> The Purest Amethyst
>  by BOM
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter one
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sweetie Belle was so giddy. Soon she would be walking up that aisle, all eyes on her. This is my big day, she thought to herself. Her excitement caused her to take small hops where she stood, her hooves only just leaving the ground. A small cough from behind caused Sweetie Belle to turn her head to see Princess Mi Amore Cadenza giving her a dissatisfied stare. It was not a cruel stare, but it put Sweetie Belle off enough that she ceased hopping on the spot. Her cheeks turning a slight red as Sweetie remembered that this wasn’t her big day but in fact the princess’. A wave of guilt washed over Sweetie Belle. Of course they won’t be looking at me, they’ll all be looking at her, she is the bride after all. Sweetie turned back to look at the Princess. She was beautiful; her pink coat along with her mane, which had elegant streaks of purple, pink and white, made the Princess look absolutely radiant; this combined with the stunning dress Rarity had made for her gave the Princess a look of divinity. Why would anypony look at me when she looks like that? Sweetie Belle gave a huff before looking at her own violet dress. It, along with her tiara of purple and white flowers, showed off her white coat and shaded purple and pink mane; even she had to admit that she looked adorable in the outfit. A small smile crept onto her face. Maybe somepony will look at me. Her smile widened and her cheeks turned from a slight red to positively crimson at the thought of a cute colt being among the guests.

Choosing to push that thought aside, so her whole coat didn’t turn from white to red, Sweetie Belle distracted herself by looking at her friends, The Cutie Mark Crusaders! To her left was Apple Bloom and Scootaloo. They were both wearing similar dresses to hers and each looked super cute. Hopefully not as cute as me, Sweetie Belle selfishly thought. Scootaloo turned to face Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom with a look that Sweetie Belle had become all too familiar with, the pony’s eyes lit up and a large grin appeared on her face, it was Scootaloos’s idea face.

“Hey girls! I just realised that this will be a great chance for us to get our cutie marks,” the orange pony said.

“How you figure that?” asked Apple Bloom, tilting her head slightly.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Scootaloos’s face was turning into one massive smile. “At the reception we’ll get our cutie marks in wedding entertainment!” Apple Bloom’s face lit up. 

“Yeah! We can do one of our comedy acts.”

“Or play some wicked tunes.”

“Or we’all could sing!” Sweetie Belle’s heart skipped a beat, there was no way she would be singing in front of all those ponies especially at a Canterlot wedding. But still the thought of getting her cutie mark at a wedding made her tingle all over.

“We could try dancing and getting our cutie marks that way,” Sweetie Belle added. Scootaloo and Apple Bloom both looked at Sweetie Belle, their grins growing wider by the second. Sweetie Belle couldn’t deny that her face probably looked the same. There was something about getting into crusading mode that got all three fillies happier than they thought they could ever be.

“Yeah, we don’t have to just entertain,” said Scootaloo.

“We could also try waiting and get our cutie marks in waitressing,” added Apple Bloom.

“Or Chauffeuring!” Yelped Sweetie Bell. A couple more ideas flew back and forth, with each one Sweetie Belle got more and more excited, her heart was going a mile a minute and she soon found herself hopping on the spot again. A slightly louder cough than the one before brought the Crusaders back to their senses, they quickly quietened down. But Sweetie Belle saw both her best friends had smiles on their faces that would show up even Pinkie Pie and she couldn’t help but share that smile. Now they had a long list of activities to get their cutie marks. Well even if no one notices me during the ceremony at least I’ll have a ball at the reception. 

With that thought, the blue double doors opened, the music started and Sweetie Belle was greeted by an amazing site. A red carpet leading all the way to the altar, trumpet playing ponies on either side along with hundreds of guests all dressed in fancy clothing, some of which Sweetie Belle recognised as Rarity’s handy work. A golden chandelier hung from the centre of the hall, its intricate patterns too detailed to see from this distance. White drapes connected pillars on either side of the room with large windows in between each set, revealing the purple tinted city of Canterlot outside. At the end of the carpet stood Shining Armour and Princess Celestia herself. Sweetie Belle quickly recovered from the magical sight, picked up her basket of flowers with her mouth and bounced her way onto and across the red carpet. She was so happy the thought of simply walking up the aisle had never entered her mind and it seemed her best friends shared that thought. This day is going to be perfect. 

> Chapter Two
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spike adjusted his top hat again, it just would not stay on his head. Maybe Twilight had been right about not wearing a hat that’s twice his size, thought Spike, but she had also told him that he couldn’t wear a moustache so what did she know anyway? The purple baby dragon overlooked the Ceremonial Hall, it was packed full of ponies dressed in their best. In front of the guests stood the groomcolts on the right and the bridesmaids on the left. One particular bridesmaid held Spike’s attention, a white unicorn with a dazzling purple mane, her turquoise dress decorated with diamonds filling its canvas like stars sparkling on the night sky. Spike felt his heart begin to beat faster and could feel his eyes turning into love hearts, Rarity was just so beautiful, her fantastical mane, her royal blue eyes. He quickly shook his head to snap out of the daze and turned to face Shining Armor.  The white Stallion stood to Spike’s right, his uniform and large unicorn horn gave him a presence of authority; but Spike knew that the fierce Captain’s exterior could not be more different than the bubbly understanding pony beneath. However what would normally have been a large grin on his face seemed to have been replaced by a blank slate. Spike knew what the problem was, ever since Twilight’s outbreak the day before Shining Armor had not been himself. Even though he had told Twilight not to come to the wedding Spike knew it hurt him to think she wouldn’t show up anyway.

Spike gave Shining Armor’s leg a small punch to reassure the Captain. The Stallion turned to face the distraction, his face was as blank as unused parchment and it took Spike a second to recover from the unexpected lack of emotion.

“Don’t worry I’m sure she’ll turn up,” Spike said to Shining encouragingly.

Shining Armor just turned his head back to face the large blue double doors at the end of the room. Spike had expected some kind of response from him, he had known Shining Armor long enough to know he must or a least should be really upset. Shining and Twilight had always been so close but much rather than showing some kind of emotion, the captain was just looking dully into space. 

Spike was about to push for more information when the music began to play. Fluttershy’s bird choir sang a sweet melody as the large double doors swung open and the bride began to walk up the aisle. Spike admired her for a second, before noticing three fillies bouncing along in front of her; the Cutie Mark Crusaders. The three fillies looked really pretty today, decorating the floor with flowers from baskets that they held in their mouths. All three were wearing similar violet dresses and tiaras made of flowers, not only that but each one was wearing a huge grin. Spike took in the adorable scene, his heart melting a little. A small voice in his head told him; Dragons probably shouldn’t like this, but he quickly pushed that thought aside and continued taking in the scene. Spike looked over the three fillies; Scootaloo, Apple Bloom and… a small lump formed in his throat as he looked over at the last crusader, Sweetie Belle. A quick cough cleared the knot in his throat but Spike didn’t take his eyes of the white unicorn. Her shaded purple and pink mane bobbed up and down as the filly skipped her way forward, the sight bringing a smile to Spike’s face. She veered off and took her place just behind the bridesmaids with Scootaloo and Apple Bloom.

The bride took her place next to Shining Armor as the birds sang their last note. An eager silence had settled on the hall with everypony waiting in anticipation. Spike couldn’t help but get sucked into the atmosphere with all eyes on the altar. Princess Celestia stepped forward to address the crowd.

“Mares and Gentle Colts we are gathered here today to witness the union of Princess Mi Amore Cadenza and Shining Armor.”

Spike looked over the hall again, taking in the majesty and size of the occasion. He wondered whether his wedding would be as grand. Not that I’m interested in weddings, Spike thought to himself rather defensively, his cheeks turned a slight rose colour, but luckily everypony was too engulfed in Celestia’s speech that none of them noticed Spike’s embarrassment. Well I doubt mine would be as big, this is a royal wedding after all. 

It was true, Spike had attended a couple of weddings in his time but none were on this vast scale, so why would his be any different. Spike looked over at Rarity. Knowing my sweet Rarity, our wedding will probably be twice this size, Spike chuckled to himself. I wonder if a wedding with a dragon and a pony is the same as a normal wedding. Spike had never seen a dragon and pony date before so, he wasn’t that sure how it worked. Now that he thought about it he had never even heard of a dragon dating a pony. Spike’s heart began to quicken. What if a pony had never dated a dragon? What if it’s forbidden? What if dragons didn’t date at all? If any of those were true how could he date Rarity? Spike’s heart was close to bursting out of his chest at this point. He realised that he was also gasping and gaining the unwanted attention of a couple of ponies in the crowd. Spike closed his eyes, took in a deep breath, brought his claws up to his chest and let out a long sigh. The smallest waft of green flame escaped out as Spike let his worries go. 

He returned his attention to the altar, realising that he had missed a large chunk of the vows. Princess Celestia was just about to finish the ceremony.

“Princess Cadence and Shining Armor it is my great pleasure to pronounce you-“

“Stooooop!”

A wave of shock rippled throughout the hall. Spike turned to see who had made the outburst, even though he would recognise that voice anywhere. Spike held onto hope that it was any other pony but sure enough, standing at the double doors was a purple unicorn, her mane a darker shade with a pink highlight which added variety. Twilight Sparkle had stopped the wedding, her eyes piercing the room like daggers. Spike suddenly found the floor a lot more interesting than Twilight. I can’t believe it. She had gone and done it, she had ruined the most important day of her brother’s life all because she couldn’t let him go. The Princes sobbed a comment that Spike couldn’t hear, he was too busy studying the different angles at which the light bounced off the floor.

“Because it’s not your special day, it’s mine!”

Spike’s concentration on the floor was shattered as there, standing next to Twilight, stood another Princess Cadence. Her mane had split ends and was out of place, her coat was bruised and covered in dust patches but it was unmistakably her. If Twilight’s eyes had been daggers then, this new Cadence had swords. Spike looked over to the bridesmaids. Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Apple Jack and Rarity stood on the front; behind them was Fluttershy with her choir of birds, next to her stood Apple Bloom, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle. 

“I-I don't understand. How can there be two of 'em?” Apple Jack questioned. Leave it to the dependable orange pony to ask the question on everypony’s mind. 

"She's a changeling. She takes the form of somepony you love and gains power by feeding off your love for them,” proclaimed the new Cadence whilst pointing an accusing hoof at the bride.

A ring of emerald flames encircled the accused Princess, they slowly began to grow in intensity, crackling as the edges of the flames whipped out at anypony nearby. Reaching a critical mass, the flames erupted producing a blinding flash of light. Spike was forced to turn away, his dragon eyes unable to adjust quickly enough. Rubbing the stars out of his eyes, Spike turned back to the tower of green flame. The pillar of fire collapsed revealing the Princess inside. A surge of energy was rippling through her, shredding off the purple and pink she used to wear; an emerald lightning scurried across her body moulding a new figure. The energy left the new body crackling around their creation before dissipating into nothing. A laugh erupted from the new foe, her voice echoed throughout the hall sending a shiver through Spike’s scales. The changed Cadence had a tall slender neck and legs, her coat was as black as shadow, transparent wings buzzed on her back and a horn sat atop her head, its crooked nature didn’t help ease Spike’s sense of dread. But worst of all was the eyes. Green as envy they scoured the room hunting for fresh prey.

“Right you are, Princess. And as queen of the changelings, it is up to me to find food for my subjects. Equestria has more love than any place I've ever encountered. My fellow changelings will be able to devour so much of it that we will gain more power than we have ever dreamed of!”

Spike didn't need to listen to the real Cadence’s response, he knew where this was going and so quickly jolted over to the other side to join the bridesmaids. Apple Jack had a hoof on Rainbow Dash’s shoulder trying to talk her down.

“Hold ya’ horses sugar cube leave this’un to the Princess.” The Cyan Peagasus was on edge looking as if she wanted to tackle the Queen to the ground and plant a couple of left and rights into her face. She blew a strand of her rainbow coloured mane out of her face. 

“But she impersonated a Princess, got us all to trust her and she… she…” A lump had formed in Rainbow’s throat. “She made us doubt Twilight!” Rainbow Yelled the last bit, Apple Jack removed her hoof they were both looking at the ground.

It couldn’t be easy for the element of loyalty to have turned her back on a friend, especially when they had been right. Rainbow Dash felt like she had betrayed Twilight, and wasn’t handling it too well.

“Plus she’s ruining the party that chay chang changeychangey.” 

“She’s a Changeling Pinkie Pie darling,” explained Rarity, a slight trickle of fear had been edged into her voice. 

“Yeah what she said,” the Pink earth pony responded. 

Spike turned back to changeling Queen. She was just about to square off with Princess Celestia. The princess spread her wings and took flight.

“Now I can protect my subjects from you!” 

The Princess rose up and fired a stream of light with the intensity of the sun from her horn.  The Queen countered with a crackling stream of green energy. Spike planted himself bracing for the impact. The two beams met in mid-air. A shockwave knocked all the ponies in the hall to the ground, it knocked Spike back causing him to balance on one leg but he managed to stay upright. Spike quickly checked on his friends. The Crusaders seemed fine, if a little shaken, and the rest were picking themselves up. Spike turned his attention back to the confrontation. The Queen’s green light engulfed the Princess sending her crashing to the ground, her horn singed and eyes closed. Spike’s insides did a three sixty, Celestia had been beaten. The Princess had always been an unbeatable fixed point. If she’s been beaten how can we win? Spike shook himself out of hopelessness and remembered their secret weapon, the Elements of Harmony. Twilight had run over to the Princess along with her friends, a wave of worry hit Spike as it always did when something like this happened. Every time Twilight sent herself into danger Spike couldn’t help but feel like he needed to protect her. If anything, she would protect me, chuckled Spike to himself, he let himself have that small joke as although he knew she could take care of herself that didn’t make it any easier. Spike closed his eyes and let out a deep sigh, he hated that it had to be this way, but it did. When he opened his eyes again Apple Jack was addressing him.

“Look sugar cube, me and the girls are going for the Elements.” Even though he had known that was coming, Spike’s heart sank a little lower when he heard it. “That means I can’t look after my sis’, what I’m saying is me and Rare need yu’ to look after the girls.” 

Spike followed Apple Jack’s raised hoof to the Cutie Mark Crusaders, they were huddled together sheltering next to a pillar. Spike turned back to Apple Jack and nodded.

“You can count on me,” he said forcing a smile. Apple Jack returned it and without another word she ran after her friends who had already started after the Elements. Spike watched until he lost sight of them his smile quickly vanishing. Composing himself he looked back for the CMC. His insides did another three sixty. Three violet dresses and flower tiaras lay on the floor.

The fillies were gone.

> Chapter Three
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The streets of Canterlot had turned into a scramble of shouting ponies and panic. Ponies were running into their homes or any building that would take them in, baring the doors and shuttering the windows. Those unicorns powerful enough cast up tiny force fields around their homes, encasing themselves in technicoloured domes. These don’t look anywhere near as resilient as Twilight’s. Sweetie Belle thought back to the force field Twilight had conjured to keep the Crusaders out of the library during their time as Gabby Gums. That one had seemed like nothing short of an Ursa Major would break it, these seemed pitiful by comparison. Sweetie Belle caught up to her friends who had trotted on ahead seemingly unfazed by the changeling army waiting beyond the city sized bubble.

“This has to be one of ya’ best ideas ever Scoot,” Apple Bloom congratulated the Pegasus with a pat on the back. 

“I know right I mean it’s so obvious.” 

“Cutie Mark Crusaders Changeling hunters! Yay!” the three fillies shouted in unison.

As they finished their cry the shield encasing the city shattered. Sweetie Belle looked towards the heavens, shards of magic fell from the sky, some dissipated their magical energy disappearing into nothing; but most continued to fall onto the city. Sweetie Belle grabbed her friends, their compelled faces not being able to turn away from the spectacle happening above. She smacked her friends once each across the face to snap them out of their daze.

“We have to get to cover,” Sweetie Belle yelled. She looked around for shelter, spying a small supply wagon. She pointed it out to her friends. 

“Under there.”

The three fillies galloped as fast as their legs could carry them making it under the wagon just as the first shards of magic impacted. Sweetie Belle looked out onto the street as a piece of the purple shield landed where the Crusaders had been standing just moments ago. It smashed into a thousand smaller shards that span off in all directions. When the glitters crashed into one another they exploded sending out violet beams of magic. One of the trails shot straight in front of Sweetie Belle burning the ground to a crisp not two inches from her muzzle. Maybe we shouldn’t have left. Looking back up to the sky Sweetie Belle saw a sea of green descending upon them. She huddled close to her friends and they responded in kind. The storm of Changelings caused an empty feeling to well up inside Sweetie Belle, her eyes went wide and she couldn’t stop looking at her oncoming doom.

