Chapter Two
If somepony were to ask him to give one positive thing he could say about being on the lam with Rarity, Spike thought, it was that Rarity knew how to travel in style. At that very moment Spike found himself sitting comfortably before a sturdy wooden table, alternately sipping from a mug of an especially well brewed coffee and munching on a few gemstones resting upon a saucer. Not bad for a dragon on the run. The only thing that reminded him that he was currently deep inside the Whitetail Woods and not one of the wealthy country estates outside of Canterlot was the constant chattering of woodland creatures in the background.
So far there was no sign that anything had gone wrong; there were no coughed up letters from Twilight, no sightings of any royal guards swarming the woods… That absence alone made some small paranoid part of him very, very nervous, as if something bad was hiding just around the corner. The dragon had built up an incredible amount of pent up energy, and finally after his third round of pacing around the tent-like mansion—or rather the mansion-like tent—he decided to do something slightly more productive, i.e. go over the map for the umpteenth time.
Said map was located on a table right beside a sleeping Rarity. Tiptoeing across the room, it was odd for Spike to see her sleeping there while he was awake. Usually it was she who nudged him to rise at a stupidly early hour to open the library for the day. Now it was long past opening hours, and yet she was the one still in dreamland.
Spike had never put much thought at the differences between his biology and the average pony’s, but now he suspected that he was beginning to understand. They had indeed covered a lot of ground in two days of continuous plodding from sunup to sundown. In fact in a few hours’ time, the two would clear the Whitetail Woods altogether and come across that narrow strip of mountains which formed the Unicorn Range. Even at the end of the first day, Rarity was practically dead on her feet. The second day he was forced to carry her for the last hour, and so exhausted was she that she conked out of consciousness right after dinner.
In a startling contrast, however, Spike couldn’t feel more refreshed. If he were to be honest with himself, the dragon knew he didn’t need to pitch camp at sundown at all. He could keep walking for days and perhaps with a few small strategic rests, weeks even—just like he did that time when he trekked all the way to the Badlands to find himself years ago. It left Spike to wander at the true durability of a dragon.
It also left him feeling guilty.
“You let me oversleep you know,” mumbled a muffled voice.
“Yeah, well, you looked like you needed it.” The dragon had learned long ago not to mess with a mare’s beauty sleep, particularly this mare's.
Rarity tried unsuccessfully to stifle a yawn. “Well… perhaps I did need that… However aren’t we supposed to put as much distance as possible between us and Ponyville before our absence is discovered? We really should get going, darling.”
After carrying a very tired, sore, and cranky Rarity for miles yesterday, Spike was less than convinced at her sudden enthusiasm. “Are you sure you’re alright since last night?”
A wince broke across Rarity’s face so fast that Spike barely managed to register it before she stretched her lips into a forced grin. “Of course, darling. You know that a little soreness never-” At that very moment, Spike poked one of her hooves with a finger.
“Ow!” Rarity screeched, snatching her front hoof away from the offending claw. “Well that was certainly uncalled for!”
“Rarity…”
Rarity sighed.
“You were seriously going to try to walk like that?”
The white mare only sat there on the edge of their shared four poster, silently fuming.
“Rarity…”
“Two days, Spikey! Two days! The ancient ponies of yesteryear were forced to walk miles in a frozen wasteland each day just to search for food, and here am I, lying here practically lame after a mere two days. I wonder what we shall have to do to fix this? Would I need a splint or a pair of bar shoes or even-” She gasped. “A wheelchair? How horrid! And we’ll never find an acceptable one during exile-”
“Hey look, hold on. You’re not going to need a wheelchair.” Spike swore that if he were able to receive a cutie mark, his mark would be something concerning dealing with irrational unicorns. Twilight was bad enough. “It’s partially my fault anyway,” he added suddenly realizing something. They had jumped into this whole thing like two naïve foals with little planning. There was no thought of their pacing, only the notion of getting to their destination as quickly as possible. And Spike, the dragon who somehow had five times the stamina of a pony, had set the pace. “I pushed you too hard.”
