm so glad you're here!" He then quietly whispered to him. "This castle visit is getting weird. Twilight really likes chairs." The three turned to the princess, who was levitating three chairs above her before turning back to Spike, "What happened to the ice cream?"
"What?" He asked before his eyes went wide. "Oh, right! Uh...they ran out. Heh. Hey, I'm really sorry, but I gotta borrow Twilight quickly." Before Thorax could reply, Spike grabbed the alicorn before pulling her to the door.
"Aah!" She yelped, dropping the chairs.
"Be right back!" He called out.
"But we didn't get to talk yet!" Thorax cried as the two left. He then turned to Flash, "Is it just me, or does Spike not seem to wanna be around me?"
"Of course not," Flash replied while shaking his head, "Spike's just...really busy. He's an important little dragon, you know." He then flinched when he saw Thorax frown at that, "But not too busy to care about your problems. He just...really wants to get something done so he's not distracted when you talk to him."
"Well, I don't mind Spike being occupied with something else," Thorax responded, "In fact, I'd love to help him out in exchange for all the help he's given me."
"That's so nice." Flash said, only to hear a whistling sound. He spun around to see Springer outside the door. "You know what..." he zipped over and pulled the jakhowl inside.
"WHOA!" Springer yelped as he was dragged over to Thorax, Flash swinging him over to the changeling.
"You and Springer never really got a chance to get to know each other. You can talk while I go see how Spike's doing." He then leaned over to whispered into Springer's ear. "Don't let him leave this room."
Before Springer could ask why, Flash shot out the door. He flew through the halls until he heard Spike's voice, "We need to switch places!" He followed it and found himself inside the map room. "They might be getting suspicious."
Spike appeared to be quivering under Twilight, the alicorn giving him a smile, "All we have to do is make both Thorax and Ember feel special and keep them apart for a few more hours. We can do this."
Flash nodded and Spike was about to reply...only for the spines on his head began to glow, giving off a very familiar sound. "Gah!" He leapt back, looking up at his spines. "What's happening?!"
"Maybe Ember's summoning you?" Flash replied, remembering the last time Spike glowed like this. "Or...maybe this is some kind of Mystic Dragon thing."
But then, a new glow appeared besides them. The three looked down and saw the light now come from the crystal table. "I...think it's the map," Twilight gasped, only for an image of Spike's head to appear. "It's calling...you?" They stared at the map, now seeing Spike's face appearing over their little town. "Apparently, you also have to solve a friendship problem!" Flash could almost here the dramatic sting, Spike looking absolutely horrified.
"The map is calling me?!"
"Oh..." Twilight whispered, "Amazing! The map is really reaching out! I mean, this proves it can call dragons! Perhaps it can-" She came to a stop, now seeing Spike grimace at her, "Not a good time? I get it."
"You did say you wanted a quest," Flash laughed.
"BUT NOT RIGHT NOW!" Spike screamed, only for the room's door to open.
"Spike," They heard Starlight call out, "Are you here?" They turned to see her trot inside. "Ember's eaten all of Twilight's decorations and-oh!" She then saw that the others were in the room, "Hey Twilight, what are you all-" She came to a stop as she saw what was happening. "Glowing map... " She gulped before turning to the dragon, "Glowing spikes. That's not good."
"I KNOW!" Spike screeched, leaping ten feet into the air before pacing back and forth.
Starlight looked over the map, "At least your friendship problem is in Ponyville? Heh."
"Why would the map would tell us this?" Flash asked, "Its just in Ponyville. Wouldn't we find it?"
Twilight shrugged, "No idea. Whatever this problem is, it must be something so important that the map couldn't ignore it."
"Okay..." Spike took a deep breath, "Okay." He turned to them. "To pull this off, I'm gonna need all of you to help. You all need to keep Ember and Thorax separate while I get ice cream."
The ponies raised an eyebrow at this, Twilight speaking up first, "You mean find the friendship problem."
"Yeeeees!" Spike strained, "Go easy on me! I'm under a lot of pressure!"
With that, he ran out of the room, Flash sighing as he pulled his mane down over his eyes. "What are you doing?" Twilight asked when she saw this.
"Checking for grays. I'm getting the feeling this won't be the most stressed I'm gonna get today."
Twilight and Starlight rolled their eyes...then started checking their manes. Once they were sure they weren't gonna need mane-dye, Flash and Twilight headed towards the dining room. And as they walked inside, they heard the sounds of munching. "I'm stuffed..." they heard Ember say before she belched.
