Being a full time assistant is tough. Being a child is tougher. Now add some slight depression into the mix and you've got a recipe for Spike.
Being a young dragon while doing chores every day for a unicorn who strives for perfection and hardly receiving any praise already hurts enough but saving an empire and still not feeling appreciated by your friends is even worse. Now add slight depression, boredom and MORE work. These feelings have been going on for quite some time and trying to hide how he really feels certainly isn't easy. Luckily for Spike, he finds a way to relax even if it probably isn't considered "normal." Then again, since when has normal ever been both relaxing and interesting?
Warning: Will eventually contain diapers and depressed Spike. Do not read if you are not into these kinds of stories. You have been officially warned!
A young dragon walks around ponyville while holding a list with most of the items already crossed out and wearing a smile on his face, and yet, he couldn't be further from happy. What is this dragon doing? He's doing chores… again, just like every other day.
“How come I'm always the one doing all the chores while Twilight is hanging out with her friends?” Spike thinks to himself, somehow managing to keep a small smile on his face. He has been having these thoughts for quite some time but he doesn't ever speak his mind.
“I'm basically living the same day over and over again, why?” Spike silently asks himself, not really expecting an answer.
As he continues on his “adventure” to procure the valuable groceries while waving at some ponies his depressing thoughts only get worse. “I can't remember a single time where I haven't had to cook, dust, take notes, go out to the market to buy more ink and quills, or reorganize books, simply because these daily chores have to be done and Twilight won't help”.
As Spike is purchasing the final items on the list, he notices all the fillies, colts, and foals running around, some with their respective parents such as the Cake twins being pushed around in a stroller. “Did I ever get a childhood?” He questions himself as he continues to stare, almost hypnotized by the sight of the two foals babbling without a care in the world.
Spike shakes his head trying to dispel these thoughts so he can complete his “mission” then hopefully take a well deserved nap or at least get to read some of his comics for awhile. This was already his fourth chore today and he has already been working for about six hours, though knowing his luck, he'll have more to do when he gets back home.
After trekking through ponyville with an assortment of heavy bags he finally reaches his destination, home. Spike then puts all of the groceries away with a triumphant smirk on his face. “Finally, ‘mission’ accomplished” he states out loud.
Spike notices that no pony is home which also means Twilight isn't here to give him another assignment. “Finally some me time” Spike says quietly as he races to his bed with an assortment of comics only to notice a note on his bed.
Figuring it's a note to explain Twilight's whereabouts, he picks up the note, yet before reading it, he feels anxious, almost like his body is trying to tell him something. Spike shrugs off this feeling and clears his throat.
Spike If you are reading this note then you must've already realized I am not home right now. I am going to be in canterlot with the girls for a few days and while I would have asked you to come with, some pony or in this case, dragon, needs to stay behind and look after the library while I'm gone.
Spike almost sneers as he reads this. He can't help but feel conflicted. On one claw, he has the library to himself but on the other claw he is being left alone and is uninvited to whatever it is the girls are doing… again. “She didn't even tell me why she was going to Canterlot in the first place”.
While I am gone I need you to take care of Owlicious, dust the library, re-shelf all the books currently laid out, and wash any dishes that are dirty.
Spike could understand that some of these chores needed to be done but why were the books off the shelves after he JUST finished putting them away. It seems like whenever he puts books away they all "magically" fly off the shelf almost right afterwards.
what was written next was not what he was wanting to do with his time at all. If he had the option, he'd rather save the Crystal Empire again.
Fluttershy's animals need to be taken care of as well while we are gone which would mostly involve you feeding the animals.
Spike then saw even more for him to do, and while he liked helping this particular pony, he wished he was working with her since it would've made this next job much easier, not to mention, he could work with the pony he lov- was practically best friends with.
I would like you to also stop by Rarity's boutique and clean up over there as well. She's been stressed with her work and I'm sure she'd be grateful if you helped her. I know I can count on you my number one assistant
~Sincerely Twilight
Spike slowly lowers the note from his face which then shows off a slight eye twitch and an almost crazed look in his eye. This eye twitch had started immediately after he realized he would have to take care of the animals, specifically Angel Bunny, something he was definitely NOT looking forward too.
Spike sighs loudly as he realizes the stress isn't over yet and the reason he felt anxious before reading the note was because his body knew this before he did. “I guess if I get started with everything now then I will only have to deal with Fluttershy’s animals while everypony is gone” he mutters angrily to himself.
“I wish I was like those foals I saw earlier today, specifically the Cake twins. No worries and responsibilities to keep them busy, just eating and sleeping, I'd even get more attention then I do now.” Spike said to himself with what almost looked like longing plastered on his face.
"If that were the case then I could finally get some relaxation, or at least a decent break". Spike chuckled at such a crazy thought, after all, it's not like he can just act like a baby and get some time off from his chores.
As Spike left to clean up Rarity’s boutique, he couldn't shake the image of the cake twins in their stroller from his mind...
Spike gazes at the building currently within his sight, a clothing store, a boutique, a structure that could be described as artistic beauty, but looks can be deceiving, and he'd realized that as soon as he'd opened the door.
"Dear Celestia, this place is a complete mess. What could Rarity have possibly been doing in here to create this?" Spike says out loud as he glances around the room. Cloths and fabrics littered practically every inch of the place and he only just entered the shop!
"Wonderful. I can't wait to see what the rest of this place looks like if this is only the first area that needs cleaning" Spike grumbles as he practically has to waddle through a sea of fabric to reach Rarity's inspiration room.
Once reaching his destination, he could only stare in shock. "This room is possibly even worse then the first" Spike yells as he takes in the disastrous sight.