Rarity shook her head while gently rubbing her front hoof. “It’s not your fault, Spikey. I just…” She grimaced as her other front hoof put pressure on her tender one. “…stupidly overexerted myself. I wanted to get out of this forest as quickly as I could. I can’t stand forests—the tress, the dirt, the…nature, it’s not natural.”
“Well you can’t say you would know we’re in the middle of nature by looking at this place,” Spike grinned, gazing at the high wooden ceilings and fine furnishings of their obviously very magical tent.
A smile broke across Rarity’s face as well. “I knew that this would be an excellent purchase. Rather expensive, but worth every bit.”
“So, Haysom salt?” Spike suggested after a short pause.
“Haysom salt? Isn’t that for geriatric ponies?” Rarity raised an eyebrow.
“Not really. It wouldn’t hurt though. I mean, it helped Twi during the Pinkie Pie incident.” In spite of Rarity’s incredulous stare, Spike continued on. “Stay right here, Rarity. I’ll be back.”
“Oh, do believe me. I’m not going anywhere,” Rarity grumbled, holding up her hoof.
Two hours later, the unbearable pulsing in Rarity’s front hoof had long since quieted, and she lay in bed utterly bored. Lazily she twirled her hoof around in its cooling medicated water. Rarity had never dealt well with pain, and the knowledge of what was to eventually come made her queasy.
Sighing, Rarity sat up to glare more heatedly at her injured limb. If somepony from before had told her that she’d presently be in the middle of the Whitetail Woods and that the princesses whom she both loved and respected would soon be after her in two weeks’ time, Rarity would have immediately directed that pony to the Ponyville Mental Institution just on the edge of town. If only Twilight hadn’t told…
‘No…’ Rarity thought. ‘Twilight must’ve been so excited. Everypony was excited. The poor dear couldn’t have predicted what was to happen next…”
Nopony could have predicted what was to happen next…
Just then a delicious smell drifted past Rarity’s delicate nose and knocked the mare back into reality.
“Is that-?”
“Apple Crumb Cake?” Spike laughed. “Yeah, it is.” He handled the platter quite masterfully as he plopped down on their shared four poster.
“Well, must I ask what is the occasion for cake?” Rarity tried to sound nonchalant, but she unconsciously sat up a little straighter than before. How long since she had had a bite of something sweet? Two weeks?
“Oof, fwi dunno,” Spike replied with a mouth full of cake. Then he swallowed. “Just felt like having cake, I guess. I would’ve dumped those extra garnets in there, but then I remembered you can’t eat gems.”
“You didn’t have to worry on my account, darling. I’m doing my best to save as much of my figure as I can.” She shut her mouth to keep her teeth from grinding together as she watched him pick up another slice.
“You’re sure?” Spike asked. The slice dangled precariously between two fingers. A pair of royal blue eyes watched a piece of crumb fall back onto the platter.
Rarity sat there silently staring.
“You’re sure?”
“Oh, alright…” Rarity attempted to sound resigned, but her body’s eagerness to get one of her hooves on the tasty treat betrayed her. “But just this one. I’ve always been warned about the danger of too many sweets.”
“Ha! Tell that to Pinkie P-” Spike was interrupted by the cake platter traveling so fast that it nearly smacked him in the face. He looked on in disbelief. “I-I thought you only said that you wanted one.”
“Why yes, I did say that darling.” Here Rarity paused to swallow her slice. “But then I had this sudden thought. What if I wanted another slice? Of course I said that I wanted only one, but who can predict what the future holds? It would be better for the whole platter to be beside me if that happens, don’t you agree? You wouldn’t want me to strain myself with my hoof injury.”
The first thing that popped into Spike’s brain was how could a hoof injury directly affect a unicorn’s telekinesis. The second was how attractive Rarity looked with her hair down and how long had it been since...? A week? Naturally, all ideas from the second eliminated the first, and Spike had no problems crawling up beside her to share the cake, for now.
Thirty minutes of cake stuffing later, both Spike and Rarity lay side by side in varying states of ultra-fullness.