"Ember!" Twilight ran over to give her a hug, "There you are!"
Ember flinched at this, "Oh...right. More pony hugs." As Twilight backpedaled next, Flash noticed the pillars of the room now had large bite marks, seeing they were a miracle that they were still standing.
"How's your trip to Ponyville so far?" Twilight asked, not even noticing the walls.
Ember smiled and nodded. "Well, I'm certainly learning a lot about friendship. I had no idea it was polite to decorate your walls in your friends' favorite foods!"
It was here that Twilight realized what had happened, Flash then attempting to speak up. "Actually, it's not a-" But Twilight used her wing to cover his mouth.
"Where'd Spike and Starlight go?" Ember asked, crossing her arms. "I feel like I'm being avoided."
She let out a huff of smoke from her nostrils, Twilight gulping at the sight. "Nooooo, they're just...making sure everything is perfect for your welcome party later." Flash nodded at this, "In the meantime, how about I show you around town?"
"Sounds good," Ember replied, "I can't exactly learn about friendship if I don't make new friends." She headed out the door, Twilight then sighing at the sight.
"This can't get any more complicated...right?" Before she got her answer, a stray piece of a broken pillar broke off and hit Flash on the head.
"I hope not," he rubbed his head before they flew out after Ember. "But you know, we could ask Ember what she thinks of changelings."
"Come again?" Twilight asked, "Why would we do that? Isn't that what Spike doesn't want?"
"Eh, Spike flew to the worst case scenario just like you like to do." Flash commented, Twilight slightly glaring at him before he added, "I say we ask Ember if she would be interested in meeting Thorax."
Twilight blinked at this, "And what do we do if the pair of them don't hit it off?"
"How is it any different from when we befriended the yaks?" Twilight was about to speak up, "I know they declared war, but that didn't happen."
Twilight sighed again, "I guess one of the core aspects of friendship is courage." Flash smirked at this. "And the start of every friendship begins with that first risky attempt. Alright, let's do this. And if it does come to war...we'll just tell them they can't do it in Equestria."
"And do you honestly expect Thorax declare war?" He asked, Twilight shrugging back. "Exactly. Though if Ember does declare war...I guess we could go get Flicker to help calm her down?"
"Hey!" The pair looked ahead and saw Ember near the doorway, "You two coming or what?"
"Actually," Twilight replied while twiddling her hooves, "There's...somepony else we want to introduce to you."
"Who?" Twilight then teleported away, Ember blinking at the sight before turning to Flash. "What was that?"
"Give her a moment. It's a...complicated situation." A moment later, there was another flash of light and Twilight returned with Thorax, Starlight and Springer. Starlight's eyes went wide the minute she saw Ember, while Thorax just blinked.
"What's going on?" He asked before noticing Ember. "Oh, hello. Are you Spike's...sister?"
"Sister?" Ember yelped, "What?! No!" She shook her head, "I'm not his sister!"
"Oh," Thorax gulped, "Uh...sorry. I just assumed since...there's not a lot of dragons in Equestria."
"Huh," she crossed her arms, "I guess that's fair." She looked Thorax up and down, "So...what are you?" She focused on his antlers, "You're not like any pony I've ever seen."
"Oh," Thorax smirked, "I'm not a pony. I'm actually a changeling."
"Change...what?"
"Might be better if you just see the stuff he can do," Flash spoke up before nodding to Thorax. A moment later, Thorax was consumed by flames that quickly faded to reveal an exact copy of Flash.
"No way," she gasped, "How'd you do that?"
"It's a changeling's special power," Twilight replied, "They can shape-shift and change their appearance."
"The name kinda gives it away," Springer added, "Though they're not the only shapeshifters..."
Thorax then morphed into more ponies, Ember staring at him before he turned into her. "Oh wow. That's cool."
He shifted back to his original form as he replied, "Thanks." He began to rub the back of his head, "Though it doesn't really have a lot of uses anymore. Ever since the changelings stopped trying to feed on love, we haven't had a reason to transform anymore."
Ember tilted her head at this, "Well I don't know what you mean by feed on love, but there's gotta be a hundred things you can do with that power. Can you increase your size?" Thorax replied by transforming into the largest thing he could think of: A yeti, then changed back.
"I can only change my size if the creature I'm mimicking is that size. It's weird that way."
"Well I think its cool." Ember responded, "What I wouldn't give to be able to make myself bigger whenever I wanted to." The ponies and Springer all chuckled at this, only for Ember to say, "Well this has been fun, but I really need to find Spike."