Not only was this room also filled with tons of fabric but there was crumpled paper all over the place! If that wasn't bad enough, there are possibly DOZENS of empty ice cream tubs littered throughout the room.
Spike can only sigh as he comes to an important conclusion "Well... if I don't start with this room then I may never get around to cleaning it at all.
one hour later and only one room spotless
As Spike exites the now (somehow) sparkling room he can only think about how cleaning a foals room would be easier then what he just cleaned. He may be a dragon but that doesn't mean stepping on needles is going to be painless, which he had ended up doing on multiple occasions.
"How can Sweetie Belle put up with this? How can Rarity work like this?" Spike's mind is almost shouting at him to think of how creating such a mess is possible.
"When Twilight was younger her parents always made sure she didn't make TOO much of a mess. I wonder if Ratity's parents did the same when she was younger. They've probably never seen her place like this before." Spike mumbled his thoughts out loud as he went to the main room and continued to separate and place all the fabric in certain groups.
Then a thought entered his scaled head which made him pause all movement "Did I ever make messes when I was a baby?"
He stared into space for about ten seconds before fully processing his thoughts. "I must have, I mean, all babies make lots of messes without really thinking about it. Though why can't I remember? Has Twilight even mentioned much about my hatchling days....."
Spike rolled this thought in his head for a moment before a frown appeard "on his face "she has only really mentioned a few small things. I'm almost positive. No. I'm absolutely sure about that."
"Why doesn't she ever tell me about what I was like when I was younger?" He almost whispers to himself.
"Why have I never seen many pictures of when I was an a baby?" Spike asked himself in a quiet, but slightly louder whisper.
"Why has Twilight never told me any funny stories about what I had done as a hatchling?" He says in a low voice with his eyes looking fiery.
"Does she even remember? Does any pony remember?" He asks in an much louder and much sadder voice.
"Does she even care?! Does any pony care?!" He then shouts with tears in his eyes.
"No. No, she doesn't, no pony does!" Spike then finally breaks. He then lowers his head into the nearest fabric pile to muffle the sounds of his crying and yelling.
"why. Why. WHY! Why am I ALWAYS forgotten?! Why am I always used as a tool?! Why was I even born?! To be a slave?! To suffer for others gain?! WHY?! He shrieks as tears cascade down his scaly face, soaking the fabric his head currently resides in.
He continues to sob for a awhile as his head try's (and fails) to boot all of the depression from his mind. He even try's to continue cleaning to get all the pain to go away, and while the pain never left, he did finish cleaning up the boutique.
Then as suddenly as his tears came, they vanished. Spike's face had taken on an expressionless mask, in fact, the only way to tell he was even crying in the first place would've been by looking at the large stained tear streaks shown from under both his eyes.
No, I won't cry. I'm a big dragon not a baby." Spikes' thought rang through his head like a bell.
Though I'd probably love being a baby. It would be a much better life then the life of a slave. A simple, almost desperate thought went throughout Spike's mind.
The thought of being a baby sounded better each time he thought about it."No pony expects anything from you as a foal. Instead of the adults depending on foals, the foals depend on the adults, like all children should. The way it's supposed to be.
Maybe I could whip up some kind of potion to regress me or trick Twilight into regressing me on "accident". He thought with a tactical smirk on his face.
However his smirk immediately vanished with his next thoughts. "No. No, that would be stupid. The last thing I'd want would be having the girls get involved, they could start asking questions if I made a potion like that and even if I could miraculously trick Twilight into casting a spell like that, there could be a chance of the spell malfunctioning in some way."
"That being said, I need to keep as many ponies out of any plan I make if possible. If even a single pony got suspicious, I could end up being discovered and that can NOT happen." Spike continued to think as he started pacing around the boutique.
"I suppose the best plan for the situation I'm in would be to buy diapers here in Ponyville. I just have to come up with a lie to tell the pony selling the diapers if they ask about it, even a suspicious look will require a lie to keep that pony or ponies quiet. Maybe I could–" Spike then cuts off his thoughts with a face claw.
"Hold on, what the buck am I doing? Am I seriously thinking about actually getting diapers?" Spike silently asks himself with an appalled look an his face.
"That's insane. There's gotta be SOMETHING wrong with me to even consider something like this. There MUST be something wrong with me, why else would I have such weird thoughts in my head." He then continues to berate himself in his mind.
"I can't actually consider doing this. It's sick. Disgusting. Twisted. Wrong. The worst part is, I actually LIKED what I was thinking. I swear I must be a freak." As he continued to attempt to discourage these thoughts, he couldn't help but remember the feelings of weightlessness and desperation he had felt while he imagined the possibility of being a "baby" again.
"Ugh, I can't be thinking of things like this." Spike said loudly. I just need to finish up my chores for today, then go home and rest. I've gotta be having these thoughts because I'm tired. Yeah that's definitely the case.
As he walked out the door of the boutique and started walking to the cottage where a certain Demon Angel Bunny lived, he continued to have the thoughts he was desperately trying to make himself believe were "sick and twisted" running rampantly through his mind....
Chapter 2: A Dragon Without a Break Is a Dragon That Breaks
An almost unheard sigh was exhaled as Spike prepared himself. He was about to face his greatest challenge and one of his most diobolical enemies, Angel Bunny.... "let's just get this over with. Then I can get the hay out of here and deal with my thoughts on wanting diap-"
"Ugh, I thought I told you to stop thinking these things brain. As for YOU mouth, you almost said the D word out loud! Are you trying to reveal my sick thoughts to the nearest pony or animal; because if you do then I may as well just write freak all over my body!"