Time seemed to slow down just so she could contemplate how this was the end. The flood gates had opened and all sense of hope was quickly washing away, being replaced instead by dread, dread that she would never laugh again, never play with Apple Bloom or Scootaloo, never see her sister again. A chill was creeping up Sweetie Belle’s spine. She was alone in the dark. The cold reached the tip of her tail and moved down her legs. Nopony would be able to hear her cry for help. The cold froze her veins. 

“SWEETIE BELLE!” All joy had left her. The frost was creeping up to her heart. 

“SWEETIE BELLE!” Her eyes started leaking, the cold licked her soul. 

“SWEETIE BELLE! COME ON THIS ISN’T FUNNY! SWEETIE BELLE!” That voice seemed familiar, like she had heard it a long time ago. “SWEETIE BELLE WE HAVE TO GO NOW!” A small speck of light appeared in front of Sweetie Belle. On instinct she reached out and grabbed it.

Sweetie Belle woke up to find Scootaloo shaking her. Looking up at the orange Pegasus, Sweetie Belle could see a well of tears under her lavender eyes. Her ears were flat against her head, a look of desperation painted on her face. Behind her sat Apple Bloom, her lips were trembling and the corners of her eyes were leaking. 

“Thank Celestia.” Scootaloo took in a deep sniff and wiped her muzzle with her hoof. “Come o-on we have to get out of here,” hiccupped Scootaloo as she wiped away the wet left in her eyes. 

They were still under the wagon. Sweetie Belle looked out to the streets, the road was littered with black craters, clouds of smoke rising from the crisp charred ground. The Changelings had landed, their black coats glistened in the sunlight. One group was ramming against a bubble shield; another Changeling was cocooning a mare in green light woven from its horn. Ponies everywhere were being terrorised by their cackling adversaries. Sweetie Belle turned to her friends. Their faces were wide eyed with fear and Sweetie Belle was sure hers was a mirror image. Gathering her courage, Sweetie Belle moved to the other side of the wagon, looking for any possible escape route. Looking from left to right all she could see were changelings and chaos. Spying a small alleyway next to a trinket shop, Sweetie Belle’s eyes lit up for the first time in what seemed like an eternity. 

“We have to get to that alley.” Sweetie Belle tried her best to mask her fear with boldness but she didn’t think it worked that well.

“Down there yu’ crazy,” Apple Bloom whimpered.

“Yeah there’s like a thousand Changelings in between us and it, how we gonna get there?” Scootaloo looked at Sweetie Belle as if begging for an answer.

“Well we can’t just stay here.”

“So you just want us to run across a street filled with monsters and hope they won’t get us?” 

“I-I-” Sweetie Belle was almost in tears, she closed her eyes to hide this from her friends.

“No, Scootaloo, she’s right!” Sweetie Belle opened her eyes to see Apple Bloom comforting Scootlaoo with a hoof.

“If we stay here they’ll find us, at-at least if we make a break for it then we have a chance.”

“Hay, you never know maybe we will get our cutie marks in running,” Sweetie Belle added with a small laugh.

Her two best friends stared at her for a second, then each had a small giggle too. The mood lifted, if only for a second, giving Sweetie Belle hope that they would all make it out of this together.

“Cutie Mark Crusaders running away from monsters,” prompted Apple Bloom.

“Cutie Mark Crusaders running away from monsters yay,” echoed Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. 

Sweetie Belle hugged Scootaloo and Apple Bloom with all her might and they returned the gesture in kind. The three fillies sat there for a moment. Her friends’ warmth filling Sweetie Belle up with courage. As the three broke apart Sweetie Belle could see that what had been fear on her friend’s faces moments ago had been replaced by determination.

Sweetie Belle looked back to the alley way scouting the area for Changelings. They were still running amok and there seemed to be no way to sneak past them.

“Oh horse apples we are just gawna have to run past them’all aren’t we.” Sweetie Belle admitted she couldn’t see any other way than just a mad dash for the alley.

“Go on three?” Suggested Scootaloo.

“Go on three,” concurred Apple Bloom. 

Sweetie Belle huddled closer to her friends so their flanks were touching. Scootaloo put a hoof over her shoulder and gave her a small squeeze. The three fillies prepared themselves.

“One,” started Apple Bloom.

“Two,” Scootaloo’s voice gave a small crack as she spoke.

Scootaloo removed her hoof from Sweetie Belle and they braced themselves for the run of their lives.

“Three,” finished Sweetie Belle. 

With that she ran out from the wagon in silence, she didn’t want to attract any unnecessary attention. Sweetie Belle dodged round a lamp post almost bumping into a Changeling but managed to break in time to veer round the monster. She looked back to see her friends were just moments behind her so she pressed on. The alley was just seconds away. Sweetie Belle saw a straight path to the entrance and without another thought took it. She galloped faster than she ever had before. She had made it, pausing for a moment to take some much needed gulps of air Sweetie Belle turned to look for her friends. Apple Bloom was in front and just behind her was Scootaloo but they had added another member to the group. A Changeling was in hot pursuit of the orange Pegasus, its turquoise eyes lustfully eyeing its prey, its two daggered fangs snapping at her tail. Apple Bloom stopped mid run, lowered her head to the ground, bent her two forward legs and braced herself. As Scootaloo passed her the changeling switched to new prey who stood there offering themselves to the drooling beast. Just as the Changeling was on Apple Bloom she kicked her hind legs out and gave the Changeling’s face a good old fashioned apple buck. The Changeling recoiled from the surprise attack and let out a piercing wail. This drew the attention of five more Changelings who noticed the two fillies running for the alley.

Scootaloo and Apple Bloom were mere feet from the entrance when a Changeling landed in front of them blocking their path. The two fillies stood perplexed as the creature powered up its horn. Sweetie Belle looked at her own horn. But I can’t use magic. She felt helpless, there was no way to help her friends but she refused to leave them. Out of instinct more than rational thought Sweetie Belle lowered her head forming her body into a lance, she scraped the earth with her hoof unsettling the dirt. Then charged. Letting out a scream as she did so Sweetie Belle smashed into the back of the Changeling sending the beast flying over her friends heads and crashing into the wagon that they had been cowering under not so long ago.

“We need to go now!” 

Her friends looked startled as their foe had suddenly been replaced by Sweetie Belle. They didn’t need to be told twice though and the three of them ran for the alley with five unwanted guests on their tails. As they ran as fast as their legs could carry them Scootaloo turned to Sweetie Belle.

“That was brilliant what you did!”

"Thanks just never tell Rarity.” The Pegasus chuckled at that and despite their situation Sweetie Belle couldn’t help but smile too. 

How can I be worried about my sister finding out about using my horn that way when I have five changelings chasing me! Priorities Sweetie Belle, make it out of here then worry about Rarity.

Sweetie Belle was finding it difficult to see too far ahead as the alley covered the path in a blanket of shadow, but she kept running. She ran as fast as her little hooves could carry her and then she ran some more. Sweetie Belle dared to turn her head and instantly wished that she hadn’t. The Changelings eyed the fillies as a Diamond Dog would eye the Canterlot vaults, their mouths foaming with hunger, their eyes wide and savage. The worst part however was that they were catching up. Sweetie Belle returned her full attention to the path ahead, only there was no path. A house had collapsed blocking the filly’s route, its debris towering over them like a barred gate. Apple Bloom was frantically trying to climb over the mountain of wood and stone slate whilst Scootaloo buzzed her wings till they were a blur; both to no effect. Sweetie Belle looked for a door or window that they could use, but there were no doors and there were no windows on the ground floors. 

Sweetie Belle closed her eyes and screwed up her face in concentration. Right, remember what Rarity said:  focus on the object. She picked a wooden plank amongst the debris. Direct my energy to my horn. Sweetie Belle took in a deep breath and channelled all her might to her horn. And imagine I’m picking it up with my hoof. Sweetie Belle imagined a hoof clutching the plank and tried to lift it. Nothing happened. Sweetie Belle groaned as she screwed her face tighter and tighter unable to lift up the plank. Letting go she burst into tears, the wet from the eyes washing away the sweat glistening on her white coat. Sweetie Belle was joined by Scootaloo and Apple Bloom, the three fillies turned to face their pursuers. The Changelings had stopped, standing there eyeing the ponies and savouring the feast to come. Sweetie Belle wrapped her hooves around her best friends and they hugged her back. Sweetie Belle could feel Scootaloo shivering in fear, it proved contagious and soon Sweetie Belle joined in.

“Y’all stay back now,” Apple Bloom yelled at the Changelings. 

They cackled in response apparently amused at her attempt to scare them. Apple Bloom’s courage was fading fast.

“Whe-when my big sis’ finds out ‘bout this y’all be sorry.”

The Changelings burst into fits of laughter, their amusement putting hyenas to shame, but never taking their eyes off the fillies. The largest of the pack, who donned an armoured helmet on its head, moved forward; his horn busting into a green blaze. In turn each Changeling lit up their own horns whilst moving upon their prey. Sweeties Belle felt a familiar empty feeling well up inside her as if all love had been sucked out of her. Her friends grips loosened, their eyes flickered open and closed, with each blink it seemed more colour was being drained from their eyes. Sweetie Belle looked to the Changelings, they hadn’t approached the fillies any further and stood several feet away. Their horns still shone a hideous green. Are they chewing? From where Sweetie Belle sat the Changelings seemed to be chewing greedily on an invisible food their eyes wide with delight. Sweetie Belle looked at her friends’, then to the Changelings, at her friends and back to the Changelings the horrible realisation dawning on her. Her feeling of emptiness intensified the more vigorously the Changelings chewed, saliva dripping down their chins.

A shattering sound broke Sweetie Belle away from the hypnotic doom in front of her. A shower of glass pitter pattered onto the ground followed closely by a purple figure. As the figure landed they planted a solid fist into the head Changeling’s face. The force took the Changeling to the ground, all the others jumped back, their horns returning to their normal colour. Free from the spell, Sweetie Belle could see clearly; the figure was no taller than she was, purple scales shone on its back and pointed tail, small green fins ran from the middle of its tail all the way up their back. The figure turned his head to face the three fillies.

“You three ok?” Spike asked.

> Chapter Four
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spike took in the sight of the three fillies, all huddled together; their coats and manes tattered and out of place, a combination of tears and sweat soaking their faces. But importantly they were all breathing.

"Girls please!” Spike was worried.

Their bodies may be fine but are they still all there? He was looking for any kind of response, something to tell him that he wasn’t too late. Sweetie Belle’s head moved up and then down again. It was at a snail’s pace but most definitely a nod. Not much, but I guess it will have to do. With that Spike returned his attention to the Changelings.

The Changelings had recovered themselves and the head of the pack was back on his feet, a dark fist shaped bruise on his left cheek. His malicious eyes glared at the baby dragon attempting to stare him down. It was working. Spike took a step back, what had seemed like a good plan only moments ago was quickly going horribly wrong. Spike looked back at the fillies; they were helping each other to their hoofs. Scootaloo, Apple Bloom and Swee- (gulp)-tie Belle… I’m doing this for her-them I’m doing this for them. Spike planted his foot firmly in front of himself and cracked his claws together.

“You know that purple patch suits you,” taunted Spike, “I know, you can be purple patch, purple patch the pansy Changeling!”

The other Changelings gave a snigger at that last remark but were quickly silenced by their leader. 

“If you leave now I promise not to embarrass you anymore.” 

With that, the lead changeling lit up his horn and pointed his left hoof at Spike. In quick response the two Changelings on Spike’s right charged forward, fangs bared, horns ablaze. 

“So that’s a no?”

Spike flung himself to the right to avoid the first changeling who had charged at him horn first. No sooner had he evaded, the second changeling went in to bite him. Raising his arm to block, the teeth clamped down. With an awful crack the teeth shattered, Spike’s scales proving too hard to pierce. The Changeling recoiled in pain, his hooves raised to his mouth desperately searching for his missing fangs. Picking himself up, a light buzzing from behind alerted Spike, moving just in time the diving Changeling missed and crashed into the dirt. Capitalising on his foes mistake Spike lifted the Changeling by its tail, spinning to gain momentum. Spike’s face screwed up, the weight of the Changeling taking its toll on his arms. Releasing it like a rag doll, the Changeling crashed into a nearby wall, flopping to the ground. 

Spike turned back to the three remaining Changelings, who stood there horns alight with emerald magic. The leader pointed one Changeling to the right and the other to the left, creeping forward as he did so. With the Changelings moving on his flanks and the other coming at him head on, Spike began to back off, hoping to give himself more time to devise a plan. 

Sensing his hesitation the Changeling’s creep changed into a trot which quickly evolved into a full blown gallop. Inhaling deeply, Spike built up a magical singularity in his gut. Spike focussed on the Changelings: how they had invaded Canterlot, how they taken those he cared about prisoner and how they had hurt those closest to him. The anger swelling up inside him merged with the singularity. Spike fought for control, he would not allow the tainted magic to consume him. As it reached a critical mass, he exhaled. A large violent green flame erupted from his mouth, aimed just in front of the lead Changeling, the surprise attack caused the head Changeling to stop dead in its tracks; the ground was charred to ash.

Spike turned, clenching his claw into an iron fist, planting it into one of his flank attacker’s cheeks sending them flying across the alley. Attempting to spin on the spot, Spike wasn’t quick enough and was tackled from behind by the last Changeling. Spike tasted the dirt as he landed face first onto the dry alley ground. Spitting out a few blades of grass he turned over only to see his attacker standing over him, horn at the ready. The stench of the creature was overwhelming, slivering up Spike’s nostrils it dulled his senses and caused him to gag. In a panic Spike scratched at the Changeling, his claw causing four deep gashes to open up. Blood trickled down the Changeling’s cheek. The Changeling flinched back in pain. Not wanting him to escape, Spike used his other claw to grip onto the Changeling’s horn. The black beast attempted to pull away, but Spike wasn’t letting him go that easy. Clenching his claw Spike swung at the Changeling with all his might, hitting the still open wounds. The creature wailed, as pain rippled from the point of impact, causing it to desperately try and pull away from Spike. Another blow knocked the Changeling unconscious, causing it to collapse on top of him.    

Spike rolled the Changeling off of him and picked himself up. Shaking his claw in disgust, attempting to get the specks of blood off it. He had never used his claws like that before, sure he had carved pictures into trees and cut vegetables with them from time to time, but never had he used them on another living creature. A feeling of guilt swept over the dragon as he looked down at his claw. Clenching it he turned to face the last Changeling. 

The bruised Changeling stood wide eyed at the dragon, clearly having expected the fight to have been very different.

“What,” panted Spike, “no more tricks up your sleeves?” 

The Changeling gave a smirk before encasing itself in an emerald light. It appeared to be compressing him into a smaller shape. When the light lifted, standing where the Changeling had stood not moments ago was instead, Apple Bloom. Every detail mirrored the filly, her yellow coat to her red mane, she even had her trade mark pink bow.  Spike checked on the actual Apple Bloom and sure enough there she stood shocked as her apparent long lost twin had been discovered. She’s not real, Spike told himself. Composing himself he pointed an accusing claw at the Changeling.

“I know your tricks and they won’t work on me!” 

The fake Apple Bloom started trotting forward, unfazed by Spike’s distrust of her disguise. Spike readied his fist again, it wouldn’t be easy but he was sure Apple Bloom would understand. Seeing Spike was undeterred by its efforts the Changeling quickly shifted its appearance again. This time sprouting wings and a rebellious purple mane. Spike took a long deep breath readying himself for what was ahead. When he had agreed to look after the fillies he’d never imagined having to knock one of them out, or at least something that looked like them.

The mirror of Scootaloo was only feet away from Spike. Her eyes were wide with fear at Spike’s refusal to be distracted by the disguise. The Changing lit up again, the green light retracting the wings and instead sprouting a horn. As the light dissipated what beheld Spike was a coat of the purest white, an intricate shaded mane of purple and pink as well as two deep green eyes. Spike stood frozen in place as Sweetie Belle trotted towards him. It’s not her. He unclenched his fist, a smile peeled itself onto Sweetie Belle’s face. Spike liked it when she smiled. It’s not her. Sweetie Belle was almost on him. It’s not her… just hi-. Spike couldn’t even finish the thought. Why can’t I just do it? Sweetie Belle’s horn caught alight, its green flames highlighting her ear to ear sneer. A bolt of emerald flame knocked Spike to the ground; Sweetie Belle stood over him, her horn ready to strike. Spike couldn’t defend himself, he couldn’t even flinch as a whip of green light slashed across his chest. Spike lay there motionless as if every joint in his body had been frozen solid.

Suddenly two white hind legs connected with Sweetie Belle’s face sending her soaring through the air. 
The Changeling crashed to the ground, its form moulded itself back into its original state, two purple bruises decorating his unconscious face. Blinking a few times, Spike shook himself out of his daze. Looking around he found his rescuer, behind him stood a small white unicorn, every hair on her  body was standing on end, her hooves were trembling and she was biting her bottom lip. Picking himself off the ground Spike walked over to Sweetie Belle placing a claw on each of her shoulders.