This caused Thorax to raise an eyebrow, "You're looking for Spike too?" Now Ember raised an eyebrow, "I've been waiting almost all day to talk to him, but he keeps running off somewhere."
"Huh?" Ember crossed her arms, "He's been doing the same thing with me." The pair blinked at each other before turning to the others. The ponies and Springer began to sweat, mostly at Ember's hard glare that felt like it could burn through their heads faster than her fire breath. Thorax was just frowning, this being the straw that broke the camel's back.
"Spike's been trying to keep you two apart!" Flash yelped, making the pair jump while the others glared at him. "Sorry. They broke me."
"What do you mean he's been trying to keep us apart?" Thorax asked, Ember nodding at the question.
"Alright," Twilight sighed, "Spike kind of...accidently invited you both to Ponyville on the same day. And he was worried that you two might not get along."
"Really?!" Ember replied, "So that's why he's been avoiding me all day?!"
"Uh...kinda. That's one part of it." Flash responded, "He was terrified that the two of you could argue and start a war. Its a thing that happens in Ponyville. Side note, please don't start a war."
"But then why did you all bring us together?" Thorax asked next.
"Well...we realized trying to keep you two apart was ridiculous," Twilight sighed, "And asking for trouble."
Flash nodded at this, "Knowing our luck, one of you would end up snapping at Spike the moment the other one showed up. Then the other one would mistake that for the first attacking Spike and attack back, which probably would have ended in a war."
"Huh," Ember huffed, "Well, that wouldn't have happened if he just told me about the mix up."
"Same here," Thorax added, "So...where is Spike? If he's been rushing between the two of us, shouldn't he be with us right now?"
"Yeah..." Twilight rubbed the back of her leg with another, "About that."
One explanation later...
"And why didn't Spike tell us all this?!" Ember shouted before growling, "You know, I'm getting a little tired of him not telling me things!"
"Same here," Thorax nodded.
"Come on," Ember turned to the exit. "I don't know about you, but I'm gonna give Spike a piece of my mind." Thorax was in agreement and flew off with her, the pair flying out the front doors. Springer and the ponies ran outside at this, now watching them disappear into the sky.
"Well, look on the bright side," Flash commented, "They seem to be getting on really well."
"Yeah...a little too well." Twilight gulped, "I guess mutual anger towards a common friend can be a great bonding experience." She turned to the others, "We should follow them before they kill Spike."
"If they do kill him, can I get popcorn to watch?" Flash asked, only to get a bonk on the head in response.
Spike was now making his way through the streets of Ponyville, Lyra Heartstrings and Bon Bon trotting on either side of him. "And that's why you should never let cupcake flavors get in the way of your friendship," he finished as they arrived at a small café.
"Huh," Lyra nodded, "I guess I never thought of it that way." She and Bon Bon smiled at one another, the argument that had attracted Spike to them now over with. "Thanks, Spike!" Bon Bon nodded and the pair walked off, the dragon then glancing up at his spikes...but they weren't glowing.
"Oh, come on!" He growled, "Glow!" He had been trying for a while now to find and fix the friendship problem, but everything he did resulted in the same thing: Happy ponies and a very annoyed dragon. "What more do I need to do to get these things to glow?!" He glanced around at this, only to find nothing. "Maybe I need to announce what I gotta do?" He imagined himself standing atop town hall with a microphone, announcing to the ponies of the town that he was looking for friendship problems. "Would that work? Seems kinda dumb..."
It was here he noticed Heart and Soul walking side by side home from school. They appeared to be discussing something and Spike's eyes went wide, remembering that Starlight's friendship problem had been between siblings. "Maybe mine is too!" He gasped, "Heart, Soul!"
The pair turned to him. "Hey Spike!" Heart waved with his wing.
"What's up?" Soul added as Spike skidded to a stop in front of them.
"Are you two arguing?! Please tell me you're arguing! Maybe had a disagreement at school that's got you annoyed at one another." The siblings blinked at him, both raising eyebrows before he fell to his knees, Please, you've gotta be the problem I need to fix! I'm begging you!"
"What are you talking about?" Soul asked next, Spike sighing before giving a small explanation.
"The map picked you?!" Heart yelped, "Oh, come on! Why am I the only one that can't get picked?!"
"Hey, my map mission wasn't fun." Soul chimed in, Heart glaring back at her.
"I still wanna do one!"
"Hey," Spike barked, making them both look back at him, "I'd much rather you get picked for this job! I already got more than I can handle on my plate right now!"