As Spike had his inner debate with himself, he reached the door to open it, but there seemed to be a small problem. "Huh? What the hay, why is the stupid door locked?!" One of the animals should have figured Spike was coming over and if this was one of his jobs then Fluttershy should've told her animals about me showing up.
Just then the door cracked open ever so slightly to reveal the devil in white himself as Spike sighed with relief at the fact the door finally opened. Maybe Angel is gonna be easy on me for once.
However upon trying to open the door, that white demon kicked him in the shin while smirking! Just because he is a small bunny doesn't mean he can't hurt you. "Oww! What the buck! Why did you do that! I'm trying to get in so I can feed you guys!
It seemed the little control freak wanted something as he started pointing at him while making wild paw gestures and chatting up some kind of unspoken demand. "Great now I've gotta play charades with this insane fluff ball just to get inside! Can my day get any worse?"
As Spike started to guess, his frustration rose. "What do you want? Me to wipe my clawed feet off, hmm? Knock first? Give you a freaking mate so you can focus on something other than me!
Angel simply frowned and kicked him again for that smart remark, then continued making more gestures, however, this time Spike guessed right. "Ow... what, are you telling me to ask for permission to enter?"
Spike could barley hold back the flames that were about to erupt from his mouth as he saw the bunnys' coy smile, but he realized it'd be better to just get this over with, so with his trained smile and false, yet sincere sounding smile he gave the little bucker what he wanted. "Fine.... Fine then. Ahem, Angel, may I please enter your humble abode."
If Spike thought holding back flames was difficult then keeping himself from gnashing his fangs together while the bunny "considered" his request must've been a challenge.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity just standing there, the bunny opened the door. Of course, Spike didn't want to go back to square one so he gave an even bigger fake smile. "Thank you for allowing my presence."
As Spike entered, quickly and unintentionally returning to an unreadable, stone cold, expression, he walked through the maze of animals, towards the kitchen and set all the bowls around.
Doing just this was a challenge since almost every animal crowded him, impatiently waiting for their food. Not only did they crowd him but they screamed in their own animal languages saying 'Celestia knows what' and invaded his sight practically everywhere he turned.
Every time he stepped over a small animal animal he noticed how much this resembled a cramped and unorganized zoo. There were animal smells of all kinds (luckily not bad smells) and so many different types of animals.
As Spike set the last bowl down, he went back to the kitchen to receive all the food for each differently animal. "Luckily Fluttershy has all this food labeled, otherwise I would have to play many animal charade games" Spike thought to himself as he let out a relieved sigh and continued his work.
After constantly looking over the list and filling what seemed to be hundreds of animal bowls with their correct food, he started looking over a recipe for a dish for the "master" of the house; quite frankly he was appalled at how picky this little puff ball could be when it came to his food.
"All these animals almost remind me of foals because of how much they depend on care from Fluttershy, and because how picky SOME certain animals can be about the food they are fed" Spike thinks to himself as he looks at a picture of an eleborate cherry topped carrot salad.
There is absolutely no way in Tartarus I'm making this dish for a small, naughty, and over all, spoiled bunny with a large ego. I'm sure this is just a dish for special occasions anyways" Spike tells himself as he begins to make a simple yet large salad with a small amount of dressing and carrots... plenty of carrots.
As he placed the quite good looking salad down, Angel is thumping his little rabbit foot in Impatience. "There you go. I made sure to add extra carrots for you.
Angel simply looks at Spike with a frown and clear irritation on his face. "Well, what are you waiting for? This delicious salad I made you isn't going to eat itself."
Angel then chucks the salad at Spike causing him to fall backwards and bump his head as the salad and its ingredients practically explode all around the kitchen. "Ohhh that's going to leave a bump" Spike says groggily and angrily while trying to clear the lettuce leaves from his face.
As the last of the leaves clear Spikes face, he is suddenly slapped and his face is drawn to the white little salad thrower on his stomach, who seems to be holding the very book he was looking at.
It didn't take a genius to figure out what Angel wanted and now Spike had to clean up another big mess made by another individual who was simply trying to use him to get what he wanted, however, this bunny is trying to bully him to get his way, unlike the girls who unintentionally neglect him.
He then stood up and turned away without making a sound, hanging his head and staring at the ground as he barley kept tears from being seen by the bratty bunny.
As Angel Bunny continued looking at Spike with a demanding look, Spike made Angel Bunny another regular salad, but this time it was made much smaller and had less carrots on them.
As Spike began to place the dish down he gave the bunny a cold and almost lifeless look. "I'm done putting up with your attitude. You can either eat this or starve, I don't care which option you choose." He then blew a puff of smoke at the bunny and turned away, deciding to clean up the new mess made instead of giving the bunny attention.
As Spike cleaned up the mess, he recalled similar events where he had received physical pain, even if none of it was from bullying. Being kicked through the air by Rainbow Dash and Applejack during their "Iron Pony" competitions, having countless books accidentally falling or being thrown at you by Twilight, being used as a pin cushion by Rarity, getting pranked by some of Pinkies' more harmful pranks, and Fluttershys' animals giving reverse animal abuse.
"Foals don't have to put up with any of that. If they do get hurt in some way their caregivers patch them up and get lots of love in return, yet look at me, I take far more pain then any of those foals and I don't even get a simple "sorry" in return."
As Spike finished up cleaning he forced out of his mind as he felt more painful kicking and saw Angel (unsurprisingly) refused to listen, but this time Spike didn't feel pain...he felt anger.
Finally, after all the stress acquired this day, from all the self loathing, from his babyish thoughts, and his overall stressful life, Spike finally snapped as all the negativity hit him with full force.
"Do you not understand that I ended our 'conversation' already or are you just that desperate to show your dominance?!"