“You alright?” His throat felt dry and the question came out like a croak but Spike didn’t care, all that mattered was if Sweetie Belle was ok. 

She hadn’t answered yet. She was trembling so much, Spike’s claw was starting to get some static shock. Tilting her head up Spike looked into Sweetie Belle’s eyes, they reminded him of freshly mown grass and he gave her what he hoped was a reassuring smile. It seemed to do the trick as she quickly stopped trembling and returned the smile. 

“Yeah I’m fine.” Sweetie Belle’s voice was little more than a whisper but Spike was relieved just to hear it. 

“Y’all ok?” Apple Bloom’s bow was hanging down and her coat was in tatters, but she was putting a brave face on as she and Scootaloo trotted over.

“Yeah we’re fine,” his chest itched a bit but other than that Spike felt fine, he guessed.

“I can’t believe you took them all on,” Scootaloo muttered. 

Spike looked around the alley, four Changeling bodies littered the ground. One lay next to a wall, two were dotted around and the last was purple face. Where’s no teeth? Looking around again Spike realised that the changeling who had broken his fangs had fled.

“Girls, we need to move.”

“But there ‘aint anywhere to go,” yelped Apple Bloom. 

She was right, Spike couldn’t see anywhere to go other than back down the alley, where Changeling reinforcement would be waiting. Spike looked around for another route to no avail. Then eyeing the wall of one of the streets houses, an idea came to mind.

“Girls, stand back.”

The three fillies moved away from Spike. Turning, he aligned himself with one of the houses, giving himself plenty of space for a run up. Closing his eyes Spike inhaled. He built up a store of magical energy in his gut, once again merging it with anger. But much rather than releasing it like last time Spike continued to gather more energy. His stomach felt like it was going to explode as the build up inside passed its critical mass. The singularity was lashing out, attempting to consume its host. Spike started to vibrate. He struck back against the singularity, desperately trying to tame his own power. His scales began rattling and his head felt like a cave troll was pounding it. Focussing with all his might, Spike started channelling the energy through his body, letting its magic fuel and strengthen him. The sensation tingled all over as the energy reached right to the tip of his claws. Spike looked down at them, he felt like he could lift a Usar as the energy flowed through his veins. Visions started flickering before Spike’s eyes: he saw an image of himself sitting alone in the Canterlot library, he saw an image of him rampaging through the streets of Ponyville and an image of Changelings bleeding the love out of Sweetie Belle. An eternal rage was threatening to consume him; smoke was billowing out his nostrils and his teeth were clamped so tight together they felt like they were going to shatter. Clenching his claws Spike turned his attention to the wall. Taking off, Spike ran much faster than he ever had before. The wall moved closer, just before he made contact Spike closed his eyes and turned his shoulder to face it.

 Brace for impact.

> Chapter Five
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sweetie Belle cringed away as Spike belted through the wall. Hearing it was still enough to make her flinch. A prod from Scootaloo brought her attention back to Spike and the wall, or much rather the lack of one. Where a pristine wall had once stood, barring any hope of escape, now was a gaping hole. Bits of rubble littered the area and a cloud of dust rose from the debris.

Sweetie Belle started over towards the hole, waving away as much of the dust cloud as she could. Entering the mouth of the hole she spotted Spike lying face down on the floor. Dread swept over her, draining all the colour from her coat. Standing over Spike she didn’t know what to do. Why haven’t we done crusading in doctoring? Sweetie Belle shuffled her hooves nervously looking around for anything that could help her. The room seemed to be somepony’s living room. A sofa and an armchair stood facing each other with a small square wooden table in between them, family portraits hung on the wall; but she couldn’t see anything of use. Apple Bloom and Scootlaoo joined her, each one looked at Spike just as helplessly as she did. Tears started to swell under Sweetie Belle’s eyes. He came to help us, it shouldn’t have been him. She placed her hoof on Spike’s shoulder.

“Spike?” she whispered. “Spike? Come on. You gotta get up.” Desperation had crept into her voice. “Spike, we gotta go.” Tears began to well up inside her. “SPIKE!” Sweetie Belle looked up to the heavens, tears streaming down her face. “SOMEPONY! ANYPONY! Help…” Sweetie Belle felt like the Changelings were feeding on her again. Moving over she laid down next to Spike, huddling close so their bodies touched. 

The dragon let out a soft groan. 

“Spike!” Sweetie Belle’s voice cracked in delight.

The purple dragon pushed himself up to a sitting position. Dust covered him from head to tail, his left side was covered in small bruises and across his chest lay a faint diagonal emerald scar, reaching from his waist up to his right shoulder. What struck Sweetie Belle however was Spike’s eyes, behind the innocent green burned a fire, wild and savage. 

Spike gave a humongous burp. As he did so, a stream of green mist escaped his mouth before dissipating into the air, the fire in his eyes died. 

“Remind me not to do that again.”

Sweetie Belle threw herself on Spike, wrapping her hooves around his neck, giving his cheek a small nuzzle. She held on for a couple more seconds before releasing him. Spike’s cheeks had a slight tint of red to them and he was having trouble meeting her eyes. 

“Um, thanks,” Spike said seeming embarrassed. 

Sweetie Belle smiled. She turned back to her friends, Scootaloo tilted her head to one side and looked at Sweetie Belle with utter confusion, whereas Apple Bloom was looking back and forth from Sweetie Belle to Spike. She finally turned her full attention to Sweetie Belle her eyebrows raised accusingly and a sly smile painted on her face. Sweetie Belle wiped away the tears under her eyes.

“What?” 

Apple Bloom’s eyebrows raised higher and she tilted her head towards Spike, Sweetie Belle followed her gaze. The Purple dragon still wasn’t looking at her and his cheeks seemed to be turning crimson.

“What?!” Sweetie Belle cracked at Apple Bloom.

“Nothin’” Apple Bloom wore a grin on her face like she knew something Sweetie Belle didn’t. “Don’t worry Scoot, and quit starin’” She clopped the Pegasus over the head who still had the dumb confused look on her face.

“We need to move.” Spike had recovered from Sweetie Belle’s affection assault and was now standing.

"Why? You and Sweetie dealt with those Changelings.” Scootaloo made some punching motions imitating the battle.

“One got away, and he’ll be back with more.” The thought of another encounter sent shivers down Sweetie Belle’s spine.

“So what we’all gonna do?”

Spike looked around the room, taking in its architecture. “These old houses have secret panic rooms from the Nightmare war, if we can find it then we can hide there until the Changelings are beaten.”

“What are panic rooms?” asked Sweetie Belle.

“They were first made when Nightmare Moon tried to take over. The idea was that if she ever attacked, then ponies could go hide in their panic rooms until the battle was over. They were hidden and protected by powerful magic.”

“How we gonna find it?”

“Don’t worry about that, you three stay here.” Spike wore a small smile and with that he dashed into the other room leaving Sweetie Belle and her friends alone. A few moments later he was back with a large grin on his face.

“Found it.” 

Sweetie Belle followed Spike with the rest of the crusaders through the kitchen and upstairs. The rest of the house had the same charm the living room had. If it hadn’t been so dark, Sweetie Belle would have called it homely. She thought back to her home, in Ponyville, with Rarity.

“Spike?”

“Yeah Sweetie. I-I mean yeah Sweetie Belle,” Sweetie Belle gave Spike confused look as his cheeks turned red again. 

“Is my Sister alright?” Her ears flopped to her side and her head hung low. Spike seemed to pause in thought for a moment.

“Sure she is, she’s with Twilight.” 

This did little to boost Sweetie Belle’s morale. Sensing his failure Spike continued.

"In fact I bet that they have the Elements of Harmony right now and are kicking some Changeling butt.” Spike gave the air a good kick. Sweetie Belle couldn’t help giggling at Spike making a fool of himself.

“You sure?”

“I know it. And I’m sure Apple Jack is right there with them,” Spike said, loud enough so that Apple Bloom could hear.

“Thanks Spike.” Sweetie Belle bumped her flank against Spike causing him to blush again.

“Do-don’t mention it.”

The four of them arrived at a grandfather clock. Its wood was clean and smooth, no splinters, no damp. The golden numbers shone as if they had just been polished and the hands ticked by unhindered by the passing of time. 

“Here we are,” Spike stated matter-of-factly. 

Spike opened the clock case, much rather than revealing a maze of cogs and moving parts, instead was another door with a silver key hole. Spike knelt down inside the clock. Sweetie Belle moved closer so she could better see what he was doing. Spike took in a small breath and held it; after a few seconds he whistled out a stream of green magic into the key hole. A series of clicks echoed from the door as if thousands of tiny locks unhooked on the other side. The door crept open, its absence showing a long dark tunnel with unlit torches hanging on the walls at regular intervals. Sweetie Belle could only see about three torches down before the tunnel was swallowed by darkness.

“Are you sure about this Spike?”

Sweetie Belle couldn’t help it, something about the tunnel scared her. The dragon took her hoof in his claw giving it a small squeeze. To Sweetie Belle’s surprise his claw wasn’t rough or hard, but gently encased her hoof in a wave of warmth as its smooth surface made her skin tingle. She looked at Spike’s face, his smile sent a flush of warmth through her body, dispelling all fear and doubts she had. Sweetie Belle turned to look at the floor as she felt her cheeks getting hot.

Spike led the crusaders into the tunnel. He let go of Sweetie Belle, which she was embarrassingly sad about. Spike shut the door and whistled into the key hole again, a series of clicks told Sweetie Belle that the door had locked itself. The pitch black of the room was flooded by a wave of light as Spike lit up one of the torches. Taking it in his claw Spike led them down the tunnel. Unlike the clock, the tunnel had seen better days, its walls were covered in damp moss and cracks in the brickwork challenged Sweetie Belle’s judgement as to whether the tunnel was stable. Sweetie Belle bounced around a puddle which shone an eerie green.

The tunnel opened up into a square room which had been carved out of rock. It was no bigger than Sweetie Belle’s bedroom. The only decorations were cobwebs and moss which hung on the wall. Two long slabs of stone formed benches on either side of the room and in the corner sat a bucket, which Sweetie Belle decided not to question. A chill wind swept around the room causing Sweetie Belle’s coat to stand on end.

“Where are we?” Sweetie Belle whispered.

“We’re in Canterlot Mountain,” Spike stated. “There are approximately two thousand of these rooms throughout the mountain, each one dedicated to a different house.”

“How do you know so much Spike?” Spike placed the torch in a holder on the wall before taking a seat on the slab furthest from the bucket. Sweetie Belle sat next to him, followed by Apple Bloom and Scootaloo who sat next to her.

“Twilight’s home schooling,” sighed Spike. “She made me write a 2000 word essay on ‘How did the Nightmare War affect the citizens of Equestria?’”

“What did you get?”

“Sorry?”

“What grade did you get?”

“Oh um, B+.”

“Are you two serious!?” shouted Scootaloo. Sweetie Belle jumped, puzzled at her friends outburst.

“Changelings are attacking, we’re trapped in a cold damp dark cave and you two are talking about ‘School Work’,” she spat the last bit with utter disgust.

Sweetie Belle looked at the floor, feeling embarrassed and ashamed. What’s wrong with me? My sister and her friends are out there right now fighting Changelings and here I am talking about school. She gave herself a small kick.

“Maybe you three should get some shut eye,” suggested Spike.

“Why y’all say that?”

“It’s just you three have been through a lot today, and maybe it would be for the best if you slept through the rest of it.” 

Sweetie Belle turned to Spike.

“But what about you?”

“Prfff me? I’ll be fine,” Spike waved away the accusation, “besides someone has to be awake so we know when it’s over.”

“I guess.”

“But I’m not even tired.” As soon as Scootaloo said it she gave off the biggest yawn.

Even Sweetie Belle had to admit that all the events of the last hour were starting to catch up with her. All her energy seemed to disappear and all her limbs became a lot heavier. Her eyelids began drooping.

“Maybe just a short nap won’t do no harm,” said Apple Bloom as she closed her eyes.

“I guess not.” Scootaloo quickly joined her.
Shivering, Sweetie Belle huddled closer to Spike. The dragon flinched at first but then as Sweetie Belle nuzzled up against him he nervously wrapped his arm around her. His warm scales brushing up against her coat made Sweetie Belle tingle from head to hoof. She looked up into the dragon’s large green emeralds.

“Is everything going to be alright?” Sweetie Belle asked.

“Do you trust me?” Spike gave her a reassuring smile.

Sweetie Belle smiled, letting her head rest against the stone and allowing her eyelids to droop.

“I trust you.”

Everything’s going to be alright. The moment her eyes were closed Sweetie Belle fell fast asleep.

> Chapter Six
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sweetie Belle tossed and turned, in a state where she wasn’t asleep but couldn’t bring herself to open her eyes. The stone slab felt wrong somehow, it was soft and comfortable, plus her head seemed to be resting on a pillow. Sweetie Belle shot up and wiped the dust out of her eyes. She wasn’t in the stone room any more that was for sure. She was lying in a four poster bed with a red duvet, a large double window let in light revealing the rest of the room. 

Further down the bed, a familiar purple dragon had pulled up a chair and was resting his head on the sheets. Spikes eyes were closed and he seemed to be muttering something about ice-cream.  

Giggling, Sweetie Belle pulled the up covers. She felt slightly embarrassed at Spike being here, but at the same time couldn’t help feeling happy as he lay there. Spike muttered one last sentence about the ice-cream being sweet before flicking his eyes open, Sweetie Belle smiled at him and he returned the favour.

“Hay Spike.” Sweetie Belle pulled the covers up even higher so they covered her mouth.

“Hay.” Spike leant back and stretched out his entire body making several clicking noises as he did. He still had the scar from the Changeling attack clearly visible on his chest. The attack!  

“Spike Spike what happened? What happened to the Changelings? Is Rarity alright? Where’s Apple Bloom and Scootaloo?!” Sweetie Belle was panting, a wave of panic having consumed her. 

The last thing she remembered was sleeping in the panic room and now here she was in a four poster bed with Spike! Well, not with Spike with Spike but… I know what I mean!

Spike took hold of her hoof. Sweetie Belle looked down at it, time seemed to stand still as she looked up into Spike’s emerald eyes. She was starting to tingle again. Spike gave her an understanding smile and soon she was breathing normally again.

“Spike, where are we?” 

“We’re in Canterlot Castle,” Spike said calmingly. Using her free hoof Sweetie Belle rubbed her forehead trying to make sense of the situation.

“What happened? Where is everypony?”

“A little while after you three had dozed, off a Canterlot guard came to check the panic room. He found us and we brought all three of you back to the castle. He told me that Princess Cadence and Shining Armor had summoned a spell so strong that it banished all the changelings in Canterlot and-”

“Sweetie Belle?” A familiar voice whispered from the door.

Sweetie Belle turned to see Rarity standing in the doorway, her magic suspending a tray of food in mid-air. Spike shot his claw away from Sweetie Belle’s hoof at lightning speed, this hurt her just a little more than she cared to admit. Rarity dropped the tray she was levitating and galloped over to Sweetie Belle, wrapping her arms around her whilst crying into her shoulder.

“I-I-I-‘m s-o-o-o glad you’re o-k-hay-hay,” Rarity cried into her little sisters shoulder. 

Sweetie belle wrapped her hooves around her sister returning the hug. She couldn’t remember the last time she had been so glad to see her big sis’. Rarity withdrew from the hug after they had held each other for long enough and placed her hoof onto Sweetie Belle’s forehead, wiping her eyes with the other. 

“Do you feel ok darling? Are you hot? You feel hot.” Sweetie Belle gently pushed her sister’s hoof away.

“I’m fine Rare.” 

“Are you sure darling, maybe an ice pack or maybe some nice herbal tea?” 

Rarity poured a cup of tea from a flask that sat on the bedside cabinet, practically forcing it down Sweetie Belle’s throat. The hot liquid burnt her tongue as it not so pleasantly slid down her throat. Sweetie Belle stuck her tongue out trying to air it off as well as expunge the taste stuck in her mouth. 

“Oh Sweetie I am so sorry quick drink this.” Rarity offered Sweetie Belle a glass of water which she took greedily. 

The cool water swam down her throat as the crisp ice brushed against her dry lips. Giving off a satisfied sigh she placed the empty glass on the cabinet licking her lips as she did. 

“Spike, I cannot tell you how grateful I am that you brought my little sister back in one piece.” Rarity nuzzled Sweetie Belle’s cheek.

“Oh it was nothing.” Spike was looking anywhere but at Sweetie Belle.  

“Nothing! Nothing!” Rarity gasped. “It was certainly not nothing, why it is everything,” Spike was starting to blush, “from what you’ve told me, Spike, you were quite the, quite the, oh, how to put it…”

“You were my hero Spike.” The moment Sweetie Belle said it she clamped her hooves to her mouth. 

Spike faced Sweetie Belle, an electric charge formed as their eyes met. Every hair on her body stood on end and her cheeks turned a deep shade of red. The pair of them broke eye contact and each looked in opposite directions.