"Why?" The siblings asked, Spike then opening his mouth to reply.
"SPIKE!" He froze at the new voice, the drake slowly turning to see Ember and Thorax, both glaring at him, "We wanna have a talk with you," Ember snarled.
"Ember/Thorax!" Heart and Soul exclaimed before running over to them.
"Sup twerps," Ember chuckled while Thorax patted Soul on the head.
"What are you doing here?" Soul asked, "I mean...I know Ember was supposed to be here today-"
"Yeah," Ember interrupted as she glared at Spike, "About that..." Spike took a deep gulp, his ear spikes flattening like a dog's. "Who do you think you are, trying to keep me away from meeting this guy?!" She pointed at Thorax, who had to lean back to avoid getting his eye poked out.
"Well..." Spike began to twiddle his claws, "You see..." It was at that moment that Twilight and the others arrived on the scene, Spike turning to them and giving them all a look that screamed 'what happened?!'
"Hey Spike," Flash waved. "So," he rubbed his hooves, "Don't get mad, but we...kind of decided to introduce the pair of them."
"WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT?!" Spike screamed, "What are we gonna do when they start fighting?!"
"Fighting?" Thorax asked back.
"Why would we start fighting?" Ember added.
"Because I accidentally invited you both over to Ponyville on the same day?"
"So what?" They asked as they both glared at Spike, making him backpedal.
"So I...was trying to keep you apart because I didn't think you'd get along." The two continued to glare at him, then turned to glance at one another.
"Oh," Ember broke the silence. "I get it. You thought he wouldn't like me just because I'm a dragon and I'm bad at friendship?"
"No, no," Spike shook his head. "Of course not! But-" He suddenly came to a stop, "Wait. Isn't that why you're here?"
"I can say I'm bad at friendship," Ember sighed before pointing at him. "You can't say it about me!" She crossed her arms. "You know what? I don't wanna talk about it." With that, she spread her wings and took off.
"Wait," he called out, "Please!" But Ember didn't listen, now flying away. Spike let out a sigh before turning to Thorax. "I'm sorry."
"No, no, it's cool." Thorax grumbled with a glare, "You just thought I would be too soft and that Ember would never respect me. Just like my own changelings!" With that, he also flew off.
"No," Spike cried, "That's not it! Thorax, wait!" But Thorax did the same as Ember, making Spike drop to his knees, "Oh...What have I done?"
His friends all shared glances before Flash commented, "Well, the plan wasn't a total disaster. Still wish I had my popcorn."
Twilight smacked him with her tail before adding, "I suppose. All we did was get Spike in trouble with two close friends and ruin the chance to make both the dragons and changelings become friends."
"Why..." Spike growled at them, "Why did you introduce them?!"
Flash turned to the others, the group mentally agreeing with what Flash was about to say. "Still better then what probably would have happened if we kept trying to keep them apart."
They all nodded, Spike letting out a sigh before falling onto his butt. "Sorry Spike, but this is for the best." Twilight added, "Lying to your friends is never a good idea, no matter how well intentioned it was."
"But now I can't help them," Spike replied, "Ember's problem is getting the dragons to cooperate and Thorax's...what was his problem again? Didn't he say something about the changelings not respecting him?" They all nodded and went on to explain Thorax's issue, Spike sighing again, "Oh...why isn't Hiveena helping him?"
"I bet she wants to, but she also knows that if Thorax is ever gonna step up as a leader, he needs to realize that sometimes a leader needs to be harsh with their subjects."
"Huh," Springer scratched his head, "It's kinda funny." The others turned to him as he continued, "Thorax is having problems being forceful, something Ember is great at while Ember is having trouble getting the dragons to open up, which is something Thorax is good out. They have the exact opposite problem that the other one is dealing with."
Starlight blinked at him at this, "You have a point there."
"Not that it matters," Spike chimed in as he picked himself up and began to walk off.
"Where're you going?" Twilight asked, but the dragon just kept moving.
"I'm gonna go clean up the town square. Might as well since there's no point in having all that stuff up." He disappeared around the corner, Twilight and Starlight following after him.
"Poor Spike." Flash commented before turning to Springer, Heart and Soul having also gone with the others, "Any idea where they went? Maybe we can convince them to forgive Spike." Springer closed his eyes and slapped his paws together, sending a burst of aura out.
"Got 'em. They're...both in the park."
"Well that speeds things up," Flash chuckled before they two ran off for the park. There they spotted Grand, trotting out with a confused look on his face.