"Do you realize what I've gone through at all? What I'm going through now, HUH?! NO you don't! I've STRUGGLED, I've SUFFERED and I have had ENOUGH!
"I'm DONE being your slave! If this keeps up tomorrow then you WILL starve because I won't feed you a bucking crumb! Do you get it?! Do you understand?! Spike yelled at the top of his lungs as a small but still very hot stream of green fire escaped uncontrollably from his mouth. He then breathed in and out deeply, almost as if had been completely out of breath.
Every animal stared at Spike in absolute fear including Angel and Spike knew this but he didn't care, he just walked to the door, walked out, and slammed the door shut.
Now with all his anger gone, his feelings became replaced with complete and utter sadness. He then trudged away from the cottage with an unnoticeable tear-drop trail following him, along with a single thought.
"I just want the pain to end, even if only for awhile. Is that so much to ask?"
Spike walked back to the library, mustering up all the willpower he had to put on the normally practiced and faked smile he usually wore to avoid attention but this time, he had trouble from keeping the smile from wavering.
It had been less then five minutes since he left Fluttershy's cottage and yet, he felt he had been walking for hours. The reason for this was because the mental wall that kept his emotions in check had finally cracked. Now he had to not only patch up his now damaged mental barrier and keep himself from letting any emotions loose, but he also had to resist the urge to collapse from the mental exhaustion he was experiencing. At this point, his body was on autopilot as his mind took care of "damage control".
This didn't mean that Spike wasn't aware of his surroundings. No, he saw everything. Ponies playing and having fun, working the stalls, or just taking a trot around town. Even though he was envious of all the happiness other ponies were flaunting around, it made hiding his tears of sadness and avoiding attention much easier.
"Finally I'm done" Spike announced in a tired sigh as he started to approach and enter the library he called home.
As he entered, he was glad to see the library still intact. Even without the girls there, the place still had a chance of somehow making itself a mess that he had to clean. Luckily for Spike, he was done with all the hard work for today. It seems that he will get some rest after all.
He of course, didn't forget about Owlicious. He got some food for his feathery companion and fed him before finally going upstairs to his bed, or at least what he used as a bed. While he never complained about his sleeping conditions before, he would've liked to have a real bed not a basket....
"Just another reminder of my inferiority, having to sleep in a basket like a dog. Heck even a crib would be better then this. Being unable to get out of it once you were put into it would be a very minor inconvenience at worst. I would also actually be able to stretch out for once without either my arms or legs going over the sides, I'd say that is a bargain." Spike thought to himself as he looked disappointedly at his "bed".
Spike then paused for a moment and frowned "Of course I'd want a crib since my mind clearly wants me to not have any self respect. I...I can't even muster up the energy to worry, I just want rest."
As Spike hopped into his "bed" and pulled the covers over himself, he couldn't help but feel restless even though his body demanded rest. Part of his mind was yelling at him to just let himself sleep so his brain could rest as well as his body while another part of his mind was forcing himself to stay awake, making his thoughts so powerful that he couldn't even stay still in his basket-bed.
After what felt like an hour of tossing and turning he finally gave up and took a look at the clock. "Ten minutes! There is no way I had only been laying there trying to sleep for ten bucking minutes!" Spike said out loud, almost baffled at how he couldn't have the one thing he had been waiting for all day since he woke up. All he ever wanted to do was just.... go back to sleep.
"Well, maybe some milk will help." He told himself, hoping his body would comply and shut down afterwards. He figured it was a long shot but why not at least try and see if it worked.
Spike went down to the kitchen and poured himself a nice cool glass a milk. His mouth desperately wanted to suck the beverage into his body as soon as it entered the glass, which he had done.
As he stared at the empty glass, his already overworked brain swelled with more questions and desires. "I wonder, what would drinking from a bottle feel like? Would milk taste better in a bottle? Is it hard getting milk out of a bottle? If foals had a choice would they drink from a bottle, sippy cup, or glass? Is it truly wrong to want a bottle of my own?"
These thoughts were the only thoughts he could actually understand, as his thoughts were so jumbled he could only hear bits and pieces of other foalish things."Bibs, toys, mommy, cuddles, love, cribs, naps, storytime, lullabies."
Spike then clutched his claws to his head tightly and shut his eyes as he began to get a painful headache from all the words bouncing within his mind. Eventually he couldn't understand anything. At this point everything sounded like gibberish... or a clumped up alien language, however, one word had sounded almost separated from the rest. "Diapers."
Spikes eyes then flew open with clear determination on his face and a simple goal in mind. "Alright that's it, I need answers right now!"
He then walked into the main room. Twenty thousand books worth of knowledge and at least one book that had to have what he was searching for, or so he hoped.
"Well then, I guess it's time to embrace my inner Twilight if I plan to find out why I have these persisting thoughts." Spike said in an unexcited tone.
He then came to a realization which made him grin. "On the bright side, I only need to look through a book with 'psychology' as the topic or at least something similar. This means over ninety percent of these books are avoidable since most will be useless to me."
"Well then, looks like it's time to hit the books." Spike said as he cracked his claws and neck with a challenging smirk on his face.
Four hours later.....
"Ugghhhh, another waste of bucking time!" Spike said as he chucked the book he was currently looking through at the bookshelf he found it at.
He had read through, what looked to be twenty different psychology books and so far and he found absolutely nothing. "Hmph, seems like I could be the only one with this problem. I guess I shouldn't be surprised."
Then by pure luck, the suns rays came through the windows and had aimed themselves on one of the many, many books that currently covered the floor. Out of curiosity and desperation, he picked up the book and read the title. "Quirks and Kinks of all Kinds" written by somepony Spike had never heard of (even though he didn't really know many authors in general), and quite frankly, had an odd name "Masked Muzzle".
