> Spike's Complications
>  by JordanOlson
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1: The Dragons Eagerness
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

When something changes it could be good or it could be bad, maybe even both. For Spike, this change was both.

"Ugh, I didn't think chores could ever get worse. Apparently I was wrong" Spike thought to himself in boredom as he was creating a map for his new home.

It's been a few months since Spike learned about his new favorite hobby and he has been much happier since then. He became much faster at completing chores; all while still being just as thorough as before, he seemed more energetic, and he even seemed less tired.

There were a few downsides to this change though. Twilight picked up on Spike's improved mood as well as his overall increased chore proficiency almost immediately and figured this was a sign of Spike becoming more mature. This meant Spike was given more chores and more responsibilities which included being a butler to a newly crowned princess. Chores are exactly what he had to deal with right now.

Spike definitely wasn't new to labor but he certainly never thought he'd have to insure an entire castle was taken care of. "it's lucky for me that Twilight doesn't actually know what her duties entail. I'm sure if she figured out what her main role for Equestria was she'd somehow find more work for me to do."

A very loud yell was then heard bouncing off the new crystalline walls, breaking Spike out of his thoughts. "SPIIIIKE! Could you come here for a moment please?"

Spike couldn't help but inwardly groan. "Oh geez. I've only got a map of the basic areas down. What could she possibly want now?

After walking for what felt like hours, Spike finally found the pony he was looking for. She was the new alicorn who owned this castle. A purple mare with the obvious horn and wings, a very dark purplish mane with a pink and purple streak on it, a cutie mark with a six pointer star, and his roommate since forever, Twilight Sparkle.

"Twilight, I get that this is a castle now but have you ever considered using your indoor voice?" Spike playfully joked with the mare as he smiled.

Twilight knew Spike was just messing around but she couldn't help but blush anyways. "W... well I just thought that since the castle was so big and since you were mapping and exploring around I should make sure you heard me."

Twilight then regained her composure, wanting to get back on track. "Now on to what I was going to tell you. I'm going to be going on a picnic with the girls and I'll also probably help out Applejack on the farm afterwards. Since Tirek attacked, there has been much damage around Ponyville which still needs repairs to be made."

"So then, you'll be out. Possibly for a few hours?" Spike was inwardly cheering at the wonderful news. He hasn't gotten a chance to pad up in about a month and if he did, it wasn't for very long. It basically felt like a year since Spike has truly gotten a chance to wear a diaper. With such a wonderful opportunity apearing right before him, Spike knew he couldn't pass it up. In fact, it would be foolish to do so.

"Well yes but that's not why I'm telling yo–" Twilight then suddenly had a claw put over her mouth.

"Say no more! Your number 1 assistant is on the job! I'll make sure everything around here is fine." Spike said a bit to enthusiastically.

Twilight then tried to remove the claw in her mouth but before she had the chance; the claw took itself out of her mouth and joined the other in pushing her towards the door.

"H... hey, hold on a moment Spike" Twilight spoke with clear surprise evident in her voice.

Spike of course didn't care to give Twilight a chance to speak the rest of her mind as he continued talking. "Like I said, don't you worry about me. I will make sure everything is under control. Just go have fun with the others.

Twilight was desperately attempting to dig her hooves into the floor, too stunned at Spike's sudden burst of strength to even think about using magic as she was suddenly set by the door.
"When did you get so strong and why are you pushing me out the door?!" Twilight yelled in shock as she finally had a moment to think clearly about her current situation.

"Twilight, stop worrying so much. Go out and have a good time. After everything that's happened I'm sure you'd like to spend time with your friends. I'm also sure you wouldn't want to keep them waiting." Spike said as he gave the bookish mare an overly cheerful smile and opened the door

"Thank you for your concern but I really–" Twilight was then cut off again as she was pushed out the door.

"Say hi to the girls for me. Seeyoulaterwhenyougetback, BYE! Spike then slammed the door on Twilight not caring that what he did was slightly rude or slightly suspicious. He had other things to worry about which were more important then his previous actions. Much more important things.

Spike started running to his new room. A room he had been automatically given by the magic chest the castle had grown from. Spike then quickly ran inside while taking a glimpse around the room. It contained an actual bed with posters of various comic book characters he enjoyed and it had much more space then the previous room he shared with Twilight. The room even came with its very own secret storage space built into the wall...

Spike's room was somehow created in his image perfectly, almost as if it was specifically made to match his wants and needs. Spike even had all the possessions that had been inside his little storage space magically restored after being vaporized.

"Don't question how all this is possible. All this is, is magic. It's the only explanation I need to enjoy a good thing" Spike thought to himself happily.

Spike then pulled out all of his foal supplies and got himself diapered. First he sprinkled the powder all over his diaper area, bottom included. His next and most favorite part, putting on one of his pull up diapers while threading his tail through the hole in the back all while smelling the sweet foal powder. Ever since he has been wearing diapers, it seemed like he's been missing something. Spike decides not to worry too much about that for now though and decided to focus on his crinckly garment instead. After all, he got to do what he wanted to do ever since he completed all of his chores this bright and early morning, take an hour long nap in a diaper.

Before Spike was able to sleep however, he suddenly got signals from his bladder telling him he needed to pee. This was new territory for him. He usually went to the bathroom to relieve himself before putting on a diaper. In fact, all the times Spike has worn a diaper; he'd just wear it not use it.

" I can't believe I got so excited about wearing diapers again that I forgot to use the potty" Spike said to himself, making sure to emphasize the word potty in his mind. That word always seemed to send shivers throughout his scales.

Spike had to mentally prepare himself while he decided to make his final decision on the matter. "Well... a foals potty is their diaper... I guess it wouldn't hurt to try using the diapers for their intended purpose just this one time. I can't lie to myself, I've always been interested at the idea of using my diapers. I guess I'll try it out and test how absorbent these thick diapers really are. Who knows, I might actually like it. I should have plenty of time before Twilight gets back and I can easily get this diaper thrown out without anypony noticing...."

He finally decided that he would take his first "baby" steps into uncharted territory as Spike grabbed his plushy out of his hiding place and hugged it tightly. He then started to gently push and tempt his body into "letting go".