"Oh," he walked over to the pair, "You two wanna tell me why I just spotted Ember flying overhead a few minutes ago? I also noticed Thorax going the same way. I didn't know we were expecting him as well. I would have suggested extra security if I had known we were housing two nation's leaders."
"Sorry Grand," Flash replied, "There's been a bit of a...mix up."
"We're trying to fix it now," Springer added, "You said you saw them going in the same direction?" Grand nodded.
"I can't be sure where Ember is, but I think Thorax was heading toward the lake."
"Got it. We'll go talk to them. Meanwhile, you might wanna help Twilight and the others clean up the town square." Grand nodded again before the duo headed into the park, Springer sending out another wave of aura to locate Thorax. They ran over a hill that blocked the lake from view, soon spotting the changeling leader standing at the shore. He threw a rock into the water, a loud splashing sound filling the air. They were about to go talk to him, only to hear the sound of wings beating.
They looked up and saw Ember, who flew down next to Thorax. "Why are you still here?" She landed as Thorax let out a sigh, the dragon sitting like a dog would.
"Because I'm having trouble leading my pack, so I don't really wanna go home."
This statement made Ember raise an eyebrow, Flash and Springer quickly hiding behind a bush in response. "Wait..." she asked, "You're in charge?" She let out a series of chuckles. "Oh wow, you need to be more assertive."
Thorax let out a moan, "Well, that's my problem: I don't know how! I tried asking them to please follow my directions, I even offered a prize, and then-" He didn't get to finish as Ember placed a claw to his mouth.
"Shhh!" She got up close to his face and gave her the scariest look she could, "Stop talking." They watched as Thorax suddenly froze in place, doing nothing but blinking. Ember then smirked, "That's how you do it."
"Whoa!" Thorax rubbed his shoulders, "That just gave me chills."
"HA! If you think that, then I know you have it in you," Ember replied, "I mean, you can turn into a yeti. How could you not have any confidence?"
"It's...tricky. I mean, I'm not the strongest changeling around. Hiveena has me beat in that category, and a lot of the rebel changelings are just as strong."
"But being strong doesn't make a great leader," Ember responded, "I should know. We dragons have been using strength to determine leadership for generations. It wasn't until I met Spike that I realized there are other ways to be a good leader. You don't have to be strong to be a good leader, but you do need to be assertive. When you make a decision, no matter how much someone else disagrees with you, you stick with it until you're given a reason to change it." The three watched Thorax as heard this, only to see him just show an unsure frown as Ember continued, "Come on. There must have been some point when you showed how tough you are. I mean, you became the leader for a reason."
"Well...I guess I can be tough when I'm defending my friends. I was able to evolve because if I didn't find a way to stop Chrysalis, she would have hurt everypony I care about. But when I'm just enforcing my rules, I-I-I feel unsure of myself."
Ember just showed a small smile at this, "I don't know much about changelings, but if you were able to take down the previous leader, then you must have the leadership qualities needed. That's the way of nature. The old makes way for the new." She punched her fist into her claw. "Make a decision and let it be known that it's final. And if that doesn't work, just turn into a bear."
"Oh...huh. That's good advice."
"I know it is!" Ember laughed. "That's why I'm a leader!"
"So what's your deal?" The changeling stood up. "Why do you think you're so bad at friendship?"
Ember's smile vanished, the dragon looking down and rubbing her arms. "I...don't want to talk about it."
"Oh, you have to!" Thorax replied, "How else are you gonna solve your problems?"
Ember glanced back at him before turning to a nearby boulder, which she flew over to and lifted up. "Through feats of strength and fire duels, of course!" With a mighty grunt and roar, she threw the boulder into the air. She then unleashed a powerful blast of pink fire, which instantly smashed into the boulder. The boys all watched as the rock exploded, raining pebbles down upon the lake shore.
"Uh..." Thorax gulped, "How does that help?" Ember flew down and hit another rock, cracking the top of it.
"Crushing another dragon in competitions establishes my dominance and makes me feel great." She stood tall, her arms out stretched with a big grin on her lips.
"Right..." Thorax moved up to her, "But uh, how do you think they feel?"
"Humiliated! Ashamed!" She declared, only to fly off the rock and glide over to Thorax. "They'd probably wanna run away and bury themselves under a rock, and...never come out. They're probably sad. Kinda low. Definitely not happy."