Spike was curious which was easily heard by the tone in his voice. "I get that not all pony names are perfect. Fancy pants is a perfect example. I mean, what pony actually wears pants. This name however, is by far the oddest name I've ever heard."
"Now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure Twilight mentioned how some authors use an alias when writting a story to remain anonymous. Oh well, it's probably not important."
As Spike looked through the book, he was baffled at some of the topics he'd seen. He thought his brain was going to burst at suddenly being thrust into a reality he never knew existed. Hoof worship, bondage, and even...spanking? That can't be right, wouldn't ponies dislike being spanked?"
All of these topics, each far different from the last and yet, despite seeing so many different topics, he's never even heard of a single ONE of them. "This... this has to be exaggerated. Maybe most of them are outdated or something, otherwise I would've heard about at least one of these before, right?"
Finally after looking through dozens of odd and some interesting topics, he'd found what he's been looking for. "A....Forever Foal?" After reading through the subject Spike had to admit, while he wasn't a pony and therefore couldn't technically be considered a foal, he found that term to be very... satisfying. The name was certainly better then "Forever Hatchling" which didn't roll off the tongue as well.
"This whole 'Forever Foal' thing... this describes me almost perfectly! Basically, some individuals wish to regress to a time without stress. A time where they can feel carefree, loved, and secure. Some ponies even wish to regress because they want a better childhood then they had, which is like me! Sure, for some ponies this can somehow be 'stimulating' and 'sexual' (which he notices many of the topics say) whatever the hay that means. From everything I've just read, this could only mean one thing, I'm not alone!" Spike was inwardly cheering at both his success at finding his elusive answers and the fact that from what he read, he was not insane.
His silent cheering came to a sudden halt at an unmistakable detail he remembered reading. "The longer I try to repress this urge, the worse it will become. Eventually I will have no choice but to act on this desire or I could end up making the situation MUCH worse. If lashing out somehow miraculously doesn't make somepony worried then what will happen if I lose all reason to think rationally and I end up unintentionally indulging in my desire where others end up easily finding out?"
His stands up and paces around the room, planning while putting the books he pulled out back where they belong, except for "Quirks and Kinks of all Kinds". If he is correct, then Twilight may SOMEHOW not know about this books existence and he intends to keep it that way. "This means that I'll need to get some diapers as soon as possible. Since all the girls are gone, today would be the best opportunity. I don't know when I'll get another chance to get diapers without any pony I know noticing, especially ponies close to me. Also, if I get a strong urge to wear a diaper and I don't have one, I could end up making rasher decisions then an angry Rainbow Dash."
"I don't have any other options unless I decide to wait longer and that's not happening. I guess it's settled then. I'm going out to buy some diapers today."
Scouting, planning, and patience. It seems like three simple steps but in reality it couldn't be further from the truth.
Spike was currently outside watching his target, a medium sized foal care store known as...."Foal Care"..... He watched how busy it was and if he remembered correctly from listening to the Cakes, the store closed at 8:00pm. From working all day to finding and researching the "Forever Foal" topic, he had less than three hours to both plan and act.
Spike knew that he had a short window of time to act if he wanted his plan to work. He also knew that he needed to use whatever resources he had available to actually make everything successful. That said, he needs a specific recourse for his plan to be accomplished, currency.
Twilight never gave Spike any bits since he was an assistant and not a paid employee but he was given the next best thing, gems. While Spike didn't want to use his gems to pay for anything, he didn't have much of a choice.
"Lets see, with the gems I've gotten from my gem hunts with Rarity and any leftover gems from meals and snacks I couldn't finish, I should have enough. However, I can't go and only buy diapers. No, much too suspicious. Much too risky. If spending extra on something I don't need will lessen my suspicion then it's worth it." Spike told himself sadly with a hint of a frown on his face.
"I'll need a fake chore list to make it look like I'm running an errand for somepony. I'll also need to be both discrete and open with my purchase. In order to do this I'll need to let any ponies currently inside the store see my purchase but only ponies inside. I'll also need to look panicked once I enter the shop and come in a few minuets before closing time to seem like I was running behind on my chores."
Spike then grinned at the next "devious" step of his plan. "If I do this just right, I'll be creating a small 'scene'. This will make it so nopony will associate my visit as a personal visit. After all, why would a pony trying to hide something create a noticeable 'scene' in front of others. Reverse psychology at its finest."
"Now onto the retrieval phase. I'll need a diaper that fits me without saying it's for me. This next part is simple. I've given Rarity my measurements so I know what they are. If I write down my hip and waist measurements on my 'chore list' and show it to the pony working there then I can get him or her to find a diaper for me." At this point Spike was practically bouncing in place as his plan coming together. Luckily for him no pony noticed this.
"Other items such as foal powder and wipes won't be a problem getting at all so long as I choose my words carefully if any questions are asked about those two products. Unfortunately, I can't get any other items like pacifiers, toys, bibs, or foal food, but I might be able to get a bottle. Getting a foal bottle is definitely gonna make things much riskier but it won't matter if I'm careful enough with the wording for this as well." Spike couldn't contain his excitement as he let out little chuckles of glee along with his slight bounce. Again, nopony saw or heard any of this.
"There is a very small chance that things won't go exactly as I planned. If that happens then the only thing I'd be able to do is play things by ear and wing it. All I have to do now is get my gems, make my list, get my saddle bag, and then wait for the perfect time to make an entrance." Spike thought to himself as he walked home with a grin on his face and determination in his eyes.