After a few minutes of mental prodding and position changing, Spike closed his eyes gently and finally settled with a simple squatting stance. Spike began to push all while he was scrunching up his face, concentrating on completing the naughty task. It took about twenty seconds before he finally felt warmth collect throughout the front of his diaper all the way to his backside as his padded bum started to feel warm and wet. As a quiet hissing noise was heard within the room for about a minute, Spike's face began to relax while it started getting redder and redder to the point where his face looked similar to one of Applejacks apples. He then gripped his plushy tighter as his body was filled with shame. It wasn't depressed shame though. It made him feel little. He felt satisfied shame.

Spike couldn't help but sigh in relief as he finished having his slightly embarrassing little potty accident. He was spared even more embarrassment since the diaper didn't leak.

His diaper squelched a bit as he started waddling to his bed. Spike then hopped under his covers and stuffed his tail in his mouth while clutching his Rarity plushy to his chest. As he began to suckle on his tail like a pacifier, his thoughts began to swim.  "T... that was kinda embarrassing even with nopony watching but it honestly wasn't as bad as I first assumed it would feel like. The warmth actually feels kinda.... nice. I feel almost better overall. More safe and secure. More loved. At the same time, I feel like a toddler who just got scolded for taking a cookie out of the cookie jar.

As Spike started to relish in the warmth from his blankets covering him and his now warm soggy padding, his eyes began to get heavy while his body became limp. It didn't even take Spike ten seconds of having his eyes closed before he was out like a light and off to dreamland peacefully and quietly suckling on his tail, all while he had a content smile on his face. If anypony were to see him now, they'd say he was sleeping like a baby.
> Chapter 2: A Suspicious Dragon
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

All seemed quiet as if the world was on hold, giving time to think.

Twilight stood in front of the door she had just been pushed out of, jaw hanging open in absolute surprise at what had just occurred. She had been shoved out of her own castle by her number one assistant. It's not like she was locked out but she might as well have been. She almost felt like she wasn't supposed to be there. She felt like if she tried entering again she'd just be pushed out the door in the same unceremonious fashion.

In the end Spike was right though. Twilight didn't want to keep her friends waiting and she did deserve a break now that she's finished all her paperwork. That didn't make what had just happened alright though and she was definitely going to scold the dragon when she returned. She'd worry about that later though. Right now she had a picnic to attend to.

***

"Ugh where the hay is princess egghead at?!" Shouted a cyan pegusus with a rainbow mane.

A white unicorn mare with a purple mane responded to the impatient pegusus calmly, all while sipping on a cup of tea. "Now Rainbow darling, it isn't the official starting time yet. You know how Twilight is with her schedules. With all the new duties she's been given I'm surprised she hasn't canceled on us. Would it really hurt you to act like a proper lady and wait patiently?"

"Y'know Dash, Rarity has a point. It's a miracle Twilight is even coming outside of her new castle with all the work she has to do now" replied an orange earth pony mare who wore a frown on her face and a Stetson on her head.

Before Rainbow Dash could respond, a pink earth pony with a cotton candy looking mane decided to add her thoughts to the conversation. "Ohhh! What if she was captured by those meanie changlings or captured by grumpy aliens! *GASP* maybe she went on some kind of super secret princess adventure without us!? What if she was assigned a special mission where she had to save Equestria from running out of cakes and cupcakes and cherrychangas and sugar and–"

"Sorry about this sugar cube" said the orange earth pony before putting her hoof in the pink pony's mouth. "I doubt any of that is happening to Twi. In fact, she's probably on her way right now as we speak."

"I concur with Applejack. I'm sure Twilight is coming right now. Even if you were somehow correct about changlings, Pinkie Pie; I'm sure a princess like Twilight would have no problems defending herself. She really should get her own guard though. A princess shouldn't have to get dirty and fight in such brutish battle after all" Stated the white unicorn mare with a look of disgust on her face at she thought of Twilight covered in mud and grime.

Rainbow Dash wasn't amused which was clearly shown on her cyan face. "You better be right about Egghead being on her way Rarity, otherwise I'm gonna fly over to her castle and drag her royal flank here myself. Just because she is a princess now doesn't mean she gets to bail on us last minute. We've been planning this way for too long for that to happen."

"Umm Dashie" whispered a yellow pegasus with a pink mane covering part of her face "I think they're right. Isn't that Twilight over there?" The yellow mare pointed her hoof at the approaching purple pony in the distance.

Rainbow looked a bit confused at first before praising the yellow pegasus. "Huh? Oh hey, your right Fluttershy. Nice catch there!"

What seemed like another half an hour when it was really only thirty seconds, Twilight finally arrived to the picnic. Looking at her closely though, the girls could see she wasn't really paying attention. She seemed to be in her own little world. She quickly snapped to attention though, as she heard her name being called by the other attendees.

"Girls, I'm glad your all here already!" Twilight smiled gleefully. That soon changed as a look of panic spread across her face. "Wait, I'm not tardy am I?!"

"Nah, your actually just in time Twi. Ya don't have ta worry, none of us were waitin long." Applejack told the purple mare as she attempted to calm her down.

The rainbow maned pegasus decided to greet Twilight with a bit of criticism. "Speak for yourself. It felt like you took forever! I was about to fly to your castle and carry you here if you hadn't shown up when you did!"

Rarity gave the bookish mare a smile and decided to come to Twilights rescue before she had a panic attack. "Ignore Rainbow Dash darling. She was simply impatient and couldn't keep herself calm." Rarity then decided to move the conversation forward. "So how have you been dear? With the new job I'd assume everything's been pretty hectic for you?"

Twilight gave the white mare a grateful smile. She knew why the topic was changed and she was glad that Rarity was trying to keep her calm and relaxed. "It's been pretty difficult I'll admit. I've been working my flank off trying to look over all the most recent damage reports in Ponyville."

Twilight then remembered her scaled companion asked to give the girls a message, even if he sounded like Pinkie Pie usually does when he told her. "Oh I almost forgot, Spike wanted me to tell you girls he said 'hi'."

Rarity couldn't help but smile at the helpful dragons name. He usually always helped her around her boutique when she needed it. "Oh, that's nice to hear. How has Spikey-Wikey been? Probably working himself to the bone while trying to help you, right?