“Thanks Sweetie Belle.”

“Don’t-don’t mention it.”

A couple of minutes passed where Sweetie Belle and Spike continued to look at anything but each other. Rarity sat there very confused looking from one to the other. Slowly piecing to together what was going on, a smile wove onto her face. 

“So I’m gonna go now,” Spike said as he got off his chair.

“What! You mean right now?” squeaked Sweetie Belle, her voice sounded far more upset than she had intended.

“Yeah, I mean, I’ve got loads to help Twilight with, you know re-planning the wedding and also, um, I’ll see you around.” 

Spike was trying to hide his face from Sweetie Belle and he quickly dashed out the room.

“Oh-ok,” Spike had already left. “I’ll see you around,” Sweetie Belle whispered, more to herself than anypony else.

Sweetie Belle laid back onto her pillow, her ears flopped to her side and she wore a glum expression. 

“Soooooo,” Rarity got her attention. “What happened between you and Spike?” Rarity’s eyes lit up.

“Wha-what do you mean?”

“Well it’s just you two seem,” Rarity paused searching for the right word, “closer.” Sweetie Belle lay there shell shocked by the accusation. 

“I-um-we-I. We’re just friends.”

“Well darling it seems to me that you two are a little closer than-“

“We’re just friends!” Sweetie Belle pulled the covers up so that they covered her whole body. “Now if you don’t mind, I’m tired and want some sleep!” She didn’t mean to shout at Rarity but for some reason Sweetie Belle felt very defensive. She heard Rarity sigh and make her way to the door.

“Let me know if you need anything, darling,” Rarity said as gently as possible, before shutting the door behind her.

Me and Spike. The thought gave Sweetie Belle goose bumps. Lying flat on her back she brought her hooves in front of her face. She clapped them together several time whilst making small kissing noises, all of her hair suddenly stood on end again. She brought her hooves down to her chest. 

“Me and Spike,” she sighed. 

Sweetie Belle closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep; her dreams populated by purple and green.

> Chapter Seven
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spike shoved another donut into his mouth, the rainbow of sprinkles and delicious glazing did little to lift his mood. Resting his chin on his claw, Spike returned to staring at the dance floor. 

The last few days had not been easy, ever since his visit to Sweetie Belle he’d been actively avoiding the filly. Every time she had come looking for him, Spike had ducked behind a cabinet or hid around a corner. Whenever she had actually managed to track him down, he’d blown her off with some poor excuse like “I have to go help Twilight with…” not that he hadn’t been busy being Twilight’s number one assistant. Spike had been running around all week making sure that the wedding ran on time. It had been important that the wedding happened as soon as possible after the changeling invasion, in order to boost morale and restore confidence in the security of Canterlot. 

Thanks to everyponys’ efforts the wedding had gone great. Apple Jack had remade all the food and Rarity had redone all the gowns and suits that had been ruined during the invasion. Spike looked around the reception, Pinkie Pie has really outdone herself. The Canterlot gardens had been decorated with technicoloured balloons of every shape and size, party cannons fired endless streams of confetti into the air, which had been enchanted so they disappeared before hitting the ground. Dozens of round tables covered in treats and sweets surrounded the central dance floor. 

Spike picked up another donut, holding the delicious treat up to his eye. Using it as a makeshift peep hole Spike scoured the tables for one particular white unicorn, spotting Sweetie Belle with her Crusader friends on the other side of the dance floor. The small filly was balancing plates on her head whilst trying to offer a drink to an uneasy looking upper class stallion. Spike’s stomach felt like it had butterflies in it and his heart was definitely beating faster. What has she done to me? Spike had tried to distract himself every way he knew how, but he kept finding himself looking at that same pink and purple mane, that same pure coat and that same infectious smile. 

Sweetie Belle turned in Spikes’ direction, giving him a small wave. Spike instantly broke eye contact, deciding that fiddling with his donut was far more entertaining than anything to do with Sweetie Belle. This game of cat and mouse was one he had been playing all night. He would watch Sweetie Belle for a bit, then when she turned to look at him, Spike would immediately look away, pretending to do anything else. After he was sure she wasn’t looking he would start the whole process all over again.

Taking off his massive top hat, Spike scratched his head before devouring the donut in one gulp.

“You know it tastes better if you chew it.” 

The donut got stuck in Spike’s throat, he started coughing and spluttering trying desperately to dislodge the trapped treat. A couple of whacks on his back from the newcomer shook the donut free and Spike swallowed it down.

“That said, I guess monsters do swallow their food whole, hay?” Shining Armor gave Spike a teasing wink before taking the seat next to him.

“I told you I don’t like it when you call me that,” Spike said trying to make his voice sound as annoyed as possible.

“Well maybe I wouldn’t, if you didn’t eat like a monster… monster.” Shining Armor said, referring to Spike’s suit which was now covered in a layer of crumbs. 

Giving his coat a little brush off, Spike was currently fighting a smile which was attempting to improve his bad mood.

“Come on Spike it’s my wedding, why aren’t you dancing with a pretty mare? Eh?” Shining Armor was giving Spike’s shoulder a nudge, egging him on. “The ladies love a strong male and from what I’ve heard I should be hiring you over half my guards!” 

“You know I couldn’t join your guard, Shining.”

“And why is that?” Shining Armor asked raising an eyebrow.

The smile broke through Spike’s defences and made its way onto his face. 

“I wouldn’t want to embarrass you, as I would clearly become your boss in noooo time.”

“Why you cheeky little… Why I ought ta’… Come here.” 

Shining Armor grabbed Spike’s head into a light head lock and from there continued to give him a noogy. Spike couldn’t help but burst into fits of laughter as he tried to escape from Shining’s hold on him. His arms flayed around as they couldn’t decide whether to free himself from the head lock or to stop the noogy.

“Stop, Shining,” said Spike in between his fits of laughter. “Stop, stop.”

“What was that, monster? You want me to tickle you?”

“Noooo!”

“Well alright then.” Shining Armor ceased his noogy assault and instead began tickling Spike’s belly. 

Not being able to help himself, Spike’s laughter doubled as his eyes started watering.

“Shining, stooop,” Spike tried to put on a more serious tone. “You’re embarrassing me.”

Shining Armor released Spike from his laughter prison, letting him draw some much needed breaths and allowing the last few giggles to escape his system.

“Sorry Spike, I wouldn’t want to embarrass you in front of a certain special somepony would I?” 

“I-I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Spike tried to sound as innocent as possible. How did he find out about Sweetie Belle?

“Well a certain somepony told me that you have a thing for a particular white unicorn.” 

Spike’s heart was going a mile a minute. looking over to Sweetie Belle, she had gathered a few glasses on top of her plates and looked like she was about to topple over.

“Just for what it’s worth I think you and Rarity would be great together.”

“Who?” Spike’s heart felt like it had just jumped out of his chest. How could I have forgotten about my sweet Rarity? Spike continued to gaze at Sweetie Belle. What is that filly doing to me?

Shining Armor was following Spike’s gaze, a look of utter confusion on his face. 

“Was I thinking of the wrong mare, Spike?” Spike’s face was starting to get hot, he pulled at his bow tie to try and get some more air. 

“You know that white filly over there is pretty cute, don’t you think?” Shining Armor was pointing straight at Sweetie Belle.

“I-I guess her coats alright.” Spike was with straining himself from going off on a tangent about how Sweetie Belle was anything but ‘pretty cute’.

“I bet she’d love a dance, what do you reckon?” Shining nudged Spike with his hoof.     

Spike soaked it all in, sitting in silence for a moment as he processed the idea.

“Shining?” Spike muttered.

“Yes buddy.”

“If, um, in theory… you know, in the future, if I wanted to ask a filly for a dance…” Spike paused.

“Yesss,” Shining prompted. 

“How, um, how would I go about that? you know… in theory,” Spike asked, fiddling with his claws. 

Shining Armor stroked his chin as if deep in thought.

“Well you might want to-”

“Hypothetically,” interjected Spike.

“Hypothetically, you could try complimenting her mane.” 

In his head Spike was writing himself a checklist. Twilight is rubbing off on me.

“Maybe, tell her how nice she looks in her pink dress and tiara.” 

Spike’s entire body froze up and his throat went dry as a bone. 

“Why would she be wearing that?” Spike awkwardly chuckled. 

“Oh no reason.” Shining wore a massive grin on his face, “then just ask her for a dance.”

“That’s it?” 

It couldn't be that easy, could it?

“That’s it.” answered Shining Armor.

“Thanks, uh, I have to go now.” Spike grabbed his hat and jumped off the chair, making his way around the dance floor.

“Who you going to see?” yelled Shining Armor.

“Um, no one!”

“You have fun with no one then!” 

Spike’s cheeks turned a bright red as he put his massive top hat on, making his way towards Sweetie Belle, his heart in his mouth.

> Chapter Eight
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Wait, come back, let me take your glass!” Sweetie Belle yelled after a blue stallion who wore a suit and monocle. 

Sweetie Belle swayed as the weight of all the delicate tableware balanced precariously on her head, almost caused her to topple. She and the other Crusaders hadn’t been having much luck with waitressing. Any time they arrived at a table the occupants always seemed to leave.

“Y’all having any luck?” 

“Nah, nopony wants my help.” Scootaloo had already succeeded in breaking every plate, bowl and glass she had tried picking up. 

Turns out that zooming around on a scooter was not a great strategy for waitressing. Sweetie Belle turned to face her fellow Crusaders.

“Come on girls let’s wait just a few more tables”

“Fine,” Apple Bloom groaned, “but we’re moving onto music next, ‘k?” 

“Yeah, I’ve got an awesome new solo I want to try.”

“CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS GUITAR PLAYERS YAY!” The three fillies hoof bumped.

“Um, excuse me.”

Sweetie Belle turned in the direction of the barely audible whisper. Her heart skipped a beat. Standing in front of her, was Spike. The purple dragon was wearing a smart tuxedo with an adorable red bow tie, his top hat was as tall as Sweetie Belle and it looked utterly ridiculous, but its goofiness somehow worked for him. 

Sweetie Belle had about a thousand and one things she wanted to say to the purple dragon, some of them not too kind, but her tongue felt like was glued in place.

“Y’right Spike, enjoying the scenery?” 

Sweetie Belle sent a glare at Apple Bloom, her ‘friend’ hadn’t stopped teasing her all week about Spike.

“I-I’m fine, thanks Apple Bloom.” Spike was fiddling with his claws and wouldn’t take his eyes off the floor. 

Gaining some courage he actually managed to look at Sweetie Belle, but his claws were fidgeting faster than ever.

“Hey Sweetie Belle I-er really like your mane.” 

The sudden compliment took Sweetie Belle quite off guard and she continued to stand there in complete silence. She could hear Apple Bloom giggling behind her.  Note to self, tease Apple Bloom about Rumble later. 

Spike composed himself, he stood up tall and offered out a shaking claw. 

“I was just wondering, you know if you wanted to, have a dance?” 

Sweetie Belle’s heart jumped out of her chest, went back in and then jumped out again. She felt like doing a back flip, a summersault and bursting into song. But instead she just stood there utterly perplexed. 

An awkward silence fell on the small group, Spike’s claw still outstretched. Scootaloo broke the silence, driving right up into Spike’s face and began yelling at him.

“As you can see we are in the middle of some major, extreme Crusading!” Scootaloo was going red in the face, “and even if we weren’t, why would Sweetie Belle want to dance with a gross boooy?”

Spike was cowering under Scootaloo’s scrutiny and looked like he was quickly regretting his decision. Part of Sweetie Belle couldn’t help but think he deserved Scootaloo’s tantrum. He has been avoiding me all week… but he’s here now so maybe I should give him a chance… oh what should I do? Apple Bloom gave her leg a light nudge.

“What yu’ waitin’ for?”

“It’s just,” Sweetie Belle whispered to Apple Bloom, “he’s been avoiding me all week, how do I know if he likes me?”

“Of course he likes yu’.”

“But how can you tell?” Asked Sweetie Belle, desperately hoping Apple Bloom would have an answer.

"Cos’ he’s been avoidin’ yu’.” Sweetie Belle gave Apple Bloom a ‘what?’ face. “Look boys are stupid, so if he’s been avoidin’ yu’, it means he really likes yu’.”

“Really?” asked Sweetie Belle.

“Really,” confirmed Apple Bloom, “now go have a dance.” 

Sweetie Belle gave her friend the biggest smile before trotting over to Scootaloo and Spike. Scootaloo was still grilling the dragon about how goofy his hat looked and he looked close to running for the hills. Sweetie Belle silenced her friend with a gentle tap on the shoulder.

“Um Spike, I’d love a dance,” Sweetie Belle practically whispered.

Scootaloo turned to Sweetie Belle in utter shock, revealing Spike’s eyes which were sparkling in delight.

“But what about our Crusading?” whined Scootaloo.

“You two go on I’ll catch up with you later.” Sweetie Belle placed the tableware on the floor and moved over to stand next to Spike. He offered out his arm and Sweetie Belle’s hooked her leg around it. 

Together, they walked over to the dance floor.

“Quit starin’ Scoot.” Sweetie Belle heard Apple Bloom smack Scootaloo behind the head.

Sweetie Belle was opposite Spike. The two stood there unsure how to start. Making it all the way to the dance floor had seemed like a journey in itself and now that they were here, they both seemed to have lost all their confidence.

As the music increased in tempo, Spike began tapping his foot to the beat. Sweetie Belle copied Spike’s action, stomping her hooves to match the music. Soon each of them were moving their whole bodies; letting go of all their cares and dignity. Spike moved in closer to Sweetie Belle throwing his arms around uncontrollably. The sight made Sweetie Belle burst into laughter as the baby dragon made a complete fool of himself.

Sweetie Belle moved to Spike’s side and began bumping her flank against him. Spikes’ cheeks turned positively crimson but he continued to dance, bumping against Sweetie Belle in return. Sweetie Belle couldn’t remember the last time she had had this much fun, sure she had loads of fun with her Crusader friends, but this was different. This was a sensation she had not experienced before. Dancing here, with Spike, made her feel like she would always have someone there: there when she succeeded, there when she needed a boost and there just because they wanted to be there.

Recovering from her daydream the music changed to a far slower song. All the couples sitting down got up and each pony nuzzled up to their partner, preparing to dance. Spike took hold of each of Sweetie Belle’s front hooves lifting her up so she stood on her hind legs. Spike rested one of Sweetie Belle's hooves around his neck and slid his free arm around her waist. Every hair on her body stood on end. Her heart was beating so fast, she felt like a sonic rainboom would explode out of her chest.

“Spike, I don’t know how to dance like this,” whispered Sweetie Belle nervously. 

“Don’t worry I’ll do all the work.” Spike gave her hoof a reassuring squeeze.

Sweetie Belle rested her head on his shoulder closing her eyes.

“I trust you.”

Spike moved to the music pulling Sweetie Belle in closer. With every step Sweetie Belle felt more comfortable in Spike’s arms. She could feel his warm breath against her neck, it washed over her like a sunny afternoon breeze. She felt as light as air, gliding along the dance floor as Spike gently guided her on an adventure, the likes of which she had never experienced. She pressed up against Spike’s chest, the warmth radiating from him melting her heart. She gave Spike’s neck a nuzzle, feeling like she could stay here forever.

The song ended far too quickly and Spike let Sweetie Belle return to the ground. The two of them continued to dance long into the evening, laughing and joking as each one tried new and extremely embarrassing dance moves. Sweetie Belle didn’t want it to end, but there is only so much dancing even an energetic filly like her can take. The two of them made their way over to a free table, Spike poured each of them a glass of cool crisp water.

“You’re a really good dancer Sweetie.” Sweetie Belle blushed at the nickname. Other ponies had called her that but it was somehow different coming from Spike.

“Thanks, what was that dance?”

"Which one?”

“You know, when I was just on my hind legs.” Just thinking about it made her heart flutter.

“I don’t know, it just felt right, holding you like that.” Spike sipped his water seemingly embarrassed. “We don’t have to do it again if you didn’t like it.”

“Oh no, Spike. I didn’t mean that at all.” She touched his claw with her hoof. “It was… nice.”

“Just nice,” Spike queried. 

“Spike,” the baby dragon looked into her eyes, “it made me feel like the most special pony in the whole world.”

The air between them became electrified as they gazed into each other’s eyes. Sweetie it, feeling like she would be very happy losing herself in those two gleaming emeralds. 

Her body acting completely of its own accord, an invisible force pulled the two of them together. She and Spike leant in, as if they were opposite ends of a magnet. Sweetie Belle’s lips felt very dry all of a sudden as a million thoughts raced through her head all at once. How’s my hair? Did I put on too much perfume? My breath! How’s my breath? I knew I should have brushed one more time. Spike was so close now she could feel his warm breath on her face. Closing her eyes Sweetie Belle leant into Spike.