As Spike entered the library, he rushed to the bedroom he shared with Twilight, grabbed his saddle bag, went to his "bed", and moved it slightly. Spike being the clever little drake he is, kept his hidden stash of gems in a place that nopony knows about. Not even Twilight knows about Spike's hiding place. With all the time Twilight has disappeared on him he has been making some slight "renovations" to the room. More specifically, under the bedroom.
Spike put the tip of his claw in a tiny hole in the floorboards and then tilted the claw tip slightly. He then lifted up his arm slowly. Doing this removed the floorboard from where his basket sat and revealed a small hole underneath filled with gems.
"I'm honestly glad Twilight hasn't found out about this. If she did, she'd probably think I was hoarding like other dragons, which I technically am. I could only imagine the questions, tests, and possible freak out that would occurre." Spike shivered at that thought as he took some gems and filled up his saddle bag.
After grabbing a sizable amount of gems and putting them into a section of his saddle bag, he put the floorboard and his "bed" back in place. He then went to write a list and sit down for a while as he readied his mind and body. "All that's left is to do now... is wait..."
Two hours later....
Spike was tired. Not from sleep though, from exhaustion. He was running through ponyville carrying many bags of animal food. Spike remembered when he was feeding the animals earlier that a few of them were low on food. This surprisingly worked well with his plan since he figured he'd need to be carrying other items with him for his plan to work. He just wasn't expecting the food to be so heavy. Spike is always used to carrying and pulling heavy things so while this wasn't to difficult, it did slow him down and give him a small workout.
It's about time to start the plan. Once I go in, there's no turning back." Spike didn't even need a second to banish these thoughts from his mind. After all, he made a commitment to this whole thing and he certainly wasn't about to chicken out now.
With less than fifteen minutes left to spare he ran to and entered the foal supply shop with some work-out sweat running down his forehead. He then quickly takes in all of his surroundings. "Okay, there are two ponies here besides the stallion with a tag labeled 'Shiny Smile' working the register and a mare with a tag labeled 'Bright Heart' who must be the pony who can help me. Both the workers seem to be in their twenties which helps my plan quite a bit. That mare most likely is the one who has the most information on the foal products since she is trotting around the store. If I don't do this just right, I'm royally bucked. However, if I do this perfectly then everything should go smoothly."
Spike then notices the very few ponies in the store looking at him but his thoughts were far from worried. In fact, he's never felt as ready as he feels now."Showtime"
Spike then runs up to the mare with animal food still in claw. "Excuse me ma'am, please tell me your still opened. Spike says to her as he pants loudly to give off the 'I just ran all the way here and I'm both out of breath and desperate' vibe.
"We were just about to close for the day in five minutes. Are you alright sweetie?" The mare asks with slight concern on her features.
Spike then replies with a loud sigh of relief as he continues panting slightly. "Thank Celestia!" I could really use your help. You see, I am currently taking care of animals for a friend while she is away and she left me a list of chores to do. Apparently she was running out of supplies for some bear cubs who aren't currently house trained and she didn't write down 'diapers' on the note along with a few other items. Pleasetellmeyoucanhelpmesoidontgetintotroubleand—
"Woah, woah, woah, it's alright. Take some deep breaths ok sweetie? The mare said putting a hoof on his shoulder and giving it a little rub to 'calm him down'.
Just as Spike planned. All four of the ponies in the store were currently looking at him, all with varying looks of concern. "So far so good." Spike thought to himself.
Spike then took a moment to "calm down" before he started speaking again. "I'm... I'm really sorry. I just ran here and I'm very desperate. I didn't mean to get all panicked. He then looked down, pretending to be sad and ashamed.
"It's okay hun. You don't have to be sorry. You haven't done anything wrong." The mare then put a hoof under Spike's chin and pushed upwards, as to bring Spike's eyes to meet her own.
"My name is Bright Heart but you can call me Bright. Can you tell me your name sweetheart?" The now confirmed Bright Heart asked.
Spike then gave the mare now known as "Bright Heart" a comforted smile. "My name is Spike, Spike the dragon. Everypony just calls me Spike.
The mare started to make small talk with Spike to keep the situation calm. "Spikes' your name huh? That's a very nice name." She then got back to business. "Well then Spike, you said you need some diapers for some animals right? Do you have any idea of what kind of diapers you need? Any measurements I can go off of?"
"No I don't know what I'm looking for, I do have measurements though." Spike then hands over the fake chore list which had many crossed out things on it except for all the foal supplies and some numbers which were the measurements. Those were the numbers you wanted, right?"
These will do just fine. I think I can help you out. Just come with me sweetie. The mare then smiled and motioned with her hoof to follow.
Spike dropped his animal food bags by the register and gave the cashier a "don't lose these" look. Spike then silently observed the mares behavior as he followed her"I can't tell if she suspects anything or not. She seems very kind though. While I don't know if she bought that lie, I do know that I still need to be cautious either way."
After walking for about twenty to thirty seconds, they reached a very large wall with all kinds of diapers and diapering supplies. If Spike weren't hiding his emotions he'd end up gaping like a fish.
"Alright, these are all the diapers, pull-ups, and absorbent 'pants' that will fit the size your note specified. Since you are dealing with an animal that is not house broken, either pull up diapers or diapers with tapes will be your best bet. I wouldn't ever recommend pull-ups unless the wearer was going through potty training or in the cubs case, house training. Absorbent 'pants' are for discrete wear so they are automatically off the table. Spike could barely keep from looking at the mare in shock and awe as Bright Heart professionally spoke about each diaper and their pros/cons.