"Yeah he's been pretty helpful. There have been nights where I've heard him awake at about 2:00am doing something. When I asked him what he was doing he said "I'm working late tonight. Go back to bed and get some rest."

Of course Spike wasn't actually working late like he said. He found out that his best time to pad up would be at night when nopony was awake.

In a rare act of self confidence, Fluttershy whisper shouted. "Oh my goodness. He really shouldn't do that! All living creatures require a certain amount of sleep in order to let the body regain its lost stamina. He is still pretty young so he should be getting more sleep then the average stallion, not less!"

Twilight shook her head sadly. "I told him that he should be sleeping as well but he won't listen. I must've told him more than five times that he needed to go to bed but he's brushed it off every time, claiming that somepony needs take care of the gigantic castle we have now."

Fluttershy, not noticing her rare bravery continued her little rant. "Well from now on he'd better be in bed at a reasonable time or I'm gonna come over there and put him to bed myself. I'll even stay all night if that's what it takes."

Everypony could only stare with jaws dropped at Fluttershy and her quiet but demanding tone. She may not always be the bravest pony but she is definitely not a pony to be messed with.

"W...well, I'll make sure to tell him what you just said Fluttershy" Twilight spoke with her face still covered in shock.

After a moment of stares being pointed in her direction, Fluttershy finally realized what she had done. "EEEP! I'm sorry for yelling like that girls. It's just, sleep is important for all growing individuals. I hope your not mad."

Rarity regains her composure first and decides to speak up. "It's alright Fluttershy dear. I wouldn't want my precious Spikey-Wikey getting hurt in any way either." Rarity then turned to Twilight with a questioning gaze. "How long has Spike been doing this?"

All the girls looked at Twilight wanting confirmation. "He has been doing this ever since we started living in the castle, which has been a few months."

Rainbow Dash looked astonished at the answer that was given. "That's not good at all. I need plenty of sleep which is why I take so many naps. Being awesome 24/7 is a full time job on its own. Managing the weather and practicing my tricks is even more stressful. Even if he isn't doing this every night, I don't know how the little guy is functioning let alone doing chores."

"Ah agree." Everypony turned and saw Applejack glance at Twilight with an uncertain look on her face. "While working at the farm is tiring, we apples make sure to have a time set so we don't ruin our sleep schedules. If any of us end up staying awake longer then we are supposed to be awake for, we end up being almost unable to work bright and early the next day. The fact that ya got Spike workin late and wakin up early is almost hard to believe. I believe that your being honest with us but if I were put in that position I sure as hay wouldn't be able to buck many apple trees without falling asleep halfway through ma chores."

Everypony stood in silence for a moment, contemplating what was just said before Fluttershy timidly spoke up. "Is there umm, anything else about Spike that is different or new?" Fluttershy asked while trying to hide behind her mane.

Twilight then remembered her earlier confrontation with Spike as she frowned slightly at the memory. "Actually now that you mention it, every time I tell Spike I'm going out for a small amount of time he encourages me to do so with an overly cheerful smile on his face. He then tells me he's got everything under control, walks with me to the door, and then watches me leave. It's been like that since the library was destroyed. Today was different though. Today when I told him I was probably going to be gone for awhile he had a smile almost as big as Pinkie Pie's. He then asked if it would be for a few hours and I responded with yes. Next thing I know, he's pushing me out the door telling me I didn't have to worry about a thing and then slams the door in my face."

"Spikey did that to you?" Rarity asked, astonished at the thought of such a gentledrake doing something so rude.

The purple mare nodded, still in thought. "Yeah. He didn't even really give me much of a chance to explain anything before he started shoving me out. Whenever I tried, he just kept cutting me off and reassuring me that he'd take care of the castle while I was gone.

"You know, I actually think I did something similar when I was younger." Rainbow Dash spoke, attempting to recite a piece of her past while wearing a smug smile. "I wanted to throw a party at my house while my parents were away so I just kept telling them that I'd be alright and told them to enjoy themselves. Of course it worked but my parents found out and I was busted. It was totally worth it though!"

Pinkie Pie was vibrating in place with a detectives hat on her head as she tried to figure out what this meant. "Does that mean Spike is throwing a party.... WITHOUT ME?! How could Spike not want help making an amazingly superifical fantastical party with the best party planning pony in Ponyville?! *GASP* UNLESS THE PARTY IS FOR US! Okay everypony, when show up we have to act surprised otherwise we'llhurtspikesfeelingsandthenhe'llbesadand–"

Twilight shouted trying to get the pink ponies attention. "PINKIE PIE! THERE'S NO PARTY!" Twilight then regained her composure. "I highly doubt Spike would throw a party in the castle. If he did, I'm sure we'd know. I'm positive that if we simply asked him why he's acting this way he'd tell us and that's what we're going to do."

Pinkie's hair (somehow losing the hat) deflated slightly at the prospect of no party. "So there ISN'T going to be a party AT ALL?!" Pinkie's hair then suddenly sprang back upwards. "Well, we can have a party later once we figure out what Spike's doing!"

Rainbow Dash couldn't help but scoff at where this conversation was headed. "C'mon! Are we actually thinking Spike, Spike is hiding something? That dragon doesn't have a life outside of chores or doing what Twilight tells him to do. What could he possibly keep hidden from anypony, especially US?"

"Rainbow Dash! How could you say such a thing about our adorable wittle Spikey-Pooh?" Rarity asked as she scolded the prismatic pegasus.
"He works so hard to make us happy and you say such a horrid thing about him. Besides, you even said so yourself! You did something your parents never would've approved of once they got out of the house. Maybe Spike does something too, just not as inappropriate as breaking rules or throwing parties without permission.

The colorful pegasus clearly didn't want to let Rarity have the last words, she wanted to get her point across. "Well ex-cuse-me~. I am just being honest here. Let's face it, that little guy is as interesting as drying paint. There's no way he's doing or ever done anything exciting like taking some crazy, awesome risk on his own.