Thorax nodded, placing a hoof on her shoulder. "That's because that kind of competition can divide you. And it doesn't get to the heart of the issue. Talking about your feelings does." As he finished, Ember started snorting until she let out a sneeze along with a large burst of fire. The fire hit Thorax in the face, but the changeling didn't even flinch at this.
"Ugh!" Ember wiped her nose, "I think I'm allergic to feelings."
"You know, you don't have to be sappy," Thorax chuckled, only for Ember to notice one of his horn was smoking, the dragon blowing it out. "Or huggy-feely about it! But you should let your friends know how you feel."
"I guess...." Ember glanced away at this, "It's just, I want what Equestria has. I used to think ponies were super weak, but then I saw what they could do. We never would have beaten Malafear if they hadn't helped us. They're so much smaller, but they were able to out think and outsmart him."
"Yeah, I get that. I'd never known what true friendship was until I came to Equestria. Flash could have killed me during our invasion, but he chose to let me go and even offered to share some of his love with me. He even convinced Shining and Cadance to let me and Hiveena stay in the Crystal Empire. Then they helped us overthrow Chrysalis, and now the changelings have a whole new lease on life."
Ember sighed at this, "Yeah, they are kind of cool in their own...weird pony way." She then smirked, "But that doesn't mean I wanna be exactly like the ponies. We dragons still have our pride."
"You're right," Thorax nodded. "There are things about ponies I don't like either. But I definitely wanna take some of the good stuff they have and make the changelings grow into their own kind of special thing." He stomped his hooves, "And I'm gonna start by trying to be more assertive."
Ember nodded back, "And I guess I'm gonna try to be more open about things." She then put a claw to her chin, "And I know where we can start." With that, she took off with a loud whoosh sound while Thorax just stared at her.
"Where?" He asked before his eyes went wide. "Ohhhh. Spike. Hah. I got there."
He flew off after her, leaving Flash and Springer standing behind the bushes. "Huh," Flash commented, "I guess we didn't need to come find them after all. Its like they kinda...convinced themselves."
"Yeah," Springer nodded. "But I gotta say, I had no idea they respected ponies so much."
"Come on!" Flash spread his wings. "I wanna see how their talk with Spike goes."
He flew off and Springer followed at max speed. They eventually arrived back at the town square, which had been mostly cleaned up at this point just as Ember and Thorax arrived. The pair were glaring down at the dragon, who had just taken a big gulp.
"Guess what Spike?!" Ember hissed first.
"I know," Spike breathed into his claws and clapped them together. This caused the flames to form a dome of fire around him, which then vanished. "I'm so sorry."
"Let me talk about this!" Ember almost screamed, then reached down with her claw, but when her finger got to close, it hit an invisible barrier. "Put this down. I'm not gonna eat you...probably." Spike gulped and clapped his hands again, the barrier vanishing. "I...feel..." She let out a strained groan, her face turning red from the effort. "Mad."
She let out a sigh of relief while Thorax smiled and slowly clapped his hooves, "Okaaaay…that was a good first attempt. Now maybe try to be more...specific?"
Ember began to stretch out her body, making it crack while taking a deep breath and waving her hands in front of her face. "I'm..." She sighed, "upset!"
"You have every right to be," Spike replied before Ember got up close.
"I know I do!" She crossed her arms. "And I know I need to tell you how I feel because my friend Thorax said it would make me feel better!" She leapt over him, flying to the ground with arms stretching. "And it does!"
"Yeah!" Thorax nodded, turning to glare at Spike. "And I have no problem telling you what you did was wrong because my friend Ember is helping me be more assertive!" On that last word, he thrust his head forward and Spike reeled back so quickly he fell onto his butt with a thud.
"Whoa," Spike whispered as Thorax turned to Ember.
"Nice," she gave him a thumbs up before they high hoofed/clawed and laughed.
"But...you two should be mad at me," Spike told them. "I was so worried about how it could go wrong, I didn't even think about how it could go right." He sighed before getting down on his stomach and putting his claws together, "Can you forgive me?"
Ember and Thorax glanced at each other before Ember looked back at the drake, "I really do feel better...so yeah, I'm good."
"Hah," Thorax cheered. "Me, too." And before anypony could stop him, he grabbed Spike and Ember and pulled them into a tight hug.
"Again?" Ember groaned while Spike laughed. But then, his laughter stopped when his spikes started glowing like they had earlier that day.
"No way!" He gasped, "It's finally happening!" He pumped his arms, "I solved the friendship problem!"
"Actually," he turned to Starlight, "You created the friendship problem by not trusting your friends."