Before they met, she felt a light pressure on her horn. Opening her eyes, Sweetie Belle flinched back in surprise as an oversized head ware balanced itself on the end of her horn. Spike was adjusting his oversized top hat, which had fallen forwards onto his face. His cheeks were a shade of red Sweetie Belle hadn’t even believed was possible and her cheeks felt as hot as a furnace.          

“You know I’m surprised that goofy thing didn’t fall off when we were dancing,” Sweetie Belle laughed. 

Giving up on resetting it, Spike took his hat off and looked down at it.

“You think it looks goofy?” Spike queried. 

“Well yeah,” She giggled. “I mean, it’s so big it barely fits on your-” Sweetie Belle was interrupted by said hat being pushed onto her head. The hat was too big and slid forward so it was covering her eyes. Spike was in fits of laughter.

“You’re right it does look goofy.” Sweetie Belle shook the hat off her head and attempted to stare down the dragon. She failed miserably as her stare only egged him on, causing him to laugh even harder, his chair rocking back and forth. It proved contagious and Sweetie Belle was soon laughing too, imagining how silly she must have looked.

“You know Sweetie Belle, I’ve had a really nice time tonight.” Spike had recovered himself and was fiddling with his claws again.

“Me too, Spike.” Sweetie Belle felt her cheeks getting hotter by the second, “and I barely did any Crusading.” The pair of them giggled at that.

“Spike! Spike!” Sweetie Belle looked over Spike’s shoulder to see Twilight Sparkle calling over her assistant. “Spike we’re about to see Shining Armor and Cadence off.”

“I’ll be there in a sec,” he replied.  Spike turned back to Sweetie Belle.

“Uh, Sweetie, I was wondering,” he scratched the back of his head, “we should… hang out more.”

Sweetie Belle raised her eye brow at the baby dragon and decided to probe him for more.

“What do you mean, Spike?” Sweetie Belle asked innocently.

“I mean, you know… we should… would you,” he screwed his eyes up, “DO YOU WANT TO GO OUT WITH ME?!” Spike clamped his claws over his mouth.   “Sweetie Belle I-”

She didn’t let him finish the sentence, wrapping her hooves around his neck, she gave Spike the biggest hug she could conjure. 

“Yes Spike, yes of course I will.”

“Spike!”  Twilight’s voice barely registered on either of their radars. Releasing a rather red Spike, Sweetie Belle reached out for his claw.

“The Crusaders and I are doing some Crusading next Sunday, want to tag along?” .

“Um, yeah sure.”Spike took her hoof in his claw

“Spike! You’re going to miss it!” Twilight persisted.

“Meet me at the boutique at ten, ok?” 

Spike just nodded, making a mental note of the time and place. 

“SPIKE!” Twilight’s tone had moved on from simply asking and was now an outright command.

Spike grabbed his hat and bobbed off of his chair. 

“I’ll see you then, yeah?”

“It’s a date,” replied Sweetie Belle, hardly able to control herself. 

All she wanted to do was give the dragon another huge hug, but decided if she did she would probably never let him go. With that Spiked darted off to Twilight leaving Sweetie Belle with the biggest grin on her face. 
> Chapter Nine
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

 Spike was awoken by a light ‘hooing’. Pulling his covers over his face, he decided to ignore it hoping the sound would just go away.

“Hoo-hoo.” Pulling his pillow out from under his head, Spike clamped it over his ears and buried his head into his basket. “Hoo-hoo.”

“Just five more minutes,” Spike groaned. 

“Hoo-hoo.” Spike felt a weight land on his pillow. “Hoo-hoo.” A beak started pecking at the top of his exposed head.

“Alright I’m up, I’m up,” Spike yawned. 

The weight lifted off him and he stood up. He began systematically stretching every muscle in his body, causing each individual bone to crack, making some crack twice just for the fun of it. Wiping the dust out of his eyes Spike was faced with Owlowiscious.

“Hoo-hoo,” the owl chirped whilst flying around his head, “hoo-hoo.”

“I said I’m up already.”

“Hoo.”

“Me, I’m up.” The owl’s black beady eyes seemed to be staring straight into Spike’s soul. “You’re a little creepy, you know that right?”

“Hoo.” Owlowisious turned his head all the way around, flying backwards to perch next to a small purple analogue clock.
Spike rubbed the last of the sand out of his eyes before fumbling out of his basket, the dim light of the moon being his only guide. Picking up the clock, it read 06:15. 

“Thanks for the early wake up,” Spike said, “and did you keep Twilight up late last night?”

“Hoo.”

“Twilight,” Spike was getting slightly irritated, “did you keep her up studying, like we agreed?”

The owl flew over to a large double bed and perched on the head. Twilight Sparkle lay fast asleep on top of her duvet, decorated with the night sky. Books were spread all over the bed and an open one lay inches from her muzzle. Sighing softly, Spike collected up each of the books, marked her page with a bookmark that resembled a crescent moon and stacked all of them neatly next to her bedside cabinet. Grabbing his blanket, Spike laid it over the purple unicorn before dabbing a small trickle of drool from Twilight’s lips. She smiled before curling herself further under the blanket. Giving her a kiss on the forehead, Spike smiled down at the purple pony. He gave her a hug, gently so not to wake her, before quietly tiptoeing out the room.


Making his way to the kitchen, Spike pored himself a bowl of cereal and sprinkled it with some crushed up sapphires. Crunching down his delectable gemstones, whilst barely tolerating the wheat which made up the bulk of his breakfast, Spike burped into existence his Sunday checklist. Ticking off ‘Get up early’ and ‘Eat breakfast’, he groaned at the next item on the agenda: ‘Wash and Wax’. 


The purple dragon standing in front of Spike was looking exceptionally handsome today. His purple scales had been waxed and polished to perfection, not an inkling of dirt was visible. His shiny scales reflected as perfectly as the mirror in front of him, creating an endless stream of dazzling Spikes. Running his snake like tongue along his teeth, Spike closely inspected each and every one; they were spotless, as white as snow and freshly trimmed, so his front teeth only peeped out his mouth. 

“Looking good Spike, looking real good,” Spike told his reflection. 

Showing off his muscle, Spike marvelled at his creation. Admiring himself from a few different angles, Spike couldn’t help but feel his confidence rising. The early morning start was going great, sure it has taken me a good hour but it’ll all be worth it, Spike thought.  

Spike crept out the library, having made sure that he’d tidied everything away and left Twilight a note saying he wouldn’t be back till later. He had left the note vague on purpose, as he wasn’t sure how public Sweetie Belle wanted the date, better safe than sorry, Spike shrugged. He closed the front door with masterful skill, which came from countless practice of sneaking off (normally when Twilight went off on one of her rambles). Spike breathed in the cool crisp morning air. The sky was populated by several grey clouds, which were glittered with specks of sunlight. It was far too early to have expected Rainbow Dash to have cleared the skies, hardly anypony was up and about at this time. The only pony Spike could see, on the usually bustling streets, was a navy blue unicorn; he had a scarf to match his coat and levitated a cup of coffee in front of him. The unicorn’s cutie mark gave him away as some kind of architect. Spike couldn’t recall seeing him in town before, oh well just another Pinkie Pie welcome party to looked forward to, thought Spike, maybe I can take Sweetie Belle! Spike’s eyes lit up and he walked off with a skip in his step.

There it stood, in front of Spike, an impenetrable fortress of white and blue. The purple gate bared any entrance the baby dragon may have wanted to gain, its diamond eyes watching him mercilessly as he paced in front of, Carousel Boutique. Spike had come armed with the finest weapons his modest pocket money would allow: mint chocolate cupcakes from Sugarcube corner and white roses he’d bought from Rose. 

An overwhelming emptiness had passed over Spike, a chasm had awoken in him and was draining any positive sensation he could think of. All that was left was doubt. Checking the sun, Spike made it at around half nine, I’m early, he thought. But am I the right amount of early, I don’t want to seem too eager do I? Or do I? Shaking his head, he inspected his sleek scales again. They’re nowhere near good enough! Spike yelled in his head, how could I have possibly thought this was good enough. He slid his tongue along his teeth, and my teeth should be at least a few millimetres shorter… oh, what will Sweetie Belle think? Taking a few minutes to get over his anxiety, Spike reckoned he had killed about five minutes. Deciding that things couldn’t get much worse and he would most likely have to run home and wash himself all over again, Spike was about to leave, when the door to Carousel Boutique slid open. Out trotted Rarity, her nose upturned at a bag of rubbish she was levitating in front of her. As she dumped the bag into her garbage can, she spotted Spike standing frozen to the spot.

“Well, good morning Spike.” Her eyes darting to the treats Spike held in his arms. “And what brings you here on this fine morning.”

“I’m here to see Sweetie Belle,” whispered Spike.

“Well aren’t you just the cutest Spikey wikey, bringing my little sister all these dashing presents, what a true gentlecolt.” 

Spike couldn’t help blushing.

“Well you’re certainly doing a lot better than all the other colts Sweetie Belle has come over,” Rarity said nonchalantly.

Spike felt his throat clamp shut, as he started choking on air. 

“Oth-huh colt-huh friends-huh,” Spike spurted.

“I’m only teasing you, Spike,” Rarity giggled, “my little sister has never had a colt home before, you must be very special.” She gave him an innocent wink.

Spike’s choking ceased and he composed himself. He tried to send a glare at Rarity for such a cruel prank, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it.

“Now, Spike darling, I am most distraught to tell you that Sweetie Belle is feeling a little under the weather today,” Rarity’s tone changed to that of a protective sister, “and therefore I must insist that she do nothing to, strenuous.” 

Rarity cocked an eyebrow at Spike. He wasn’t sure how to handle the news. On the one claw he was upset that Sweetie Belle was ill and therefore they couldn’t hang out. But on the other claw this gave him an opportunity to retreat, regroup and make sure their next date was perfect.

“Could I, at least go in and see her,” Spike asked, “if only to give her these?”

Rarity pondered the request for a few seconds, although the glimmer in her eye already gave away her answer.

“I suppose so, yes, I’m sure she would appreciate it.” Rarity turned to Spike one last time, “But no funny business mister.”

Rarity gave Spike an ‘I’ve got my eye on you’ look, before leading him into the boutique.

Spike couldn’t remember how he got here, he couldn’t recall going into the boutique, climbing the stairs or the hallway. All that he could focus on was the door in front of him. It was painted white and covered in glitter from top to bottom, shimmering gold, silver and pink as the hallway light reflected off the baby stars. A large pink piece of paper was stuck to the door, it read ‘Sweetie Belle s room’ ; each letter was constructed out of different coloured gem, which had been glued on with little care but a lot of love. Just below the sign dangled a picture on a piece of string. The picture showed the white filly offering a hug to the viewer, with a small golden message that read ‘Come in!’ 

Curious, Spike turned the picture round, on the back was another picture that showed an angry Sweetie Belle. It was actually rather comical as she tried to look as angry as possible, but still looked unbelievably cute; it too had a golden message, ‘Go away!’  

Spike tentatively opened the door. A stream of light crept in through a slight opening in the curtains. The walls were painted pink, with posters of various singers and bands decorating the canvas; there was no similarity between each one. One poster depicted four teenage colts, each sporting a rather feminine mane style, strewn across a beach in rather suggestive poses. Whereas the poster right next to it was of a mares face, her entire coat had been dyed black except or a tiny area below her left eye, which had been made to look like a tear drop. Her other eye was completely covered by her black mane, which had red highlights at the end. Across the top of the poster read ‘Light Lies and Darkness Deceives’. Charming, thought Spike. 

To his right stood a large white wardrobe, with hearts for handles, as well as a chest of drawers. To his left was a four poster bed, a light blue duvet covered a white sleeping unicorn. Sweetie Belle’s naturally bouncy mane was sagging against her face and her coat had a grey tinge to it. A sharp pain pierced Spike’s chest, he couldn’t explain it, but the sight of the filly was wrong. She just doesn’t look right without a smile on her face.

Deciding not to dordle Spike looked for somewhere to leave his gifts. The bedside cabinet was full of medicine (which Spike was very happy not tasting) and a glass of water, which sat next to a picture of Rarity and Sweetie Belle. Spying a small desk next to the window, Spike made his way over. A rainbow of papers and colouring pens were scattered across it, in an organised chaos only the fillies’ mind could understand. Clearing a small area, Spike placed the flowers and box of cupcakes down. The wall in front of the desk caught his attention, it was smothered with photos. At first glance it appeared they had been pinned to the wall at random, but as Spike looked closer, he could tell that every picture, placement and position had been calculated to the nth degree. Each photo had been organised and lovingly place with a precise pink pin. On the edge of the collage were pictures of Sweetie Belle with her parents, no two locations were the same. One showed them atop the pony of liberty, another with Sweetie riding atop a stone dragon outside a museum. Deeper into the collage were pictures of Sweetie from her younger years, Celestia she is adorable. Further in showed pictures of the Cutie Mark Crusaders in various antics, one of which was all three of them in their talent show costumes. Although Spike hadn’t realised at the time, he liked Sweetie Belle in the costume; the way it clung to her showed off her sleek figure, her mane looking so out of place and rebellious. Spike suddenly realised he was getting very hot and felt like he had Parasprites in his belly. He moved onto the centre pictures, but decided one day (if he ever plucked up the courage) he would ask her to put that on again.

The picture at the core of the collage was of Sweetie Belle, her parents and Rarity at the beach. Sweetie Belle’s dad was buried in sand all the way up to his neck and her mum was balancing on a behemoth beach ball. On the left stood Rarity, a pair of stylish sun glasses perched on her forehead and on her back stood Sweetie Belle, her dad’s signature hat balanced precariously upon her head. The picture looked like a postcard; the clear blue sky allowed the sun’s dazzling rays to shimmer off the sea in the background. All four ponies were smiling at Spike, each wearing their cheesiest grins. But none of them looked happier than Sweetie Belle, in fact, Spike couldn’t think of a time he had seen anypony as happy as she looked.


“Spike?”

Spike turned around to address the weak whisper. Sweetie Belle’s ears lay flat against her head and she could barely lift her head off the pillow.

“Hey Sweetie,” Spike replied. He spoke very softly, fearing that merely speaking loudly might break the sick filly. Spike walked over to Sweetie Belle’s bed side as she coughed roughly into her hoof. “How you feeling?”

“Never better, all ready for our date.” Sweetie Belle gave a weak smile.

“I don’t think that’s a great idea Sweetie, you seem a little, sick.”

“No, I’m fine.” Sweetie Belle attempted to push herself up with her fore hooves. They wobbled like jelly under the strain, before she collapsed back onto the soft bed. “Ok (cough) maybe I’m not 100%, but-”

Spike cut her off with a single claw to her lips. He gave her what he hoped was an understanding smile, then she burst into tears. Spike quickly pulled her into a fierce hug, letting her cry into his shoulder. The thick tears trickled down his scales as he let Sweetie Belle wash out all of her emotions.

“I-I’m sorry (sniff), It’s just I wa-was looking forward to thi-is all we-eek and it wa-as going to be per-erfect and we-e were gonna have so much fun and…” Sweetie Belle continued to bawl into Spike’s shoulder, occasionally muttering some intangible babble.  


“It’s ok Sweetie, its ok,” Spike reassured her. 

He began making small circular movements with his claw against her back. Sweetie Belle’s soft fur tickled as his claw brushed across it. With each circle Sweetie Belle relaxed a little bit more, ceasing her rambling. Sweetie Belle gripped him like a vice. She seemed to think that if she let Spike go, he would disappear. Spike could feel her tears channel through his scales, feel her heartbeat thump against his chest, smell her strawberry scented mane… wait what. The aroma was intoxicating. What he had mistaken for as strawberries now smelt like raspberry? Or is it kiwi? What now it smells like melted chocolate! The rainbow of fumes assaulted Spike’s senses making his head tingle, which quickly spread all the way down to his tip toes. 

A soft giggle in his ear brought Spike back to reality. Sweetie Belle had stopped crying and apparently caught him taking whiffs of her mane. She didn’t seem to mind however, resting her head on his -now admittedly wet- shoulder, nuzzling into his cheek. Closing their eyes, they held each other, letting their body heat dry off Sweetie Belle’s tears, as Spike continued to gently massage her back. 

A course of heat consumed Spike, followed by a platter of panic. What do I do now? Do I keep holding her? I mean I like holding her, she’s so soft and warm and smells so good. But if I do that she might think I’m weak softy and fillies want a big, strong, fierce partner, right? What if she doesn’t like hugging me? Let’s face it, it can’t be very nice having to hug my coarse rough scales. I should break the hug. What if she likes it? Come on Spike pull it together! You’re a dragon! A dragon Celestia damn it, you can decide whether or not to keep a hug going! Right?

As if reading his mind, Sweetie Belle nuzzled his cheek, nestling her head further onto his shoulder as if she meant to sleep there. Spike smiled and lightly rested his head on hers. 

“Spike?” Sweetie Belle hoarsely whispered. 

Spike answered with a simple ‘mmm’. 

“Could you stay with me today?” She coughed into his shoulder, “if it’s not too much trouble.”