Spike opened his mouth to speak. “That was-”
“Terrible. Quite terrible. Ladies do not gorge themselves on cake. It was so terrible and yet…” Rarity smiled. Her body visibly relaxed, “…so fabulous…”
“I have the worst cast of the itis right now…” Spike yawned. Rarity turned her head to look at the sleepy dragon.
“Spike?”
“Hmm?” Spike blinked.
“You have something right there…” Rarity had sat back up now.
“Wait, what?”
“Don’t move. You have something right there on the corner of your mouth.” The white unicorn quickly reached over and swiped the stain away.
And then she licked her hoof. “Hmm… Apple.”
Spike chortled. “What was that?”
“Well, what kind of marefriend would I be if I were to let you walk around with apple crumb all over you? Not a very good one, I believe.”
“Hmm…” the dragon lay there thinking for a long moment. “Rares?”
“Yes, Spikey-Wikey?” Her tone was dark from being addressed once again as ‘Rares.’
“Hold on; I think there’s something on your face.”
Rarity’s eyes widened in shock. “Oh my, is it near my mouth? Is it on my nose? Goodness, this will not be good for my pores. I’ll have to exfoliate twice tonight-”
“Don’t panic,” Spike breathed as he scooted up closer. “I got it.”
“I hope you do, otherwise I can see it now. The first pony to see me when I finally step back into civilization would comment on what a huge zit I have-” She was silenced by a pair of purple lips upon hers. At first, Rarity stiffened in surprise but then relaxed as her mind processed the close proximity of a very warm body nearby. Her cheeks were flushed pink and her lips burning hot when he withdrew, finally.
“Marshmallow…” He licked his lips, and Rarity laughed, all thoughts about pimples and sore hooves forgotten.
“All of that effort for such a little mark upon my face,” teased Rarity. “Is the mark even gone yet?”
A claw played with a lock of silky purple hair while Spike leaned closer to examine the besmirched area. “Not yet,” he replied. Their lips met less softly this time and much more eagerly than before. How long since they had spent times like these together? The time before disturbing letters, dense forests, and injured hooves seemed like a century ago.
Rarity raised her hoof to mimic the motion of his claw in her hair. Up, then down, she followed the pattern of smooth scales and felt the hard muscle underneath. Spike moved closer to feel more velvety, warm fur when—
SPLAT!
“What the-?” They both looked down to see the empty cake platter stuck to Spike’s pale green underbelly. Spike emitted a groan.
“Well,” Rarity chucked. “I think you need a shower, Spikey-Wikey.”
Grumbling, the dragon hopped out of bed and pried the sticky plate off his front. Several clumps of apple crumb fell to the floor. Rarity giggled again, but as soon as Spike’s retreating back disappeared in the direction of the bathroom, she exploded in a flurry of action. She levitated a small mirror to eye level to carefully examine her hair, her makeup, and her general appearance. Was her breath fresh? Just because she’d been hiking in the woods for two days did not mean she could slack off. A lady held standards, no matter where she happened to be.
Rarity was reapplying her eye shadow when she heard a thump from nearby.
“Spike?”
No answer.
“Spike?”
Rarity could hear the shower still running. The forest’s various animals were still making a ruckus outside. Nothing seemed to be off, but Spike’s silence caused her insides to freeze.
“Spike, this isn’t funny in the least! Please answer m-”
“Rarity.”
Rarity turned around to see Spike in the doorway. In her panic she had scrambled out of bed, trying to keep her balance on three hooves—the forth curled under protectively against her chest.
“Spike, where have you-?” The mare had started to vent her feminine fury, but stopped when she noticed his bedraggled state. “W-why are you all wet, darling? Why didn’t you dry off?”
“We’re going to have to leave.”
Rarity was flabbergasted. “But how? Did somepony spot us? Did-” However, she quieted as her gaze focused on what Spike was holding. There, in his fist, was a tightly wrapped scroll partially soaked in shower water.