Flash and Springer shared a glance at this, Flash commenting, "Huh. Didn't think the map would ever make the one that caused the problem to be the one that needed to fix it. Guess outside perspective usually helps."
"And that means the map does even more than I thought it did." Twilight groaned before facehoofing, "I just wish that thing was easier to research..."
"Yeah," Spike shrugged, "But think about it Twilight! I solved the problem by learning my lesson!" He jumped out of Thorax's hold. "I should have told my two friends about each other immediately instead of assuming they wouldn't get along."
"Good job, Spike." The dragon smiled and ran over to hug her while Ember raised an eyebrow.
"Is this another part of pony friendship? Telling each other what you learned all the time?" This got all but Thorax and Ember laughing, Grand even chuckling as he unfastened the banner up on the town hall balcony.
"Yeah," Starlight nodded, "Pretty much."
"Yup," Spike added.
"They used to do letters," Springer chimed in, "But that was replaced by a journal and now, they seemed to have gained the ability to remember a lesson without writing it down. It only took them like...three years to figure it out."
The others laughed at this before glancing around. "I'm guessing we should start un-cleaning all this stuff up," Flash chuckled, the others nodding. And with a few quick spells by Twilight, the place was back to how it was just in time. Ponies began to show up and gather around the town square, both Thorax and Ember looking a little nervous seeing them all there.
When the last pony arrived, Spike stepped up to the loudspeaker. "So, as a show of unity, I present the Dragon Fire Flame of Friendship to both Dragon Lord Ember and Thorax, leader of the changeling pack! May the flame of friendship burn for eternity!"
The ponies all cheered in joy as Pinkie, Fluttershy, and Rainbow began letting confetti loose. And as it rained down upon the group, one hit Ember's nose and began to tickle it. Everypony quickly began to worry as she looked ready to sneeze, soon firing a fireball right at a nearby ice sculpture. Luckily, Heart was able to leap in front of it and absorb the flames before they hit anything.
"Ouf!" He moaned, hitting the ground as smoke began to trail off his body. "I'm okay."
Ember let out a sniff, "You should have more things made of rocks." Everypony remained silent at this statement, then all burst out laughing before the party really got started.
"Here," Flash gave Ember a plastic cup of pink liquid. "Here's a drink you might enjoy. It shares a name with something I assume you enjoy doing."
"Huh," she looked down at it, "What's it called?"
"Punch." Ember took a sip and her eyes went wide, the dragon drinking it down. "I take it you like it?" Ember nodded and finished the whole cup, Flash quickly refilling it.
"I've gotta find a way to get this back in the dragons lands."
"Well, we can find a way to do that," Twilight chuckled as she trotted up with plates of food in her magic. "Now that Equestria, the dragon lands, and the changelings territory are all friends, we might be able to set up a trade system between our nations."
"Trade?" Ember asked, "What's that?"
Thorax smiled at this, remembering what he had learned during his time in the Crystal Empire. "It's where one of our kingdoms shares a portion of a resource they have, and are given a resource another kingdom has in return. That way, both sides get access to something they can't usually get."
"Huh. That sounds good. But what would we trade?"
"I don't know," Twilight replied, "Honestly, I'm not exactly experienced with these kinds of matters. That's something Celestia and Luna would be better at."
Grand, having heard this while walking by, moved over to them, "You should start by doing an official treaty signing, which will make the three territories official allies. There's a lot of world out there, and it's not always friendly. Having friends to help when things get problematic is never a bad idea."
"Yeah," Flash nodded. "I mean, if anypony ever attacks you, then you'll know you can call on us to help."
"And if there's ever an issue between two of the kingdoms, the third can act as a mediator for it." Twilight added, "That's why we should create a trade route between our lands that'll improve the quality of life of all our citizens. It's a win-win all around."
Both Ember and Thorax shared a glance before nodding back. Little did they all know how important this decision would be in the coming weeks, along with the years that would follow. Soon, something important would be born that would help reshape not just Equestria, but many kingdoms that the ponies had and hadn't heard of before. All that was coming...soon.
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Glad that they immediately have Ember and Thorax talk with each other rather than later on… Spike was just way too paranoid.
I was a bit bummed that you didn't do that scene where Ember pointing out the similarities between Twilight and Starlight since fans tend to called Starlight "Twilight 2.0" due of their purple mane, both of them are unicorns, have a glimmering/sparkling cutie marks, one different color hair streak and their name rhymed with Light like Twilight and Starlight and this scene was to poke fun at it…
Again, one small scene doesn't ruin the chapter
Here's highlights
Woah! Didn’t expect that!