"Thank you so much for your help! You have no idea how much of a life saver you are!" Spike said in an overly exasperated sigh. He then went up to the mare and gave a big hug making sure she had seen a grateful smile on his face. "This hug could backfire badly but I have to make it seem like she helped keep me from disappointing a friend. Even if she doesn't know the truth, she still is helping me and that does make me truly grateful."
The mare was initially surprised by such an action but she immediately accepted the hug with a bright smile. "Aww your so cute! I'm just doing my job but I'm glad I could help you. This must be important to you huh?" The mare asks as she disengages the hug.
Even though Bright Heart was very kind and Spike felt horrible for deceiving her, he couldn't just tell her the truth now. At this point he could only continue down the path he'd chosen. "Yeah your right. I have lots of ponies depending on me and this specific pony is the last one you'd want to see sad. I also made a commitment. As part of my dragon code I cannot ignore a promise I make."
"You even have your own code you follow? That's adorable! The mare said as she unintentionally made a squee sound.
"Horseapples! I wasn't supposed to be cute and adorable I was supposed to be noble and responsible. If she decides to make a connection between my 'adorableness' and the diapers then she might find out what's really going on. I might just be paranoid but I can't risk it. I have to push her away gently to keep her new thoughts about me to a minimum. Spike silently told himself while inwardly panicking.
He then gave Bright Heart a sincere and apologetic look. "Thank you for the compliment. I do try very hard to be responsible and dependable. Also, while I don't mean to be rude, I should really let you get ready to close up the shop. I should be able to get everything I need from here. I'd really rather not keep you past your closing time."
The mare then flattened her ears in embarrassment and sadness. She really wanted to continue talking to the adorable dragon in front of her but she knew that there wasn't much time left before she had to leave. "Oh yes, of course. I almost forgot about that! Just finish getting what you need. If you need my help then come look for me by the register."
Spike then inwardly grinned but remained calm on the outside. "Thank you, I will be as fast as possible." As Spike watched the mare leave, he turned towards the diapers with tapes and looked at each one.
"Alright. I'm gonna get some diapers with tapes, designs, and plenty of thickness. I'll also get changing supplies just in case and a foal bottle. Spike immediately saw a package of diapers with the "Power Ponies" on them and quickly grabbed them.
Spike then grabbed the powder and wipes along with a "Power Pony" themed foal bottle and went up to the register. "This is the final step. I'm almost outta here."
Once Spike reached the register where both Bright Heart and Shiny Smile were, he placed all the foal products on the counter and let the Stallion known as "Shiny Smile" do his work. Luckily for Spike, the stallion was just like Big Mac, he just rang up the items and didn't say a word.
"So Spike, you got a bottle too it seems?" The mare asked with a questionable look pointed at Spike.
Spike knew that he had to take a leap of faith and make a pretty good lie here otherwise he would get caught. "Yeah. While my friend has some bottles to use, they are shared by all the animals that need to be fed. I figured I'd get a separate one that the cub wouldn't have to share."
The mare looked at Spike in surprise. While she'd already known Spike had more manners then most ponies, she never would've guessed she'd meet such a generous dragon considering most are greedy. "That's very thoughtful of you. I'm sure your friend will appreciate the gesture."
"I hope so." Spike said then pulled out a fifth of the gems from his saddle bag and placed them on the counter. While he didn't know how much it all was yet, he knew that the gems he had would cover the cost. "I hope these gems are good enough for payment. Also, keep the extra. You can consider it a 'thank you' for saving my hide."
Both ponies were clearly surprised. It's not often anypony would pay in gems, let them keep the extra as a tip, or have a dragon customer. "W...wow, thank you very much Spike. While I wouldn't normally take this, something tells me you won't take it back." The mare said, too shocked by everything that's occurred to even think straight.
Spike then grabbed all the bags of animal food he left by the counter and the new bag of foal items which were concealed perfectly from prying eyes and began to walk away, only to turn back slightly and respond one last time. "Like I said, keep the extra. Also, thank you for the very helpful service you provided. I hope we meet again soon."
Spike was more then pleased with the results even if he lost some gems in the process. He then decided that now was the time to go home and left the store, seeing as the two ponies working were too stunned to give a reply. "It seems the game is over and I've officially won."
"I can't laugh. Not yet." Spike told himself as his mouth was twitching upwards. He walked casually back towards the library using all his will power not to burst out in happiness at his success. He wasn't planning on anypony currently outside learning about his secret, especially right after he successfully got his prize.
Less then five minutes ago, Spike was able to pull off his diaper "heist" and did so with practically no errors. "I've gotta admit, that was just too simple. I was honestly hoping for a bit more of a challenge. Oh well, I can't complain about an easy win. Spike thought to himself in a cocky manner.
"I never would've believed taking risks like that would be so exhilarating. My heart was pounding at some points and it felt amazing. Heck, it's still pounding." Spike told himself as he got high on his current adrenaline rush.
Spike then forced himself out of his adrenaline high, attempting to return to his logical self. "Focus Spike! That may have worked out well the first time but that may not happen if I take another risk. I have to stay calm and collected. I can't let this win make me feel invincible"
As Spike quietly scolded himself, he reached the library door with all his bags. He then walked inside the dark library, seeing a very much awake owl waiting to greet him.
"Ah Owlicious, I see your as vigilant as ever" Spike told the Owl who looked at Spike with a curious stare.
"Relax. I just needed to pick up more animal food for Fluttershy, which I'll drop off at her house tomorrow." Spike told the Owl as he placed the animal food in the kitchen and filled up his new bottle with milk making sure it was clean first AND making sure he wasn't seen while doing so.
As Spike began to walk to his room with his saddle bag he glanced over his shoulder. "I'm going to be going to bed a bit earlier tonight so please don't interrupt me unless it's important."