“It’s Twilight,” Spike answered tersely. “They know.”
“Oh now you just stop that,” admonished a gentle voice. “I know you’re unhappy right now because you miss Mr. Squeakers, but that is no reason to make a fuss.” To drive her point home, Fluttershy threw the disobedient feline a stern look. Opalescence, however, merely scoffed and continued to strike out at the bars of her carrier. Fluttershy sighed in resignation.
Fluttershy didn’t know how she was going to make it up to Rarity. She just hoped that her seamstress friend wouldn’t be too angry, but how could she know that a family of five bears would hurt themselves in a rockslide and come to her for help? Her house barely had enough space to accommodate a squirrel now, much less a cat, with all of the bears tucked nicely into sagging temporary cots, their arms and heads bandaged up to look like mummies. Sighing, Fluttershy had preplanned a very extensive apology and was prepared to give Rarity back all the bits she’d offered Fluttershy to keep Opal. She really hoped her friend wouldn’t be too disappointed.
The Carousel Boutique was unusually dark when Fluttershy approached, holding Opal’s cage in her mouth. Its curtains were drawn and its windows dark. Fluttershy noticed that Rarity’s mailbox seemed full, and it stood a little crookedly after its daily assault by the resident mailmare.
“Now that's strange…” Fluttershy muttered to herself. Her close friend Rarity was meticulous in everything she did. Before opening her shop, the fashionista would collect her mail daily and grumble about the hideous state of her mailbox before setting it straight once again. Looking at the acute angle Rarity’s mailbox made with the ground, a little voice inside Fluttershy told her that something was wrong. She shivered.
Behind her, the town’s clock tower struck ten, making Fluttershy leap into the air in fright.
“I-it’s ten in the morning,” she continued. Rarity’s boutique opened at nine.
All of sudden, Fluttershy felt like running in the opposite direction. Something was wrong; something was very wrong, but she wasn’t the best pony to handle things like this. She should go and find Applejack or Rainbow Dash, and they could-
But, no, why should she find Applejack or Rainbow? Wasn’t Rarity her friend as well? An unusual flood of courage surged through her. Besides, Rarity was probably having an off morning. It happened to the best of ponies sometimes. Why did she get so worked up over a crooked mailbox and a few letters?
“R-rarity?” One peak inside the dark foyer drained all of Fluttershy’s erstwhile courage. “Rarity, i-it’s me, Fluttershy.” There was no answer.
The only light Fluttershy had was what came from behind her as she’d left the door open—the door which she’d found closed but mysteriously unlocked. The haunting darkness transformed various blobs of gray which once must’ve been familiar and comfortable furniture into something unnerving.
“Rarity? Are you, um, here?” The shadows of the Carousel Boutique remained silent. A brief air current blew across her spine, and Fluttershy shook in her hooves.
“Well if you aren’t here, I w-wouldn't w-want to impose if t-that’s okay with you…” Fluttershy stammered while backing up towards life and safety outside. This whole thing was a huge mistake. She really should’ve gotten-
BANG!
SCREECH!
“Eep!” Fluttershy shrieked as a patchwork of metal bars dug into her hind leg. Somehow in her fright, she’d forgotten Opal’s carrier was behind her and had accidentally collided with it, inadvertently unlatching the lock and releasing its occupant. Opalescence, of course, leaped at the first sign of freedom and disappeared into the darkness. Her pet carrier on the other hand raced off to the side and smashed into the leg of a nearby desk. Fluttershy watched in pain and helplessness as that desk slowly collapsed upon itself, scattering a bunch of white envelopes everywhere.
“Oh, no… Rarity won’t like this, not at all…” Fluttershy whispered to herself. “And on top of this, I’ll still have to find Opal.” Peering at the dim outline of a nearby stairway, she gulped. For Opal... The mare slowly got up on her hooves.
And then Applejack landed on her nose. Fluttershy blinked. Or rather, an elaborately enamored envelope addressed to Applejack.