How ironic!
Exactly! Spike was way too paranoid!
Man! Flash has no sympathy for the drake!
Because you were being too paranoid, Spike… don't you remember when Twilight let her paranoid get the best out of her by almost putting Ponyville in danger with her Smartypants doll?
Again, paranoid.
It seems he making his progress on learning his Mystic Dragon magic.
Oh! We getting original chapter on next week! Sweet! I bet next one will have to do with Thorax and Ember!
I wonder if the next chapter will introduces a new OC or something different due to the last line seems to implies very big change coming up.
Twilight: What? Of course not, i am his sister.
Thorax: What?
Ember: What?
Flash: What?
Twilight: What????(confused)
Sorry i couldnt resist.
Not sure how to feel, by itself this chapter, like in the show, it comes off as filler, but given that it's by authorital decree critical for an up coming chapter... more so then To Change a Changeling.... I want to feel like it was worth while... I am just torn.
I agree with 11043960, the confusion on Ember's part between Twilight and Starlight would have been nice to read. Also , 11043972, exchange would have also been nice.
All in all not bad, but to me it comes up wanting. Well I will wait until the follow up chapter for my final answer.
Also Heart, my colt, you won't want a Friendship Mission once you get it. Solving others problems ain't all its cracked up to be.
11044083 Just know, the chapter that follows this up won't be for another two weeks. When I wrote that ending, I forgot there was another chapter between them.
I love this chapter. I hope the next will be about the Thorax brother. I,m want to read it.
Hmm nice to have a version of this Spike episode, at least the damage was kept minimal (mostly
) Plus that bit at the end there, that really got my attention! 
Highlights for this one include :
Sorry Twilight, this is 100% your fault!
Couldn't have said it better myself!
Welp you know what they say *be careful what you wish for, you just might get it!*
With what the lot of you have gone though up to this point, it wouldn't surprise me!
More like a cool tough aunt, at least to me!
We'll see if you change your tune when that happens Heart!
Oohh I see Spike's keeping up with magic training!
Better late than never I guess!
Ohhh color me intrigued!!!
Sweet chapter Banshee, thanks for sharing!
Oh man, this was a great episode and I am glad you adapted it here. Interesting changes, with Flash and the others deciding to just cut out running around and introduce Ember and Thorax properly. That went better than expected. Flash was also really funny here, comparing Spike to Twilight, checking for gray hair due to stress, and even saying he wished he had popcorn for when Spike is confronted by his angry friends, as if he wanted to see him get beat-up by them.
I admit, I was a little surprised Hiveena didn't join Thorax, but it was nice to see that it is her way of wanting Thorax to do his share as leader with her, instead of just agreeing with whatever she wants to do. I'm guessing the upcoming chapter this sets up is going to be "To Change A Changeling". That's another one I'm personally excited for.
That was a reference to Star Trek: Lower Decks! Love that show, especially Boimler.
That whole exchange was pretty funny. I see Smolder more as a sister-figure to Spike than Ember personally, but I guess that's because I see Ember more as his girlfriend.
I agree, the two of them talking about how much they respect ponies despite their flaws and want to be more like them was touching.
Nice save Heart!
That's one way to introduce someone to a drink.
11044085
I said I'd wait until the follow up for this before giving my final stance on the chapter and I intend to hold myself to that.
11044149
Honestly I kinda see Ember more as a sister-figure to Spike rather than as his girlfriend due to the major age difference they have. And I see Smolder as both a sister-figure and a girlfriend to Spike due to them being a bit closer in age.
11044401
Hey, to each their own. We never actually learn Ember's age and I'm pretty sure the show implies she is a teenager like Garble, and I'm pretty sure Spike counts as one himself by Season 8 after going through the equivalent of dragon puberty. Though I admit Smolder is probably closer to Spike's age, and agree she could go either way in either being a sister-figure or potential girlfriend for him, I personally feel he has a deeper bond with Ember than with her. But like I said, different opinions, to each their own.
11044437
Yeah to each their own, and to be honest I think I also see Gabby as a potential love interest for Spike too, or better yet a love triangle between Spike, Smolder, and Gabby.
I don't mean to be critical, but you've been working in all these fourth wall breaks more frequently than usual. I don't know why, but that worries me.
Okay, other than the additions at the end, it's not all that different from the canon episode, but I can see why you needed to adapt it.
11044401
I actually see both Ember and Smolder being mentor/sister figures for Spike and Gabby as the one to be his girlfriend