Applejack being the element of honesty decides she is needed for this discussion and quickly adds her thoughts to the conversation while glaring at the rainbow mare. "While ah wouldn't have said it in such a harsh way, Rainbow does have a point. The little fella really just reads comics and helps out ponies when asked. He doesn't have many friends other then us and he doesn't join us often since he's always busy with his chores."

Everypony stood in silence, attempting to think of something that the baby dragon did besides reading comics and working. Sadly, they couldn't think of anything.

Rarity then spoke with a tone of suspicion in her voice. "Now that I think about it, Spike hasn't helped out at my boutique even once since Tirek was defeated.

"Umm, now that you mention it, I talked with Angel Bunny a few months ago and I remember him and the other animals telling me Spike was stressed about something. I tried asking Angel what happened but he wouldn't say anything." Fluttershy said he while trying to shrink away from anypony looking at her.

Twilight then turned to Rarity and Fluttershy in surprise. "Spike hasn't even asked me if he could help at the boutique and he certainly never said anything or complained at any time about being stressed... Maybe he's doing something on his own time after all." Twilight says uncertainly. "After we're done fixing up the damage at Sweet Apple Acres, I'm gonna talk to Spike about this and see what he says."

"OOH, OHH, I WANNA COME TOO!" Shouts the overactive pink pony. "Then I can throw a PARTY that is related to Spike's hobby!"

"Count me in as well darling. It's been awhile Since I've seen gotten to see Spikey. I sure hope he hasn't forgotten about moi." Rarity said over dramatically as she flipped her mane.

Rainbow Dash then flies right in front of Rarity and gives her a determined smirk. "Well I'm totally going along too, if only to prove to you that I'm right!"

"Ah think I'm gonna join y'all too. If fer some reason Spike tries to pull our hooves, I'll know. The farm pony spoke with a determined expression on her face.

Last but not least was Fluttershy who hid behind her mane and quietly spoke her decision. "Umm, I guess I'll come with you girls too. If that's okay with you.

"Thanks girls. While I'm sure everything will be fine, it's nice to know your gonna be by my side when I ask. Besides, I'm sure Spike will be happy to see you all anyways" Twilight states confidently with a thankful smile on her face.

As the group of six departed to Sweet Apple Acers, Twilight couldn't help but think about Spike. "Is it possible Spike is actually keeping some kind of secret from me? If so, what could it be?"
> Chapter 3: A Dragon is Questioned
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

About an hour had passed.

Spike had just woken up and he felt refreshed, albeit slightly groggy. Although, he woke up specifically to a cold soggy diaper and a very weak but still noticeable pressure on his bladder, he felt great. He probably slept better then he had in a long time.

Without much hesitation Spike sat up in bed and relieved his bladder with a content sigh, warming his cool diaper slightly.

"I guess it's time for me to get out of this thing before I get a rash. I'm sure I'd have a wonderful time trying to explain how I got diaper rash to Twilight but I think I'll pass on that" Spike thought to himself amusedly.

As luck would have it, Spike's foal supplies were already out since he forgot to put everything away. He's also lucky Twilight didn't come back and see his supplies or end up with a leaky diaper.

As Spike lied down on his "changing mat", he took off his wet diaper and started wiping himself thoroughly with foal wipes. After completely cleaning off his lower half, Spike then grabbed a small bag out of his hiding place which he brought to his room in case of such a scenario occurring, put his foal supplies away, and put his used diaper and wipes in the bag. He then ran to the garbage and disposed of it, making sure it would be concealed perfectly.

While all this was going on, Spike carefully retraced his steps in his mind to find out if he made any mistakes which would get him caught. He did this every time he wore a diaper to hopefully come up with some sort of explanation to give should things suddenly go south.

"Lets see. Everything's put away, evidence is in a bag in the garbage, no nursery smell in my room, and I'm completely clear of any urine or foal powder sticking to me. Everything seems to be fine but... why do I feel like I made a mistake?" Spike thought to himself anxiously.

He then gave himself a mental pep talk. "C'mon brain, think! If you start slacking off now I'll get caught. I've come too far to suddenly get caught now. If Twilight finds out she'll probably–."

Spike then cut himself off at a chilling realization. "Oh no. The way I treated Twilight might buck me over. There's no way she's gonna let that go without questioning me first and even then she might start keeping tabs on me.

Spike then blushed madly and shivered in worry. "I've got a plan. It's going to be embarrassing but I really don't have any other choice. Hopefully I won't have to actually use this plan but if I do, all I can say is it'll be worth it if it keeps my foalish secret...

***

The girls finished up on the farm, preparing to speak with Spike. Each pony felt differently at the moment ranging from worry, suspicion, boredom, indifference, and happiness, yet all the girls were ready.

They entered the castle and immediately saw the very dragon they were hoping to talk to. Spike was sitting in a chair reading a "Power Ponies" comic book and looked clearly immersed in it, as he didn't seem to hear anypony walk in.

Twilight honestly wasn't sure how to start the conversation. Was she just supposed to ask Spike to reveal something he might not want to reveal? Was there even a secret he was hiding at all? If not then why was he supposedly stressed? "Ehem, Spike?"

Spike looked up at the girls smiling.He wasn't expecting to see the rest of the girls. However, while he was glad to see them all, Spike was sure what was about to unfold was not something he wanted to be a part of at all. "Oh hey girls, it's been awhile. How are you?"

Twilight was tongue tied. There were dozens of questions she wanted to ask him. How in Equestria was she supposed to choose what to say first. "Well umm Spike, the girls and I were talking earlier and, umm..." 

Twilight then stood silent for a few moments, trying to figure out what to say and failing miserably. Moments a rainbow maned pegasus felt were taking decades.

"What Twilight is trying to say is, why have you been acting so weird? Everypony thinks your hiding something which is crazy, right? Rainbow Dash said to the Drake laughing at what she thought was a ridicules conversation.

Spike simply raised his scaley eyebrow. "Wow. That was blunt. I thought I'd have to let Twilight dance around the issue for awhile. Then again, I was only expecting to talk to Twilight. With the rest of the girls here I'll be forced to choose my words very carefully, especially with Applejack."

Spike then forced his face to look confused while trying to sound as innocent as possible. "Huh, what are you talking about? I didn't think I was acting weird. If for some reason I was acting odd, I honestly wasn't trying too. As for hiding something, what would I have to hide? You can ask me anything you know."