The Owl simply made a "hoo" sound which Spike interpreted as "are you felling alright? It's not even 9:00pm." Spike reached the door to the bedroom and replied to the curious owl. "I'm doing alright, just had a long day is all."
Spike walked into the bedroom closing his innocent looking eyes. He then closed the door behind him and opened his eyes slowly which now looked far more piercing and reptilian while also filled with immense pain and desire. Spike then quietly spoke. "In fact, I'm perfect now that I've got what I want.
Spike then takes the diapers and foal supplies out of his saddle bag, opens up all his supplies, and sets his baby bottle filled with milk next to his basket, all while laughing quietly as his eyes began to get misty. "Finally. Finally, I got my diapers. It felt like it took forever but it's finally time. No more worries, no more distractions, no more responsibilities, no more expectations, and for now, No. More. Pain.
Spike then looks carefully at his diapers. He didn't check to see if he got any with tapes or not. To Spikes surprise, the package is half and half. He could've sworn diapers were only sold with or without tapes in a single package, yet the proof was right in front of him.
"It looks like both Celestia's sun and Luna's moon were on my side today." Spike silently told himself with a grin showing off his fangs as they reflected moonlight off of them.
Spike then decided which diaper he'd wear. I guess I'll just put on one of the pull on diapers. If I knew I could get away with wearing a diaper with tapes then I would. If I used a diaper with tapes then I'd have to actually use it for its intended purpose since I'd be wasting the diaper if I didn't, which I'm not sure I can get away with just yet."
Spike then placed the plastic from the foal diaper package on the floor to use as a makeshift changing mat, grabbed the foal powder, and grabbed the diaper, while trying to figure out what he needed to do. "I should be able to do this. "I've helped out with diapering the Cake twins before. The only difference this time is that I am diapering myself. Since I'm using this pull on diaper, I only have to worry about the amount of powder I use in the diaper and rub on the 'diaper area'."
Spike then sat on the "changing mat" and lied back. He then started to tip the foal powder over slightly and shake it. Instantly, the white powder fell on his "diaper area". He then lifted his legs high in the air and applied the powder to his bottom, blushing the entire time as thoughts swam through his mind. "T.. this kinda feels nice. I kinda feel like I'm getting a diaper change. I wonder what it would feel like to have another pony diaper me though. It probably won't ever happen since I don't plan on telling a single soul about this."
Spike's heart was fluttering, his cheeks were tinged red, and his body felt lighter than a cloud. It was kinda embarrassing even with nopony in the room watching but at the same time, it just felt so... right. "Wha... What is this feeling? Is this what it feels like to be truely happy? I mean I've felt happy before, but this feeling... It's on a whole new level!" Spike said to himself as he wholeheartedly embraced this new feeling with a bright, cheery smile and breathed in the sweet foal powder smell.
Spike then sprinkled some powder in the diaper and slid it up his legs while he slipped his tail through the hole in the back. As he did so, he couldn't help but giggle childishly at how thick and comfortable the diaper felt between his legs as he unknowingly bounced on his freashly padded rear causing crinkles and a tiny puff of powder escaped his diaper.
Spike suddenly realized what he was doing and stopped moving all together. The only way to tell that he wasn't a statue was by looking at his reddening face. "Why did I just do that?! Not that it was bad or anything. I mean–" Spike then cut off those questionable thoughts and smiled with his still slightly pink cheeks. "You know what, it doesn't matter. I can't deny that just bouncing with my diaper on was fun and I don't want to deny it either."
After bouncing a few more times on his padded behind, he moved his bed and opened up his "hidey hole". He then proceeded to place his extra diapers and his "changing mat" inside for future use. He also pulled something out, a plushy which looked fairly similar to Rarity. He then closed up the hole and put his bed back in place, all while he was accompanied by crinkles.
"I wonder what drinking from the foal bottle will be like." Spike then grinned cutely and giggled. "I guess there's only one way to find out."
Spike hopped into his basket, pulled the covers up to his neck, grabbed the foal bottle in both claws, and started to suckle. It was a bit hard at first to get the milk out but he soon got a rhythm going as cool milk began to flow gently into his mouth and down into his stomach.
Spikes mind went blank as he closed his eyes and suckled his bottle without a care in the world and with a content, peaceful smile on his face. If anypony had seen him now then they probably would've mistaken him for a baby or at the very least, a toddler. After a few minutes his mind came back to reality as he realized he'd been suckling on air for about thirty seconds. He then slid the bottle out of his mouth creating a small "pop" sound and placed the bottle next to him in his bed.
"Mmm, that seemed to taste better then normal. It also felt really nice. Really relaxing." Spike groggily thought to himself and then yawned.
He then grabbed his Rarity plushy and hugged it tightly, ready to enter dreamland. After a few minutes however, Spike felt he was missing something.
After a few moments of thinking, Spike realized what he was missing. He grabbed his tail and slid the tip of it inside his mouth and started suckling on it just like a pacifier. His tail filled his mouth perfectly, almost as if it were meant to be there. Now hugging both his tail and his plushy closely with his covers as well as his comfortable diaper keeping Spike warm, he knew now that he was ready for bed.
As Spike was starting to drift off, tears slid down his face. These weren't tears of sadness though. No, these were tears of absolute joy. Spike realized this was the best feeling he could ever remember as he finally felt special and loved. Hopefully he will get to feel like this more often. He can worry about that later though. For now Spike is content with how he feels right now and that's all that matters.
"Nini Wawity" Spike groggily lisped around his tail to his plushy while continuing to suckle his tail as he fell asleep in the safety and security of his comfy diaper like the baby dragon he truly felt like on the inside.