Spike lifted his head off hers and stared into her eyes, her glorious green eyes. “Nothing would make me happier.”

Sweetie Belle’s face seemed to light up as if she was the sun itself. She leaned in and gave Spike a kiss on the cheek. Every fibre of Spike suddenly shut down, expect for that cheek. Every ounce of him, every thought, every feeling was focussed on that single moment. Like a pebble dropped into a pond, a feeling of unfathomable happiness rippled from Spike’s cheek, coursing through him, body and soul. 


The door crept open, allowing the entrance of a certain white mare. Spike looked over at Rarity. A single eyebrow raised at him caused Spike to sheepishly untangle himself from Sweetie Belle and hop off her bed. Although Sweetie Belle gave a cute whine at her and Spike being separated, she also felt Rarity’s gaze fall upon her and so put up little resistance. 

“Now darling how are you feeling?” Rarity asked as she trotted over to Sweetie Belle.

“Oh I’m fine, really I don’t need anything” Sweetie Belle emphasised. Spike couldn’t help but think Sweetie Belle was hinting for Rarity to leave.

Rarity chose to ignore these not so subtle prompts, as she stuck her hoof against Sweetie Belle’s forehead.

“No you most certainly are not. I mean look at you dear, I simply must insist on more bed rest.” Sweetie Belle moaned at Rarity’s diagnose, “I would have been up earlier if I wasn’t so swamped with orders, I tell you the weeks leading up to the Gala are the most stressful of the whole year.” 

An idea popped into Spike’s head. “You know Rarity, I could look after Sweetie Belle.”

The two white unicorns turned to look at him; one wore a face of absolute delight, whilst the other seemed to become anxious. 

“Really Spike, I wouldn’t want to trouble you, I mean what if you wind up sick?” Rarity countered.

“Oh it’s no trouble, plus I’ve never been sick a day in my life,” whilst that wasn’t strictly speaking true, what was true is that Spike was almost never ill so he doubted he would catch whatever Sweetie Belle had, “plus it would give you all the time you needed to work on your dresses.”

Rarity stroked her chin, clearly weighing the merits of Spike’s suggestions. “It would allow me to stay on schedule.” She turned to Sweetie Belle, “as long as it’s ok with you dear.”

“Yeah!” Sweetie Belle cracked, “Spike can take care of me” her voice was starting to return to its bubbly self.

With that Rarity made her way to the door, turning back one last time “I’ll be up as often as I can and remember, you only have to ask if you need anything.” With that she left to return to her work.


As soon as Rarity was out of ear shot, Spike turned to Sweetie Belle and knelt on one knee.

“I am at your service my lady, anything you require shall be yours,” Spike spoke in his noblest voice.

Sweetie Belle just stared at him for a second, a look of confusion painted on her face. Quickly catching on she giggled, causing Spike’s confidence to well spike.

“Could you get me some tablets and water please,” she asked.

“As you wish, Lady Belle.” Spike swiftly stood up, gathered the required items and passed them to Sweetie Belle bowing his head as he did so.

“Thank you Sir Spike.”

As she swallowed the tablets, Spike collected the flowers and cupcakes. Offering them nervously to Sweetie Belle.

“For you, Sweetie.” 

I just can’t stop calling her that.

“Oh Spike, they’re lovely.” She took the flowers and gave them a clogged sniff before moving onto the cupcakes, “MINT CHOC CHIP!” With speed Spike didn’t even know was possible, Sweetie Belle had scoffed a cupcake whole into her mouth.

She took some lengthy chews, giving off an occasional moan before finally swallowing. Before she had even finished swallowing another of the delectable treats was in her mouth.

“Hwbibooonowoo”

“What?” asked Spike.

Sweetie Belle swallowed before answering. “How did you know these were my favourite?”

“Well, you know Pinkie Pie.”

Sweetie Belle nodded in acknowledgment before taking a bite out of another minty masterpiece. She held one out to Spike, whilst spluttering crumbs all over her duvet. Despite how tasty it looked, Spike was rather put off by Sweetie Belle’s, less than lady like eating habits. He merely shook his head, so Sweetie Belle simply shrugged and scoffed the cupcake in her already occupied mouth.

Deciding to move on, lest Sweetie Belle suffocate herself, Spike scanned the room.

“So, you like music?” 

Sweetie Belle swallowed her impressive mouthful “I love music, the way musicians and singers sync their talents to create something so wonderful!” she gave a soft sigh before lying back on her bed, “it’s just harmony incarnate if you ask me.”

“So what genre is your favourite?”

“I don’t look at it that way.”

“What way?”

“I don’t think music should be segregated into different types, you know, to me music is just music,” Sweetie Belle looked straight into Spike’s eyes, “It’s like me asking you what type of pony is your favourite, Earth, Unicorn or Pegasus.”

Spike stood baffled for a second, pondering the question, “I don’t have a favourite,” he stated, “I just think of you all as ponies.”

“That’s how I see music, each genre, artist and song may be different, but in the end at their core their all the same.”

“So is that why you have so many posters?” Spike asked, addressing the various music posters scattered across the walls.

Sweetie Belle gave a small cough before taking a swig of water. “I picked all these up from concerts.”

“What, you picked all these up from one concert?” 

“No silly, I got one from each concert I’ve seen,” Sweetie Belle giggled.

Spike’s mouth dropped open, “How have you seen so many?”

“Mum and Dad took me when we were travelling.” 

Spike just stared at her, he felt like he should know what she was talking about, come on Spike remember, you must of heard something about Sweetie Belle travelling. When nothing came to mind his stomach began to churn. 

Sweetie Belle gave him a weak smile, sensing his confusion. “You see although I have always ‘lived’ in Ponyville, I never spent much time here when I was younger.” She looked at Spike expectedly, but when he asked no questions she continued, “I was always travelling from one place to another, basically the first few years of my life were just one big holiday! Rarity was there from time to time, but she had her business to think about so it was mostly just me, Mum and Dad. It was great! I got to go to all these fantastic places and concerts, plus no school! Well Dad home schooled me a bit, but not much.” 

“So what happened?” asked Spike.

“Well, we never spent that much time in one place, two maybe three months at most, so I never got the opportunity to make any real friends.” 

Spike’s heart sank as Sweetie Belle’s ears dropped and her smile faded. He reached out and held her hoof, giving it a small squeeze. It seemed to do the trick as her smile returned with renewed vigour. 

“So one day when I we were in Ponyville, I ran into Scootaloo becoming friends in no time, went to school and had a normal life, well for three months. Then we were supposed to go on another trip to Saddle Arabia, but I chose to stay. I loved having such an adventurous life, but those three months here had made me realise this is where I belonged. It took some convincing but eventually Mum and Dad decided to stay too.” Sweetie Belle gave a distant smile.

“But I thought you lived with Rarity now?”

“Yeah, Mum and Dad gave it their best effort, but they loved life on the road too much. They still write and visit, but they’re away most of the time. It’s been hard on Rarity, taking me in and looking after me. But she really is the best sister ever!”

Sweetie Belle began coughing, each one growing in intensity. Spike hopped up onto the bed and started lightly smacking her back, until the coughing subsided. He leant back against the head of her bed, taking in the springy nature of the mattress. Then Spike felt a weight on his lap. Looking down, Sweetie Belle was laying down, resting her head in his lap. A nervous trickle crept up Spike’s spine. He hesitated for a second before stroking a claw through Sweetie Belle’s mane. As her soft threads of pink and purple washed across his claw, Sweetie Belle shivered before settling into the motion. The two lay there, enjoying each other’s company as Spike gently caressed her mane. 

“So what about you?” 

“What about me?” asked Spike.

Sweetie Belle turned her head slightly to look up at Spike. “I told you about me, what about you?”

A hiccup of flame erupted out of Spike, “Oh you don’t want to hear about me.”

Sweetie Belle’s face turned into one of confusion. “No I do, please, I mean I know that Twilight got you as an egg, but where do you come from.”

Spike’s heart skipped a beat. He was on a tiny island, the vast sea licking against its sandy body, a single palm tree his only companion. He had buried a forbidden treasure long ago, and nopony could see it. He looked down at Sweetie Belle, her eyes pleading for him to share with her. Maybe it would be nice to have some company…

“Ok, but promise not to tell anypony, ok?”

Without hesitation, she picked up a cupcake and stuck it in her eye. “I Promise.” 

Sweetie Belle nuzzled into Spike’s lap, waiting for him to begin.

“Do you know the legend of Galreek?” Spike asked. Sweetie Belle shook her head. “Around 800 years ago a fully grown dragon named Galreek plagued the East coast of Equestria. It’s said that her Scales were made of the purest silver and her eyes as black as coal. She stood as tall as Canterlot Castle and her wing beat could produce a hurricane. She tore whole towns apart, burning most of the coastline to a crisp.”

Sweetie Belle began shivering, Spike stroked her mane to calm her down, waiting until she was ready before continuing. 

“Needless to say Princess Celestia rode out to meet this great drake. The two fought for three days, before Galreek finally fell.”

“She killed her?” Sweetie Belle squeaked.

“Some creatures just can’t be reasoned with.” Spike gave a heavy sigh, “a week later another town was sacked by a group of… baby dragons.”

Sweetie Belle gave Spike one of the saddest faces he had ever seen, “Galreek’s children?”

Spike nodded. “They had gone frenzied from lack of care, baby dragons need a lot of attention in their first few months otherwise they go wild. Celestia had to silence the whole nest, save for one unhatched purple dotted egg.”

Spike felt a drop of water trickle onto his lap, “how many?” sniffed Sweetie Belle.

“12… 12 brothers and sisters.”

A single tear crept out the side of Spike’s eye. He had never known those dragons: never seen them, never heard their laughter, never even felt their touch. But when he closed his eyes, if he concentrated really hard, he could see them. See him playing with his brothers, his sisters giving him a hard time abut girly stuff, see his alpha brother teach him how to fly or breath fire properly. Memories he could never had, never could have… all because of her, all because of Celestia! She could have saved them! She could have helped them! Why did they have to die! What gave her the right! Smoke began to billow out of Spike’s nostrils, he could feel his claws creeping out and his tail began to spasm as if something was trying to burst free.

“I’m sorry Spike, I’m so sorry.” Sweetie Belle jumped up and wrapped Spike in a huge hug. He returned the hug in full; the fire in Spike’s eyes dies away, his claws retracted and his tail settled down.

“It’s ok Sweetie Belle, you didn’t know.” 

“Wait, you said this happened 800 years ago,” she sniffed

“As I was unhatched, Princess Celestia saw me as a defect, a dud egg. So she kept me as an entrance test for her school of gifted unicorns. Twilight had to try and hatch me for her entrance exam you know, but the point was never to hatch me merely to see what different spells the unicorn would use to try and hatch me.”

“But Twilight did hatch you.”

“I don’t know how or why I hatched for Twilight, but I do know that the first thought I ever had was when she entered that exam room.” Spike stated.

“And Twilight was allowed to have you?” sniffed Sweetie Belle.

“From what Twilight tells me it took a lot for her to convince Celestia and her parents that she could keep me.” Spike Chuckled.

Sweetie Belle sat in silence, not making eye contact with Spike. Oh Celestia I’ve blown it, she was all into you and now she’s scared out of her wits. She thinks you’re going to turn into Galreek! And why won’t you, let’s face it you had that near miss last year on your birthday, who says it won’t happen again! 

Spike just looked at the beautiful filly next to him. “Sweetie Belle… are you scared of me?” Spike squeezed his eyes shut, feeling water works trying to escape.

“Spike,” came Sweetie Belle’s voice, Spike opened his eyes to see her sitting right in front of her. “You are the kindest, smartest, most generous being I have ever met.”

“But…”

“No buts! You are not those dragons! You are Spike and I could never be scared of you.”

“Promise?” whimpered Spike.

“Promise.” Sweetie Belle gave Spike a massive hug, followed by a peck on the cheek. 

Spike emptied a few built up tears into Sweetie belle’s shoulder. Her words had shone light on the darkest corners of his mind. He felt safe and secure around her, as if when she was there nothing could go wrong.

“Thank you Sweetie.”

“No probl-(cough-cough-cough)”

Sweetie Belle’s coughing fit had returned in full force and it took Spike giving her back a firm pat to snap her out of it. Sweetie Belle reached for the tablets again, but Spike gently stopped her.

“I’ve got a better idea,” he said, a sly smile crossing his face.

“What?” Sweetie Belle quizzed.

“Turn over so you laying on your front.” Sweetie Belle gave Spike a rather comical confused expression. “Trust me.”

She complied, resting her head on her pillow whilst lying on her stomach. Spike knelt next to her, cracking his knuckles so they popped. Spike noticed a blush forming on Sweetie Belle as he towered over her.   

Spike closed his eyes and began gathering power to his gut. The familiar sensation tingled as untamed power began dwelling within him. Spike began to imagine his fist birthday, how a purple frosted cake had been given to him, a large green candle in the shape of a 1 standing in the middle; he thought of the time he had been asked to narrate the Canterlot Hearts Warming Eve production; but at the forefront of his mind was that night, when he and Sweetie Belle had danced together, laughed together and when she had said yes. The power swallowed Spike’s emotions as he fed the memories into its bottomless appetite. The singularity ceased its swelling, washing through Spike like the sea on a calm summer’s day. Its power glided out of him as a delicate trickle of green fire. Holding out his claws, he allowed the fire to engulf them. The magic seeped into his scales sending mild shockwaves up his arms, a green aura pulsing out of his claws.  

Spike began massaging Sweetie Belle, working his claws into her shoulders. Feeling the tension in her muscles he began making tiny circles with the tips of his claws, kneading them into Sweetie Belle’s soft fur. At first Spike felt a tiny bit of resistance as his claws worked their magic, but the filly quickly surrendered as he worked his way down her back. Using the very tips of his claws, he caressed her back causing Sweetie Belle to shiver at his touch. She let out the occasional innocent squeak as he ran his claws across the middle of her back. The green aura surrounding him seeped into Sweetie Belle as Spike’s claws glided across her fur.

“Sweetie.”

Sweetie Belle looked up at Spike, some colour had already returned to her coat and she was wearing a huge smile.

“I’m going to be moving onto your flanks,” Spike said nervously. Sweetie Belle’s smile faltered. “If you’re not comfortable then I won’t do it, but your cutie mark area is the main magical focus point for your whole body. So it’s the best spot for me to treat you.”

Sweetie Belle gave a small nod, before resting her head back onto the pillow. Spike placed his claws onto her flanks, making delicate spiral movements as he released the last built up magic. Spike watched as emerald light shot out from Sweetie Belle’s flank, zigzagging across her whole body. The air became electrified as green energy discharged from Sweetie Belle’s body at random intervals. A thick wall of steam erupted out of her fur, fogging up the window and causing the humidity to rise considerably. The tip of her horn sizzled, releasing the last remnants of magic.

“Hey Sweetie how yu’… what in the hay r yu’ two doin’!?”

Spike sat frozen with his claws still on Sweetie Belle’s flanks, sweat trickling down him and Sweetie Belle, as Apple Bloom trotted through the door.

> Chapter Ten
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spike’s options flashed through his mind. He was pretty sure that he could survive jumping out of the window and running away to live in the Everfree Forest; or, he could go to Twilight and ask her to send him back in time so he could warn himself that this would happen. He then had a very strange idea about asking Apple Bloom if she’d like to join them, lingering on that image much longer than he should of.

“Ma’ sis’ always said it’s fine for a colt to look,” Apple Bloom paused, “as long as it’s with his eyes and not ‘is hooves.”

Spike realised he had gone for a different and far more stupid option. As he sat with his claws still on Sweetie Belle’s flanks, a blush bloomed on his face that made his scales turn from purple to crimson. 

He quickly took his claws back, plastering them to his sides, before hopping off the bed. 

“We-I-Sweetie-ill-massage-um…”

Apple Bloom gave Spike a look that made him feel like he was four years old and had just stuck his claw in the cookie jar, before Sweetie Belle saved him from her friends unrelenting leer. 

“It’s ok Bloom, Spike was just giving me a massage.” This only gained a cocked eye brow from Apple Bloom, “I mean, he was doing some magical therapy and the cutie mark is like the centre of magic for the body, or something.”

“Is that right now?” Apple Bloom turned to Spike, scrutinising the legitimacy of Sweetie Belle’s story. 

“Um… yeah, the cutie mark is the magical ‘heart’ in all ponies, so it was the best place to channel my fire through.”

“So she’s cured is she?”

“Uh…no, I didn’t cure her.” Spike was finding the floor very interesting at this point, “my fire just helps Sweetie’s body fight the virus.”

Looking up at Sweetie Belle now, it was clear that it was working. Her coat had almost returned to its normal colour, her ears had perked up and she was sporting an adorable smile. 

“Well a’ guess that makes sense,” Apple Bloom shrugged, “jus’ don’t let Scoots catch yu’, she’ll bite yu’ claws off.”