Spike's words were made to be simple and naive just like a slightly mature child. He easily disarmed some of the girls but a few weren't satisfied quite yet. "Well, from what Rarity had told me, you haven't been helping her at her boutique?" Twilight asked, simply and without judgment.

Spike inwardly grinned, this question would be easy to answer. "Oh, I've been really tired lately. I've been working alot lately and I've just needed some time to relax. "Heh, if only they knew the full story."

Rarity decided to give the questioning a try next. "Awhile ago, say three months or so, did you feel stressed at any point?"

Spike quickly thought about how to answer this question without making an excuse that could lead to unnecessary questions. "The way Rarity worded this... it has to be a trick question. They must've somehow figured out I was stressed. If I say 'no' they might call me out for lying." Spike answered calmly making his face look like he was trying to remember any time he was stressed. "Three months? I think I was a bit stressed around that time, yeah. Why do you ask?"

Fluttershy decided to answer with her whisper like voice. The information did come from her after all. More specifically, Angel Bunny. "Umm well, Angel said when he saw you, you seemed stressed. He didn't say much but all the animals seemed to agree with him."

Twilight quickly interjected after Fluttershy finished speaking. "So you were stressed. What about?

"Of course Angel told Fluttershy about how I lost it. I guess he didn't tell her the whole story to avoid getting into trouble." Spike then answered Twilight with a frown. "I really wasn't feeling great when I went over to Fluttershy's. I had a bit of a headache throughout the day and I just wanted to relax at that point."

Applejack's face was hard to read but Spike knew she would be a challenge before the questions even began. "Twilight told us you were pretty excited when she told you she was leavin today. What made you eager enough ta push Twi out the door?

Spike realized he'd have to try very hard to avoid detection and he knew it wouldn't be easy. "My best bet is to trick her inner 'lie detector' and keep from answering her questions directly. I can't make it seem too obvious though; otherwise the girls will catch on." Spike then looked at Applejack with a slightly disappointed frown. "Am I not allowed to let Twilight be happy and carefree every now and then? With all the work she does, don't you think she deserves a break? I'm sure if you were in my position you'd encourage Twilight to enjoy herself too. I'm sure you'd understand if you ever saw the stacks of paperwork she's had to fill out."

Applejack clearly wasn't pleased with the answer she was given but before she could speak, Pinkie Pie decided to hop into the conversation, literally. "Soooo Spikey, what do you do for fun other then reading comics? Any secret hobbies you enjoy? Not that I plan to throw a party about it for you or anything." Pinkie then whistled innocently, though it was obvious she was trying to either tempt the dragon with a party to spill his guts or she was simply trying to find a reason to throw a party in general.

"I'm... I'm not even going to assume she knows. Even for Pinkie, there is no way she could know my secret. I'll still have to be careful though. I'll just refuse to give her the satisfaction she's looking for. While I love Pinkie's parties, I have other things I need to worry about first. Spike looked at Pinkie making sure he looked like he was unable to hide his "sorrow" about being unable to provide her information she needed to make a party. "Sorry Pinkie Pie, I really don't do much else. With all the work I do, it's tough to find a time to do something I'd like doing without needing to sleep first. By then, I've already used all my time resting or something."

Pinkie's mane deflated slightly at the answer she was given before perking up again. "It's okay. I'm sure I'll find a reason to throw an amazingly, spectacular, and most perfectly Spikerific party EVER!

Spike couldn't help but smile. Pinkie really was the element of laughter since she always knew how to put a smile on his face. "Thanks Pinkie. I can't wait to see what you plan."

Spike stomach grumbled loudly as he then looked at the clock. He missed lunch, something he certainly would've enjoyed with a bottle... He didn't need a bottle though. He is just happy the opportunity to escape further questioning was given to him. "This is a perfect! I have a perfect excuse to leave before I'm asked anything else." Spike then scratched the back of his head embarrassedly as his rumbling stomach seemed to have a mind of its own. "Heh, umm I kinda missed lunch. I'm gonna go get a snack. Call me if you need anything." Spike then waved to the girls and left them to their thoughts before they managed to get out another question. Hopefully he was able to steer them off course. If not, then he hopped he bought himself just a bit more time.

"Thank Celestia I didn't actually have to use my risky backup plan. Yet..." Spike thought to himself, blushing.
> Chapter 4: The Dragons Crazy Countermeasure
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

A few minutes after Spike left the room, Rainbow Dash finally spoke up. "Ha, I told you. I KNEW there was no way that dragon had anything else to do."

"Honestly Rainbow, is that all you care about?" Rarity asked the rainbow pegasus angrily. 

Rainbow Dash couldn't help but feel offended. "Uhh yeah. I TOLD YOU, all this would be pointless but nopony wanted to listen to me."

"Nopony cares about that Dashie. What we should care about is how I don't have any clue on what kind of party to make now! What am I gonna do?!" Pinkie Pie whined loudly.

Twilight looked at the brash pegasus in thought. "Actually Rainbow, I think there is something going on. Spike did a few things during that conversation which seemed... off.

"Ah agree with Twi on this.  When ah asked Spike mah question he was only telling half-truths. He wasn't telling us the full story" Applejack said with heavy suspicion in her tone of voice.

"No way! You've gotta be imagining this. What makes you both so confident that something's going on?" Rainbow asked the duo in irritation.

Applejack couldn't believe she needed to tell the rainbow mare her reasoning. Did Rainbow seriously not remember who she was questioning?  "Well fer one, I'm the element of honesty. I was able to tell he was only saying half truths because it's mah element. Secondly, he never answered mah question with a 'yes' or 'no'. He answered mah question with questions."

Twilight quickly decided to share her reasons before the colorful pegasus could form a rebuttal. "I've also been living with Spike practically my whole life. Whenever Spike is feeling a certain way he'd never normally admit to it like he had. Instead, Spike would've kept the fact that he was stressed to himself, mainly so he wouldn't worry me.

Rainbow Dash faltered at the sudden evidence being shared. If both the element of honesty and Twilight were this certain that Spike was acting strange then maybe it was true. "Alright.... let's just say your both right and something was going on with Spike, how would we be able to find out what was going on?"