“Hmm… I wonder why a letter for Applejack is sitting here in Rarity’s house?” With the greater mystery of Rarity’s whereabouts put on hold, Fluttershy turned her energies into studying Applejack’s letter.
Soon Fluttershy would find more letters addressed to Sweetie Belle, Rainbow Dash, Princesses Celestia and Luna, Rarity’s mother and father, Twilight, Pinkie Pie, and finally herself. In spite of her growing curiosity, Fluttershy could never have opened any letter but her own, and she did indeed open her own.
Five minutes later Fluttershy barreled into Ponyville's pegasus post office, drenched in tears and demanding that a letter be sent to Princess Twilight Sparkle.
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THEY KNOW!
Pretty interesting story so far, looking forward to the next update.
"Spike swore that if he were able to receive a cutie mark, his mark would be something concerning dealing with irrational unicorns."
This made me smile.
Nice chapter.
Good chapter and Celestia and Luna are that against Spike and Rarity being together?
imageshack.us/a/img33/5764/likethischapter.jpg
2211676
Thank you. I'm glad to hear that you like it.
2211921
Aw... Thanks... And yeah, dealing with irrational unicorns is a daily part of Spike's life.
2212118
You'll find out soon.
Not exactly... I keep dropping subtle hints about the true nature of the situation, but I think they're TOO subtle...
2212530
Thor. Yes!
The suspense is killing me!
- Say this for Gulestia.
This was so awesome I have to write this in purple, the most fabulous color of them all! And I know that feel when you gorge on a large thing of cake... or chicken... or waffles... or chips... I'm hungry now
Oh this isn't gonna be good...
Hopefully out of the mist of all this, a (hoping here) happy ending will arise from this... Please?...
Oh who am I kidding. I see the tragedy tag
and yet she who was the one still in dreamland.
Derailed sentence.
Eloping Sparity, I like it!
2213351
!
2213417
Priceless!
I loved that picture they had in Ponyville Confidential with Celestia and the cake.
2213910
For me, it's ice cream. With oreos, cookie dough, snickers...
2214245
Let me tell you, don't worry about the tragedy tag. That and the potential character death is not exactly what everyone thinks.
Everybody's tripping out over the tragedy tag. *sniff, sniff* You all have so much little faith in me...
2214545>>2214603
Thanks for the catch!
And you think it's simply eloping? Ah, yes, prepare for the twist...
2219950
Actually it's a tent. Think of Sleepless in Ponyville, but the inside is resembles a manor house while the outside looks like an average pitched tent.
Nice update and great going Fluttershy.
So now the chase is on...
Hmmm... makes sense at the development... I'm going to fav in order to track, but not quite gonna like. Still want to know what the hell this choice is that the Princess made...
*blinks*
*blinks again*
OK. Something happened here, which Twilight knew about and got excited and blabbed. Then a decision was handed down that Twilight disagrees with. Rarity's not sleeping well, and her stomach's between wanting nothing in it and being ravenous. She is thinking about a lot of pain to come.
*lightbulb*
Holy crap. Rarity's pregnant with a draconequus and they don't want another Discord born.
Must...keep....reading!
2234143
I was wondering when someone would put two and two together... 
AND YOU WIN ONE FREE INTERNET SIR!
oh my I'm in love with this story!! can't wait for an update!!!
2234143
2236016
SERIOUSLY??!!!!
Well then, why are they so damn agnostic about it?? No wonder I didn't see this before!! Spike's taking care of Rarity while she's expecting, and as a couple (well in this story, anyway) it's kinda weird that they are doing the eloping in the middle of the night troupe. I always thought that the others would enjoy and be happy for Spike and Rarity.
2249596
Celestia and Luna are worried, Twilight is caught in between duty and friendship and Discord... well, not sure how he will take it.
2234143>>2236016
What. WHAT. WHAAAAAAT.
MOAR PLEASE NAO
2236016 *spit take*
HOW DID I MISS THAT?!!
Oh man, if Discord finds out...
It left Spike to wander at the true durability of a dragon.
wonder*
would soon be after her in two weeks’ time
Weren't it two days?