Spike let out a breath he hadn’t realised he’d been holding.

“Where is Scootaloo anyway?” asked Sweetie Belle.

“She’s jus’ down stairs cleanin’ her scooter, we ran through a muddy puddle on the way over, a’ swear she loves that thing more than life itself.” Apple Bloom trotted over and sat on the end of the bed. 

As if on cue an orange blur shot through the door. Scootaloo slammed the door behind her, holding it closed, acting as a pony doorstop.

“Your sister’s crazy!” Scootaloo pointed at Sweetie Belle, “she made me wash my hooves four times before I could even come inside! Plus then she said something about straightening my mane and a fringe and and aaaah!” She jumped at a small bang downstairs.

Spike couldn’t help but giggle into his claw and he could see the other two were struggling to keep their amusement hidden.

Scootaloo didn’t seem to notice. “Why is it so hot in here?” she said, fanning herself with her hoof.

“Oh right.” Spike opened the window, letting in a welcomed wave of fresh air. 

The orange Pegasus stood there for a second, confused, before shaking her head and making her way over to join Apple Bloom.

“Hey Sweetie Belle, Rarity told us you were sick, how you doing?”

“Oh she’s feelin’ muuuuuuch better, aint that right Spike?” winked Apple Bloom.

“Hey,” snapped Sweetie Bell, “Spike was just trying to make me better, that’s all.” 

“And yu’ gonna’ tell me yu’ didn’t enjoy it?”

It looked like somepony had just thrown a bucket of red paint over Sweetie Belle. Her entire body turned rigid and he ears fell flat against her head as she looked down at her hooves’. 

“Well..I… it was…um…I…” Sweetie Belle muttered.

“What are you two talking about?” Scootaloo asked.

“Nothing!” Sweetie Belle yelled.

“Oh yeah nothin’,” concurred Apple Bloom, a large grin forming on her face, “jus’ that Spike and Sweetie Belle were mmm bbrr  mm…”

Apple Bloom never finished her sentence, as a white hoof shot into her mouth. 

“I said it was nothing!” Sweetie Belle let out a laugh that wouldn’t have fooled Snips and Snails.

“Oh Celestia,” Scootaloo turned from Sweetie Belle to Spike, “you two weren’t kissing were you.” She seemed to gag at the thought.

Spike suddenly choked, spluttering out small wafts of emerald fire as he desperately clawed for breath. He could feel his eye’s watering as he patted his fist against his chest in an attempt to steady his breathing. Finally soaking in long welcome streams of air, Spike caught a glimpse of Sweetie Belle and found that she was staring straight back at him. He broke eye contact the moment he gazed into those glamorous green gems.

“Um… n-no we weren’t kissing,” mumbled Sweetie Belle.

Spike stole a glance at her. Sweetie Belle too had shied away from him, instead finding great interest in her covers as she prodded them nervously with her hooves.  

“Sweetie Belle an’ Spike sitting in a tree, K I S S I N G,” sang Apple Bloom.

“Shut uuuup!” whined Sweetie Belle.

“First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes Sweetie with a filly carriage!”

A thick fog of awkward engulfed the room. Apple Bloom’s words hung like an anvil suspended by a single strand of hair. Sweetie Belle fiddled with her hair as she continued to prod her covers, whilst Spike was very much re-considering jumping out the window.

Spike had never given much thought to kissing fillies. Sure he had day dreamed (more times than he cared to admit) about kissing Rarity. But whenever he imagined that, he had always seen it like eating a nice looking gem, just to savour the taste much rather than any kind of experience. That somehow felt wrong when he thought about Sweetie Belle, she deserved more than somepony who only wanted a quick peck. 

She’d want our first kiss to be special, to mean something.

In that moment Spike realized something; something that none of his power ponies comics had prepared him for, something that Twilight had never taught him and something which had always been there but he had never admitted. He wanted his first to be special too. Spike gazed at Sweetie Belle, past her purple and pink mane, past her snow white coat and past her shimmering eyes. And Spike saw the spark which birthed his fire, which gave him purpose. Sweetie Belle was a pony he wanted to share every experience with. 

With the Sisters as my witness, I will make our first kiss special!

Spike set his sights on the bed. His path would be long and treacherous, but he would not falter. The soft carpet felt like tar, gripping him in place as he waded towards his destination. A thousand chestnut eyes stared as Spike ascended the bed, attempting to seed doubt in his mind.

Sweetie Belle sat staring at Spike, her pools of green reflected the uncertainty of the filly in front of him. Her statue-like stature well aware of the various pairs of eyes lingering on them. Her hooves, quivering with anticipation as Spike perched himself opposite her. 

It would be so easy, thought Spike. I could just lean forward and that would be that, so quick, so easy, so simple… But that’s not what she wants… And it’s not what I want… We have nothing to prove.

Spike wrapped his arms around Sweetie Belle, pulling her close to him. He could feel her heart beat as it pounded into his chest, threatening to burst through the both of them. Every hair on her body stood on end, sending small strands of static coursing through Spike. Each second seemed to take an eternity, but finally she relaxed into his arms. Letting her own hooves hang loosely around him as she nuzzled into his shoulder. The soft caress of her fur sent shivers through Spike’s scales, making his tail sway happily from side to side. Spike gave Sweetie a small squeeze, which she returned in kind. Closing his eyes, Spike lightly rested his head on top of hers. Their embrace creating a shield which nopony could penetrate and no force of nature could shatter. Their only company was their hearts, as they danced to their partners beat. 

Finally they broke apart, leaving the safety of their bubble to confront the world. Spike sat upright against the end of the bed, whilst Sweetie Belle leant against him; resting her head on his shoulder. Spike decided then and there that the feeling of her fur brushing against his scales was never going to get old. 

“You know, the two of you make a really cute couple.” The voice of Scootaloo brought Spike back to reality.

Scootaloo’s expression was like trying to read a book with no pages. It was clear that she was trying to find the sudden display of emotion ‘gross’. But her natural instincts seemed to be prevailing as she just sat there sporting a huge grin. Whereas Apple Bloom had her mouth agape, with a dumfounded expression plastered to her face. Her eyes were gazing straight at Spike and Sweetie Belle, yet her mind seemed to be leagues away.

“Quit staring Bloom.” Scootaloo gave Apple Bloom a light smack on the back of the head.

Sweetie Belle let out a light giggle before nestling up closer to Spike. He wrapped his arm around her, snuggling his head against hers as they watched Apple Bloom give Scootaloo a shove in return.

“Ah weren’t starin’,” Apple Bloom stated defensively

“Just taking notes for when you ask Rumble out?” Scootaloo fell onto her back as she laughed at her own joke and Spike could feel Sweetie Belle fighting to stifle her own giggle.

“NO! Well ah mean… Shut up Scoot!” 

Spike continued to watch the two fillies argue with each other, exchanging pointless jabs with no peaceful resolution in sight. Feeling a soft nudge in his side, Spike looked down at Sweetie Belle. He could very happily gaze into those two pools of green for the rest of his life, their chalk owner seemed to shine as her purple shaded mane hung adorably over her eyes; it would be a perfect moment, if it weren’t for that irritating background noise. 

“We should probably break them up, don’t you think?” Sweetie Belle asked.

As much as Spike hated to admit it, if they didn’t intervene soon then the girls small squabble could escalate pretty quickly. 

“Just ten more seconds.” Spike was not ready to leave his comfy companion just yet. 

Sweetie Belle gave another adorable giggle, before politely untangling herself from a rather disappointed Spike. She jumped off the bed and made her way over to her chest. Digging her head in, she promptly started throwing things out, scattering them all over the floor. Finally she held onto a large flat box and made her way back onto the bed.

“Hey, GIRLS!” Sweetie yelled. It did the trick, as she got both Apple Bloom’s and Scootaloo’s attention. “Want to play a game?”

Now that he had a clear view of the box, Spike could make out the title inscribed on it. ‘Ponopoly’.

This is either going to go well or horrendously badly.

“I want the iron,” Apple Bloom and Scootaloo shouted simultaneously. 

*

The icy current swept through Blood Beak’s feathers, the cold creeping over him as though it were a thousand crawling centipedes. Holding on desperately to the reigns as the gale force winds lashed relentlessly, threatening to throw him from his ride. Pulling his cloak tighter around him did little to solve the issue. 

Through the thick torrent of snow Blood Beak could hardly see the coal black scales which he was perched on. The heat radiating from them did nothing to alleviate the freezing winds which continued to batter against him. 

A sharp pain pounded through his head. Instinctively gripping the reigns even tighter, he rubbed his forehead with his other talon. What he wouldn’t give for some powdered dragon scale right about now. But he had learnt his lesson from earlier, when he had lost an entire flask to the wind’s cruel abyss. Blood Beak tried to focus on something other than the throbbing pain thrashing around in his skull or the fact that the temperature was threatening to freeze his blood or that he hadn’t eaten a meagre morsel since they had set off. Now that he thought on it, there wasn’t much else he could think about.

A familiar scent caught Blood Beak’s attention. Looking off to his right all he could see was the thrashing blizzard as it danced to the rhythm of chaos. But, through the howling winds and the wet snow, Blood Beak could smell the sweet aroma of fresh blood. It was pumping around its host at an alarming rate, trying desperately to carry oxygen around its owner. The speed was somewhat spoiling the taste, however at this point it felt like eons since Blood Beak had smelled anything other than his own and that of his pet, so he cared little if the blood was a little off. 

Sure enough through the mist came a familiar face, a griffon with black feathers, a white coat and a strong beak flew over so he was just within ear shot. The sound of the griffon’s steel armour clanking together could be heard even over the wails of the storm. The insignia engraved on his neck plate was a heart, with trails of red running down from its sides. 

Blood Beak found himself envious of the guard. His perfectly preened coat had hardly a feather out of place, despite the thrashing winds. His beak looked tough enough to crack solid rock and that’s if he didn’t just use his bare talons. Blood Beak was no such specimen. His own beak was thin and brittle, his feathers were grey before his time and he had no fur to speak of, leaving his hind naked to nature’s cruel pranks. His wings were bent at angles that made flight impossible. But Blood Beak’s most disturbing feature was his horn. A crooked crimson centre piece, which sprouted out of his head. The skin twisted and curled around it, clinging on like a swarm of leeches, fat and rotting.

“My Lord!” the griffon yelled, catching Blood Beak’s attention.

The guard respectfully bowed his head. And quite right that he did too, many had lost their lives for not paying the proper respects. Blood Beak gestured for him to continue.

“We have found it my Lord.”

Blood Beak allowed a smile to creep onto his beak.

“Lead the way.”

Bowing his head again, the armoured griffon flew in front of Blood Beak and led his ride down towards the snow covered ground. 

The landing came far sooner and far harder than Blood Beak would have liked, almost sending his already throbbing head into a full blown migraine. He needed to blow off some steam.  Jumping off his ride, Blood Beak took in the sight of his creature. From head to tail it was the size of a large watch tower, its sleek black scales shone in the faint moonlight and two great bat like wings were tucked away at it’s sides.  

The dragon turned to face Blood Beak, two sapphire eyes staring down at him. The beast’s pupils were fat with fear, reminding Blood Beak more of a terrified trembling rabbit than ones belonging to a ‘great’ leviathan. The dread seeped into the creature’s blood, seasoning the delicacy rushing through its veins. The aroma was intoxicating, sending shivers down Blood Beak’s spine. He would have liked nothing better than to claw and gnaw into that juicy hide. But he composed himself, knowing that the blood rage had claimed many of his kind before. 

But it will not claim me.

As Blood Beak picked up the chain connecting to the dragon’s muzzle, it let out a pathetic whimper, sounding like a dog that had been kicked just the right amount of times. The muzzle was a two part cage of steel covering the full snout of the dragon and was held together by locks almost the size of Blood Beak. If unfastened they would allow the beast full use of its mouth, however when locked the muzzle created a vice grip, forcing the potential fire hazard shut. The contraption was attached by four screws drilled directly into its skin.

He gave a firm tug on the chain, but the dragon defiantly turned its head away. The chain in Blood Beak’s talon felt the tiniest hint of resistance. 
Sending a silent thanks to the Winter Lord, Blood Beak licked his beak. 

Wrapping the frost coated chain around his wrist, freed up both his talons. Rummaging through a set of pouches that hung around Blood Beak’s neck, he retrieved a single vial. Its contents swam red, leaving scarlet stains against the glass as he cradled the vial. The howling winds masked the pop as the vial was uncorked, an armada of aromas swarming Blood Beak’s senses, causing him to tingle from the tip of his crooked horn to the end of his furless tail.

He could taste the tendrils of power seeping from the blood. Most creatures were blind to the subtlety of blood manipulation, but Blood Beak found it more real than any physical experience. He could hear its pain, exposed and vulnerable. It longed to flow around a master once more, providing life as it pumped through the veins of its host.

Outstretching a single talon Blood Beak latched onto the delicate tendrils, smiling as the perversion began. He could hear screaming, a scream only he could hear. The tortured breaths and last thoughts of the blood’s previous host screeched delight into his eardrums as they were ripped from the red substance. 

Next came the visions. A life time of images flashed in front of Blood Beak’s eyes; he spotted a cub griffon in school; an older version of the cub placing a ring on their partners talon; then came the arrow, a single thin wooden shaft protruded out if his chest, then darkness. Contorting his talon slightly Blood Beak plucked the memories from their host. 

Without warning, waves of emotions crashed against him. Blood Beak closed his eyes as ripples of joy, despair, love and hate intertwined and threatened to overwhelm him. They wrestled with him, refusing to back down, refusing to go quietly. This one was strong, but Blood Beak had dealt with stronger. A violent twist of his wrist shredded away the emotions, scattering them to void. 

As he opened his eyes a tiny white light rose up out of the vial, it would have blended into the storm if the snow didn’t bend and dance around it, like insects worshipping a lamp. It rose up to eye level, shining as if darkness was a mere myth. 

Blood Beak took the ball in his palm, taking one look before clenching his talon into a fist. Thick black veins began to bulge out of his fist. Growing like vines they spread and polluted the white streams of light creeping through the thin gaps in his talon, turning them sour and grey.  Unclenching his fist, the light had turned a sickly green, radiating blackness and decay as it slowly sunk back down into the vial. 

The moment it had re-joined its kin, Blood Beak felt a rush of energy surge through him. His talon tips tingled as he felt a series of invisible strings attach themselves, linking him to the blood. Like a masterful puppeteer he made the red substance dance for him. Rising it out of the vial he guided it through the storm. 
The blood bubbled and boiled furiously, like a sphere of lava, as he bent and melded it into shape. The polluted substance bent to his will, forming into a razor coated whip which he gripped as though it were solid. The cruel crimson weapon spasmed in anticipation. 

Blood Beak lashed at his snivelling dragon. The whip tore through its scales like they were rags, causing the creature to screech in agony. It tried to move away but was met with another lash, and another, and another, until it finally collapsed on the ice cold snow and accepted its punishment. Blood Beak lost count of how many times he beat his pet. Each lash caused his own blood to boil, sending rivers of excitement racing through him. Each lash felt better than the last, every howl was music to his ears and the stench of fear was more enticing than the sweetest perfume. 
He stopped only when his arm finally tired. 

Looking over his handy work Blood Beak couldn’t help but smile. Red stained the snow as it leaked from at least a dozen different deep gashes. The one across the eye was especially pleasing, the blood staining the quivering pupil. The dragon’s wings spasmed and its tail lay limp.

His guard stood at attention, legs and neck straight, beak facing forward and eyes staring into the storms abyss. Blood Beak doubted he had moved during the entire ordeal, he didn’t even shiver as the cold wind sent another icy current their way. Blood Beak cursed the guards discipline as he couldn’t help but pull his coat tighter around himself in an attempt to keep out the assaulting temperature.

As Blood Beak studied his guards statue like demine he realised he didn’t even know the guards name. It wasn’t that much of a surprise seeing that his guards were chosen for him. He had far more important things to worry about than what top ranking soldier would accompany him. None the less, Blood Beak was curious who had been chosen to ‘protect’ him on this rather dangerous, but more importantly, very secret mission. 

“What’s your name soldier,” Blood Beak asked as he approached the guard

“Leon my Lord, Captain of the Monasteries Second Battalion,” he shouted, sounding like a well-rehearsed speech.

Must have been handpicked from a group of at least twenty just like him, thought Blood Beak. Probably has some kind of family ties, would have taken far more than skill to be picked for this mission.  

Blood Beak turned back to his dragon. Pulling on invisible strings, he felt the blond bend to his desires. Slivering around the dragon’s neck, the whip bit into shattered scales. The dragon didn’t have the strength to even whimper. Giving his red abomination a test tug, it held firm, having latched onto his pet. 