Twilight answered Rainbow Dash enthusiastically with a bright smile on her face. "Simple. We observe his behavior and see if he leads us to what it's tied to. My brother taught me a spell used by the royal guard which allows ponies to see and hear a conversation from behind a wall for a limited time.. It's mainly used when the guard is watching a suspect getting interrogated but the guards don't want to be seen. Spike is in his room as we speak. All I have to do cast the spell on his door and then we'll watch and wait. Not only could we find out what Spike is hiding but I'll finally be able to test this spell in action!."

"Uh wouldn't it be kinda, umm rude to spy on Spike" Fluttershy asked shyly and nervously.

"I must agree with Fluttershy darling. If we did that then we'd be completely breaching Spikey's privacy. As a proper lady, it would be absolutely inappropriate and impolite to snoop. Rarity stated with her muzzle pointed upward in the air like a sophisticated mare."

Twilight considered how to handle the situation currently presented to her. "Well we'll take a vote. Those who want to follow my plan, raise a hoof in the air. Those who think we should make a different plan, keep your hooves down. Agreed?"

All the girls decided this was a fair request and all readily accepted. By the end of the vote four ponies decided to go along with Twilight's plan and two refused.

Twilight spoke, her voice filled with confidence and determination while taking her normal role as "leader" of the group. "It looks like we're going with my plan. Everypony follow me"

***

Spike entered his room and opened up his stash pulling out gems to snack on. After what he just went through, he felt he deserved a reward.

Spike practically swollowed gems whole, both from hunger and stress. He couldn't help but feel anxious and scared. Did they believe him? Did they suspect him? Is the questioning finally over? Spike didn't know the answer to any of these questions and that terrified him. "If only somepony made gem flavored milk. That'd be awesome right about now" Spike quietly mumbled to himself in disappointment.

Spike then closed up his stash and lied on his bed. "That... That was really hard, pretty mentally exhausting too. I swear, Applejack seemed like she was staring through my soul! I was lucky nopony called me out for lying but I may not be as lucky if there's a next time" Spike thought to himself, fearfully inhaling and exhaling as if he were short of breath.

Moments passed as Spike began to calm himself down. He needed to focus. "No... This is perfect. There's no way the girls will be able to figure anything out. I'm multiple steps ahead of them. This is nothing more than a game of cat and mouse that they have no idea they're even playing." Nothing more then a simple contest between the girls and myself. Even so, I can't get to cocky, otherwise I may as well just tell them my secret."

Spike simply lied there in silence with a smirk on his face, basking in the knowledge that his chances of being caught were practically zero. Something felt off though, His reptilian brain could feel it. Call it paranoia but it seemed quiet. Too quiet... That was odd considering the girls just got here.

Usually Spike heard laughter and loud boasting from Rainbow Dash or screaming from Pinkie Pie. Even when it was just Twilight around, she'd yell for his assistance or start tearing and tossing books around loudly and wildly. He even heard talking while he was stuffing his face not long ago. While he couldn't hear what was being said, he was still able to hear the noise from the conversation. Yet here he was, listening to absolutely nothing.

Spike started to feel uncomfortable. What were possible reasons for the sudden silence in a house filled with excitable mares minus one shy yellow pegasus? Spreading gossip? No. Did they leave without telling him for some reason? Not possible. Twilight would've told him about any sudden disappearances on her part. What else?

Something clicked in Spike's mind causing him to inwardly panic. "There watching me! There's no other explanation for the silence, they must be watching me somehow! But... How?!"

Spike made up his mind. He knew he was being watched, he'd bet his gems on it. He couldn't just lay there in his bed doing nothing and he doubted he'd get away with pretending to sleep. Even if he could somehow get away with something so cliché, how long would they watch him for? He could leave the room but they'd most likely watch him till they found out something.

Spike fought down a blush as he knew he had no other options but to use his embarrassing backup plan. He made this plan about a month ago, though he never thought he'd have to use it. However, if they wanted to find something out about him this badly then he'd give them something. In fact, he'd give em a show.

***

The six mares were currently crowding the entrance to Spike's room, each watching him intently thanks to Twilight's spell. Even Rarity quickly dropped her complaints about this being unladylike, as she wanted to know what was going on too. The only problem was that the spell only seemed to work on the door to Spike's room so each pony was trying desperately to smush their faces together so they could all see. Quietly whispering to each other to share what they could see. It was working about as well as expected.

"Ugh, what's going on, I can't see much" Rainbow Dash said annoyed.

Rarity being the closest even though she was against the idea had the best view and narrated what couldn't be seen. "It looks like he's just laying in bed." She then quickly added what she saw next. "Oh wait, wait. He's getting up and doing something."

Twilight being the one who wanted to know what was going on more then anypony else attempted to get the answers she wanted. "Well, what's he doing then?"

"It looks like he's reaching under his mattress for something, I can't see what it is yet though" Rarity said calmly.

Pinkie Pie decided to share her opinion on the matter. "ooo, ooo, I keep party supplies under my mattress. I wonder what he's got?"

"Big deal. It's probably just a comic or something." Rainbow Dash adds, unimpressed.

"Wait, he pulled it out. It's a magazine of some sort. Oh I can see it, it's–" Rarity suddenly cut herself off, completely red in the face, jaw dropped, and eyes wide.

"What. What do you see?" Twilight asked, turning frantic at the current look on Rarity's face.

After about five seconds of Rarity gaping like a fish she was finally able to force some words out in a screaming whisper. "My word. How could innocent little Spikey-Wikey have something like that?!"

Applejack, like the other ponies, were getting anxious and wanted answers. Surly what Spike had wasn't that bad, right? "Calm down Rares. Tell us what's going on?

"I... I can't. It's to dreadful for words. It's unspeakable. It's vulgar. It's-" Rarity was cut off as she was pulled away from the door by somepony behind her. Rainbow Dash.

Rainbow Dash finally got annoyed enough to intervene. "Oh for Celestia's sake it's a–" Her annoyed look suddenly turned into a gigantic smile as she pressed her hooves to her mouth to avoid laughing out loud. "PFFFT.... An issue of 'Marvolous Mares'. Hahaha oh man, It looks like I was wrong. Spike really does have a crazy secret. He's looking at a pornographic magazine!"