Pulling on the make shift leash, Blood Beak felt the blood magnitude his strength more than tenfold. With little effort he began to drag his beaten ride through the snow. The dragon pined and whined as the coil tightened around its neck and hauled it along. It attempted to beat the red leash away with a claw, but was met only with more pain as Blood Beak sent a wave of power shivering through the whip. His dragon tried its best to limp along, in an attempt to alleviate its constricted air way.

“Very good captain, lead the way.” Blood Beak dragged his pet along, following his guard as they made their way deeper into the storm. 



The wasteland seemed never ending, the repeated tormenting torrent of snow made it impossible for Blood Beak to see anything more than a few feet away. The icy droplets were beginning to melt through his cloak, freezing his feathers as the biting temperature gnawed away at him. Trudging through the ever thickening snow, his talons began to sink deeper and deeper into the pastel swamp. The wrenching numbness spread through him like a disease, first devouring his hind legs before creeping to less desired areas. 

First all Blood Beak saw was a small black speck in the distance, as they drew closer the speck began to grow. After a little while the speck began to mould into a mountain, standing completely isolated from the nearby range. Blood Beak could make out jagged spikes protruding out the snow covered behemoth. He found himself constantly checking over his shoulder the closer they got, he had the sickening feeling that something was watching him. 

When he finally got to the base Blood Beak found himself unimpressed, it couldn’t have been more than six thousand feet high, pitiful in comparison to the mountains of his home country. He began to scrape away some of the snow, his talon was so numb it no longer shivered as he dug through centuries of the compacted sheet. Finally he found rock but something felt, wrong. The stone was smooth and warm, untouched by the cold. Retracting his claw he noticed small black specks sparkling on the tips of his talon.

Moving over to his pet Blood Beak detached the whip around its neck and guided the blood back into its vial. Taking out a small bronze key from one of his pouches, he inserted it into one of the padlocks that bound the dragon’s muzzle shut. Turning it brought the familiar sound of moving cogs as the padlock unlocked. Letting out a grateful sigh that the mechanisms hadn’t frozen over, he unlocked the other three. 

His pet stretched its jaw as wide as it could, letting out a pathetic squeal. Those sapphire eyes turned to Blood Beak, hatred burning within them. He knew what was about to happen as the dragon began to shiver from head to tail and it wasn’t from the cold. Bringing out a familiar vial, the dragon’s eyes turned straight to it. Those fires of hatred quickly burnt to ashes, rising from them was a paralyzing fear that gripped stronger than any muzzle. The beast slowly bowed its head towards Blood Beak. 

Pointing towards the spot which he had dug, the dragon let out a wave of scorching fire. Orange and yellow crashed against snow, causing clouds of steam to erupt from the mountain side. The wave of heat was a relief for Blood Beak, as feeling slowly began to return to his body. 

He signalled his pet to stop and handed the key and reigns to his guard. When the steam cleared, where there had once been snow was now a wall of black crystal. The mountains surface was twisted and deformed, it was unnerving and yet looked familiar to Blood Beak. Inspecting the canvas closer he stepped back in shock. Littered across the mountain side were the shapes of pony faces, young and old, colt and mare, their eyes were wide with terror and their mouths screaming. Some were isolated whilst others overlapped, but they all shared the same expression, fear and pain.  

For a moment Blood Beak considered turning back, but, taking a deep breath he placed his talon against the crystal mountain and began channelling his energy in an attempt to find an opening. 

A tsunami of voices assaulted him.

“Help us!”                      “Turn back, turn back”                                       “Where am I?”

“Make it stop, please… make it stop”                “Save us!”

“How did I get here?”      

   “Mummy… I want my Mummy”                                                 “He’s here, please, don’t let him find me”



The pained pleas wracked Blood Beak’s mind as he fought for control. The bog of whispers threatened to drown him as he continued to search. Just as he was about to give in, a new voice spoke.

“I’m here,” this one held no desperation nor anguish, instead it dripped with hatred and loathing.

Blood Beak swiftly retracted his talon, the voices ceased as if they had never existed, now replaced by the wailing winds. He knew this was the place now, after years of tearing through countless scrolls and texts, and after hours upon hours of deciphering ancient languages long forgotten, he had come to a place only a few even knew of in myth. 

Unsheathing a small dagger, Blood Beak glided it across his talon, applying just enough pressure to cause a thin trickle of blood to sliver out. Guiding his blood, he spattered it against the black crystal. With but a thought, the ruby substance seeped into the mountain. 

As one, every eye on the mountain shone a sickly red, their glowing pupils melting the snow covering the black behemoth and illuminating the area in a crimson glow. It reminded Blood Beak of a pony Heart’s Warming Eve tree, only black as shadow and covered in tormented carvings. 

The section in front of Blood Beak started sizzling. The black crystal had begun to boil, magenta flames sprouting from its base, slithering along the mountain’s surface to form the outline of an arch. The solid crystal disintegrated before Blood Beak’s eyes, the cackling blaze engulfing the section inside the arch. As quickly as they came, the flames sizzled out. Where they had burned now stood an entrance into the mountain. 

The archway was around seven feet high and only wide enough for one griffon to pass through at a time. What troubled Blood Beak however was that no light seemed able to pierce the tunnel before him, the darkness almost appeared alive, shifting, restless, as though it would snuff out any that dared trespass. 

Leaving the guard to keep an eye on his dragon outside, Blood Beak made his way into the tunnel. The walls in the tunnel had the same population of tormented pony faces decorating their canvas, their desperate gaze seemed to follow Blood Beak as he made his way further inside. Before long the dark was all consuming and Blood Beak couldn’t see his own talon in front of his face. Using the wall as a guide he felt his way deeper into the heart of the mountain.

The utter blackness began toying with his senses. On more than one occasion Blood Beak thought he saw movement in the corner of his eye, voices whispered secrets and promises in the back of his mind and he could feel deep heated breaths against his neck, but when he felt around for the culprit, all he grasped was the endless abyss. 

The ground began to steepen and he could feel himself walking up a spiralling path. As he turned around the bending slope, he caught sight of a faint blue mist. When he approached, the mist retreated, matching his pace as he made his way towards it. Although the mist should have brought some comfort to Blood Beak, now having at least some guide, instead it only put him less at ease; he couldn’t shake the feeling that the mist was watching him. 

The mist shifted and flowed, yet Blood Beak could feel no wind. It almost felt like it was toying with him. He thought he saw outlines of screaming faces, yet anytime he tried to focus on them, they faded into the ever changing tide of the mist. 

Finally it led him to the end of the tunnel which opened up into a large domed room. The ground was covered in the turquoise fog, so thick that Blood beak couldn’t see the floor. Hanging on the walls were lit torches, their fires burning dark magenta and green. At the centre of the room was a clear yellow pyramid, it sparkled in the unnatural torch light, shimmering with the radiance of the sun. As Blood Beak approached, he could see inside the shining pyramid was a large block of ice, encased within was a pool of darkness. It looked as though a black hole had been frozen for all time within a block of ice and if it were set free, it would devour anything that came within reach. 

Blood Beak studied the yellow barrier, hovering his talon over its surface he could feel the regalness of the sun radiating off its glowing surface. Licking his beak, he could taste the tendrils of power which held the spell together. 

No doubt the work of Celestia, this will not be easy.

Taking his already cut talon, he once again glided his blade along it, a brief twitch of pain coursing through him as the blade did its work. Pinching the cut caused blood to dribble out onto his palm. Blood Beak sent a quick silent prayer to the Winter Lord, before placing his bleeding talon against the barriers surface. 

The pain was immediate, it felt as though he had placed his talon against the sun itself, as the barrier scorched his flesh. Blood Beak cried out as his entire body began to spasm; using his other talon as support, he held his bleeding one against the barrier. The pain assaulted his brain with a thousand stinging needles, sweat dripped freely from his forehead as he tried desperately to concentrate. 

Blood Beak channelled his energy to ensure the wound didn’t cauterize, allowing his blood to spread freely onto the barriers shimmering surface. Slowly his blood began to spread. Red tendrils slivered along the pyramids surface, covering it in a cobweb of crimson. Like veins carrying disease they turned a dark purple and sickly green boils began to sprout across the golden barrier. It began to rot away and crumble.

The polluted veins had crawled across the barriers entire surface, having turned it from magnificent gold to a faded maize. With an agonised cry, the barrier shattered. Yellow flakes, diseased and rotting, crumbled feebly to the ground.

Blood Beak collapsed on the mist covered floor, clutching his quivering talon. It was black as soot, burnt to a crisp, he couldn’t move it for fear of the pain that would follow. Using his un-maimed talon, he took a small bottle out form his cloak, its contents were a purple and orange powder. Uncorking it and stuffing it up to his nostril, Blood Beak inhaled deeply. 

His head swam with a sea of rainbows as the crushed dragon scale spread through his body. The spasms of pain were replaced with minor trembling as all feeling lifted from his body. Blood Beak took some long drawn out breaths as he slowly regained control of his own movements. His body was numb, his head was numb and most importantly, his talon was numb. And despite it seeming like a terrible idea, he righted himself.

The yellow barrier was destroyed, revealing the block of ice. Inside it, Blood Beak could see that the trapped spectre was moving. The pool of blackness was squirming within its frozen prison, throwing itself against the walls of its confinement. A small chip appeared on the wall closest to Blood Beak. The shadow crashed against the chip, widening it into a crack. The shadow continued to bat against the weakening wall, with each attempt bringing it closer to freedom. Blood Beak readied himself, taking a few long deep breaths he stood up tall, cradling his black talon against his chest. Two fresh cracks appeared on the ice, then another. 

The block exploded, sending chunks of ice flying across the room which Blood Beak shielded his face from. Out the shattered prison rose a wave of shifting shadows, twice the size of Blood Beak and just as wide, it filled him with a sense of dread and despair. An angry cry erupted from the darkness, carrying an all-consuming hatred that froze the blood in Blood Beak’s veins. The shadow began to morph, collecting itself into a body, the body of a pony. His coat contorted into a grim grey. A flowing black mane and tail formed. Piercing red pupils shone with unbridled anger and sharpened teeth stretched into a wicked smile.

“King Sombra.” Blood Beak bowed his head towards the tyrant pony

Sombra looked around the room, glimpses of confusion etched on his face.

“Where am I?” His voice carried as much venom as a snake and sounded just as treacherous.

“Your Majesty, this was the prison of your banishment,”

“Banishment?” An edge of anger had entered his voice and Blood Beak had to force himself to stay put.

“Yes your Majesty, following your… mishap at the hands of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, you have been imprisoned here for over one thousand years,”

There was a long silence that made Blood Beak feel uneasy, until he finally heard the faint clop of hooves as Sombra approached. “And you are?”

“I am Blood Beak, Brother to the order of Ichor, emissary of the Griffon Empire and humble servant to The Dragon Emperor Chalclaw, The Undying,” Blood Beak raised his head, “who extends his talon in friendship towards you, King Sombra.” 

Sombra’s expression was unreadable, as cold and unforgiving as the storm that raged outside. His eyes shone a lime green as they darted to Blood Beak’s charred talon, which he still cradled against his chest. The storm grey stallion turned away from Blood Beak, studying the layout of the place that had until moments ago been his prison.

“What do you want?” His voice seemed to carry the authority of time itself.

“My Liege?”

“As I recall, the griffons were a barbaric race ravaged by infighting and cannibalism,” Sombra paused, “traits I much admired, so I doubt you freeing me from my thousand year imprisonment was an act of charity.”

Blood beak could feel beads of cold sweat dripping down his forehead. 

“So I ask again,” Sombra turned with a look of pure malice, “what do you want!” his voice boomed throughout the mountain.

Blood Beak smiled, “The myths do you little justice, King Sombra, we seek an alliance.” Sombra’s expression turned back to one of stone, yet this made Blood Beak feel even less at ease.

The tip of Sombra’s horn began to flare black. His shadow expanded beyond what the torch light should have permitted. As it grew, it began to morph from the powerful proud reflection of its owner, into a hideous ghoulish figure. Hooves became claws, its body stood hunched over on only two legs and its sneering smile revealed rows upon rows of cackling razor sharp teeth.

“And what will I gain from this alliance?” Sombra said mockingly.

The nightmarish shadow detached itself entirely from Sombra, swimming across the fog toward Blood Beak. It began to divide and multiply until there were around a six of the Tartarusish creatures. Two slivered over to guard the exit, whilst the rest slowly circled Blood Beak, like sharks smelling fresh blood.

“We know you desire the Crystal Empire,” Blood Beak did his best to keep any fear out of his voice, “we can help you take it.”

He carefully reached into his cloak and, as silently as he could, uncorked one of his vials.

“Not only that but you will be the Griffon Empire’s most trusted ally, you shall command your own legion and as well as that, as a gift, you will receive your own personal dragon.”

Sombra’s ears twitched as Blood Beak uttered that final word. Despite his hardened expression, Blood beak could see that in those calculating eyes, Sombra’s mind was going a mile a minute. 

“You should know that I don’t tolerate being lied to.” The shadows surrounding Blood Beak had cease cackling and now eyed him with a feral hunger. 

“I speak only the truth, your Worship.” Blood beak bowed his head till his beak practically kissed the floor. 

“The dragons are a proud and powerful race, untameable as the seas, enduring as the mountains and uncaring towards the rest of the world, for you to have bartered any kind of alliance with them is impossible.” An edge of anger was polluting Sombra’s otherwise calm tone.

“A lot can change in one thousand years.” 

The Shadows surrounding Blood Beak rose up from the ground. Standing over seven feet tall, their flowing bodies turned into solid jet black crystal. The crystal golems brandished wicked halberds and spears with their cruel claws, their red glowing eyes looking down upon Blood Beak.  

“And yet so much stays the same.” Sombra paused, sending an icy chill down Blood Beak’s spine, “such as the arrogance of griffons.”

Blood Beak instantly stood at attention, the deal was going south, he could feel it. Beginning to enforce his will into the contents of the vial, he readied himself. If even only half the myths of King Sombra were true, Blood Beak very much doubted he would even survive a few minutes against him. Desperately wracking his brain, Blood Beak searched for some trick or bargain that would get him out of this place with his hind intact. 

“The Princess’s have grown in strength and numbers since you last faced them, you need our help to conquer the Crystal Empire.”

Blood Beak was surprised that the Sombra’s glare didn’t kill him where he stood, “I do not need your help!” the anger laced in his voice chilled Blood Beak to the bone.

Sombra’s horn became fully encased in his shadowy aura, “The power of the Crystal ponies shall be mine and mine alone!”

Sombra trotted slowly towards Blood Beak, every step stomped more terror into his heart and each one seemed to take an eternity. The moment Sombra passed him, Blood Beaks shoulders relaxed just a little as the stallion made his way towards the exit.

“Oh and one more thing.” Blood Beak could feel his skin crawl as Sombra’s piercing eyes fell upon him, “I have a message for this Chalclaw… Not to interfere with my plans, he may not be my ally, but he does not want be for an enemy.”

“I will deliver your message.” It took all of Blood Beak’s will power to keep the quiver out of his voce.

“But you are the message,” hissed Sombra

The crystal golems surrounding Blood Beak each let out a shattering cry as they stabbed and hacked at him. Manipulating the contents of his vial, Blood Beak through a dome of blood around him, encasing himself in a protective shield. The force of the blows shook the crimson barrier, causing Blood Beak to almost lose his balance, but it held strong. The mindless husks continued to batter against it, causing small cracks to appear which Blood Beak did his best to close up.

The walls of the room began to melt, the proud black crystals were dribbling down like tar. The room shook as huge chunks of the ceiling began to crumble and crash to the ground. One large chunk of crystal crushed one of the golems assaulting Blood Beak’s shield, sending its shattered remains flying across the room. 

Sombra’s body turned to gas before Blood Beak’s eyes, floating around like a cloud of nightmare come to life. The wailing cloud of darkness seeped into one of the tar pit walls, causing the entire mountain to violently shake. The mountain disintegrated into a screaming hurricane of the shadow, thrashing in a vacuum filled only with darkness. The floor beneath Blood Beak gave way as it too turned to shadow and joined the hurricane. Blood Beak, still enclosed in his crimson dome, was flung around by the whipping winds until he was finally released from its angry grip and thrown out into the world. His head spun, caught between two storms his eyes continually flashed between black and white as he spiralled towards the ground.

The impact was about as comfortable as he’d expected. His crimson dome fortunately absorbed most of the impact, causing it to shatter into smithereens. Blood Beak yelled out in pain as he lay in the cold snow. His wrist felt like someone had smashed it repeatedly with a war hammer, meaning it was almost definitely broken. At that moment he would have liked nothing better than to lay in the storm till it covered him in a warm white blanket from which he would never have to rise.

Pushing those thoughts aside, he forced himself to stand. The mountain was gone as if it had never been there, completely consumed by Sombra into his hurricane of shadow. Looking off into the distance he could see the thrashing twister heading further north. He could hear cries of pain erupting from the all-consuming blackness even from this distance. Despite all he had endured and suffered, Blood Beak couldn’t help but let a smile creep onto his beak.

Well then… Plan B.