"What?!" The other four ponies whisper screamed in shock at what they just heard as they each practically pressed their eyeballs against the door, only to confirm what the rainbow maned pegasus just told them.

There Spike was, laying on his stomach with his book open to a page with a mare in a very revealing pose, smiling seductively on the page.

Everypony besides Rainbow Dash each ended up like Rarity. Eyes wide, face red, and jaw dropped. The only pony who had a different reaction was Fluttershy, who after seeing the mare in the book, went red in the face and fainted.

As Spike continued looking through the magazine, so did the girls as they all got quite hot and bothered.

Spike then spoke out loud while seen face clawing. "Ugh, I swear the covers of these magazines get me every time. All of these types of pictures have been done ladies, try something a bit more interesting.

While Rainbow Dash was busy desperately trying not to burst out laughing at the scene in front of her while watching Spike shamelessly, Twilight had a red face was trying to hold herself back from bursting into the room and incinerating the magazine, Applejack placed her hat over her face to cover it, Pinkie Pie who also had a red face somehow stuffed both front hooves in her muzzle, and Rarity pulled out her fainting couch from somewhere and placed Fluttershy on the couch with her, both currently in dreamland.

Finally Twilight had enough. She couldn't watch her number 1 assistant anymore. She used a teleportation spell on the group and brought all the girls to the map room with a goal to retreat before somepony's eyeballs melted along with a single thought pounding against the inside of her skull. WHAT THE BUCK DID WE JUST WITNESS?!"
> Chapter 5: A Dragons Actions Discussed
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight couldn't keep her thoughts in her mind any longer. She knew she was going to yell. No. She was going to screech. She could feel it rising in her throat. Before she did however, she put up a sound muffling spell keeping all the sound inside the map room while blocking sound from the outside, hoping to concentrate on the very important conversation without disturbances. "WHY THE BUCK IS SPIKE LOOKING AT THOSE MAGAZINES! WHERE DID HE EVEN GET THEM?!"

Twilight's wail woke up the two fainted ponies as Rainbow Dash was laughing at Twilight's priceless and completely un-princess like reaction. "Haha! Oh geez Twilight, you should see your face!"

The princess of friendship then turned to look at the laughing pony with frizzy hair, a twitch in every part of her body, and a maniac look in her eyes, all while smoke was seen coming from her head. "WHY ARE YOU LAUGHING? THIS IS A SERIOUS ISSUE! SPIKE'S WAY TO YOUNG TO BE LOOKING AT THINGS LIKE... LIKE THAT!

"Twi-" Applejack tried to put in some calming words to calm the purple mare but before she was able too, another scream was heard. "AHHHH MY EYES! I'll never be able to clean such filth out of my beautiful eyes! Rarity yelled, all while running around the room with her eyes closed

The pink party pony then decided to add to the volume. "WHY ARE WE ALL SCREAMING?!" Pinkie Pie then yelled out with her mouth opening at impossible levels.

As all this was happening, Fluttershy was hiding underneath Rarity's fainting couch, attempting to hide from all the noise currently bouncing around the room. "Ummm everypony, could we all just umm, all calm down please. I mean, if it's okay with you.

Applejack couldn't take all the screaming and hollering and finally couldn't take anymore. "EVERYPONY QUIET!" Finally, all seemed to calm down as the farm mare smiled at the sudden noise drop. "Listen, we all need ta calm down and think about this fer a moment-"

Applejack was suddenly cut off by the purple unicorn. "How can I be calm when my number 1 assistant is currently in his room ogling over mares in erotic poses like eye candy?!" Twilight asked loudly, though much calmer. At least calm enough to not risk a magic bolt flying from her horn hitting anything or anypony.

After getting over her laughing fit, Rainbow Dash spoke up. "I agree with AJ here Twilight. Lots of ponies look at that stuff. It really isn't as big of a deal as your making it."

"How in Equestria could you say that?! He's not even 16 yet! All my books state that colts only start getting those feelings and looking at those things between the ages of 15-16. This is a disaster, Spike is way off schedule! Twilight said with anger and fright laced within her voice.

Fluttershy spoke up trying to help calm the stressed purple alicorn. "Actually, dragons age differently then ponies. There are lots of things we don't know about dragons too. Is it possible that this could be normal for dragons that are Spike's age?"

Twilight was about to retort but stood frozen in thought. It's true that much about dragons has still been undiscovered by pony kind. Could it really be possible that this is normal? If so, what should my next course of action be? What if I'm behind schedule?! I could be tardy!" Twilight then began to breath heavily as she tried to calm herself down. "No, I can't think like that. I will not have a repeat of the "Smarty Pants" incident"

Pinkie Pie then yelled again, though this time it was from excitement. "Oh this is perfect! I know exactly what kind of party to throw now!

All the girls looked at the party pony and screamed in horror. Surprisingly even Fluttershy screamed. "NO!"

Pinkie's mane suddenly deflated as she pouted. "Aww come on, I've got it all planned out. I'll set up a pole so Rarity can–"

"I ABSOLUTELY WILL NOT DO ANYTHING VULGAR AND UNLADYLIKE!" Rarity screeched in disgust.

Pinkie's mane seemed to droop even lower. However, her mane suddenly poofed back up. "I guess that's okay. I'm sure I can think of another way to throw a party for Spike. Maybe I'll make a 'So glad your getting older but don't grow up to fast' party."

Rainbow Dash decided to speak up without thinking. "If it makes you feel better, the issue Spike had wasn't even as bad as some of the others. The one Spike had was pretty tame. It was also outdated by a month which means no new 'trends' were shown in it."

Everypony stared at Rainbow Dash, not sure how to respond. Finally the most perceptive member of the group decided to speak up. "Wait, how do you even know that Rainbow?" Twilight asks in relief and shocked confusion.

Applejack caught on pretty quickly and grinned cheekily. "Yeah RD, how do you know that?" 

The rainbow mare knew she made a mistake and tried to redeem her pride. However, it didn't work too well with the red blush on her face. "Oh, well umm, I have a friend and he umm, he showed me the newest edition. I of course refused to look at it, telling him he should be ashamed of himself. He tried to show me anyways and I got a glimps of it before bucking him real hard."

Everypony just looked at Rainbow Dash in surprise, shock, and disbelief, except for Applejack who wiggled her eyebrows and grinned, giving her a "your already caught. there's no way your getting away with that" face.

The silence seemed to make the cyan on Rainbow's face turn completely red before she finally gave up. "Ugh, yeah whatever! I read those magazines, big deal. I make them 20% cooler just by reading them! The prismatic pegasus shouted in defiance with an embarrassed face.

Twilight didn't care about Rainbow Dash reading pornopraphic magazines involving mares. That was the furthest thing from her mind at the moment. The purple pony only cared about one thing. "Rainbow Dash. Did you say the specific magazine Spike had was a month old? Are you absolutely sure about this?"

Rainbow Dash was surprised at how Twilight didn't make a joke about this being another type of "literature" she enjoyed besides "Daring Do" and how the bookish mare suddenly got serious. All Rainbow Dash could do was look at the alicorn questioningly. "Well, yeah. I'm definitely sure that specific one Spike had was about a month old. Why are you asking?

"Don't you think it's odd how Spike read that magazine even though I'd left or been busy many other times within the last month? Why would Spike choose to read something slightly outdated now of all times instead of getting caught up on the newest ones? He had multiple chances to read that old magazine without anypony around and yet, he chose to read it right as we started watching him" Twilight states logically with confusion and suspicion on in her tone.

Rainbow Dash then speaks to Twilight uncertainly. "What are you suggesting? Don't you think maybe your thinking a little too hard into this? Maybe Spike was saving it or something."

Twilight spoke up to make sure everypony heard her. "I'm not thinking too far into this. Thinking back to what we had seen, Spike didn't even look like the pictures affected him. In fact, all he did was smile. Other then looking at the pictures, Spike didn't physically do anything inappropriate at all. It didn't even seem like he was attracted to the mares in the pictures. He looked at it like any other regular magazine."

Rarity spoke up in surprise. "Hold on one moment darling. Are you suggesting that he planned on reading that... trash... as we were watching?

"Well it certainly is quite the coincidence, don't you agree?" Twilight asked the white unicorn with a thoughtful look on her face.

Applejack then spoke up with anger hidden in her voice. "So it's possible that Spike knew we were watchin him and he decided ta teach us a lesson by embarrassing us or sumthin?"

"It is a possibility, yes. Though, If he really did know then why would Spike deliberately use inappropriate magazines in the first place when he could've just told us to stop snooping? Why make a performance and show off?" Twilight asked the girls, still attempting to wrap the situation around her head.

Pinkie Pie then started to wave her hoof in the air wildly. "OH, OH, I know, I know! What if Spike used that mean trick to hide an even bigger secret?"

The girls all needed to take a moment to consider Pinkie Pie's conspiracy theory. While the idea seemed crazy, it did sorta make sense.

"I may be a lady but even I want to snoop and figure out what Spike is hiding. Why would he keep something that could be a big deal from us?” Rarity asked confusedly.

“Well, I don't really think we should spy on Spike. If this was all actually planned out by Spike then maybe it isn’t our business” Fluttershy stated shyly, trying desperately too avoid any looks thrown her way.

“Sorry Shy but I’ve gotta disagree with you here. I thought Spike was boring and all he did was work 24/7 but the stunt he just pulled proved me wrong. I say we keep digging till we find out what’s really going on. Besides, the little guy is our friend so he should just tell us anyways. What gives him the right to keep such a big secret from us. Even if we have to force him to spill it, I’d say it’s necessary” Rainbow Dash said with excited determination.

Twilight then smiled and spoke up with an equal amount of determination. “Don’t worry Rainbow. We won’t have to force him to tell us at all. In fact, I’ve got a plan. Group up girls, were going to solve this mystery once and for all.

Applejack then forced out a laugh and spoke with a smirk on her face. "Once we figure out what's going on with Spike, we should question a certain Rainbow pegasus about her magazines."

"Shut up AJ or I'll buck you to the moon" Rainbow Dash stated with a face which looked more like a tomato. Obviously she was more embarrassed then angry and serious."

As all the ponies in the room laughed, Twilight couldn't help but worry.
”Spike... What are you really hiding?”
> Chapter 6: The Dragons Deception Wasn't Perfection
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Hehehe...Hahahahaha! I can't believe that worked!" Spike laughed out loud after hearing the faint sound of teleportation.

At first, Spike was pretty confident that he was being watched but he wasn't absolutely sure. After he heard a thud outside the door, he was 100% certain his suspicions was correct.

Spike then pulled out his plushy, feeling the urge to brag to somepony about his accomplishment. "Did you hear that? It seems like I was right. Twilight might approach me at some point about what she saw but it doesn't matter in the end because I WON!"

After a few moments of silence, Spike's smile fell of his face, slowly returning to a neutral look. "Things are probably going to get pretty boring and stressful for awhile. I'm sure Twilight will try to avoid leaving the house after today; which means less diaper time. She'll probably try to give me constant chores or try to stick by my side as often as possible to keep me from reading my 'books'. Kinda ironic considering she is a book worm.

“I’m sure she’ll get over it though. Not right away of course but when she does, it will be you, me, a thick cushy diaper, and a bottle of milk” Spike said, smiling at his plushy while hugging it tightly.

Spike then had a thoughtful look on his face. “Maybe after awhile I’ll get us another plush friend to play with. After some time I might possibly be able to get some other foal supplies too, like pacifiers, diaper covers, and a foal blanket.”

After a few moments of thinking, Spike shook his head. “No. I can’t think like this yet. I’ll worry about all of it when I actually have a good chance of getting all of that stuff” He said, more to himself then his plushy.

“What I can think about now is how the girls are reacting. I’m sure they are all having panic attacks after what they’d just seen. While I do feel bad that they had to see that, they pushed me to a point where I had practically no other choices. They shouldn’t have even been snooping to begin with though” Spike spat.

The baby dragon couldn’t help but chuckle coldly and mumbled his frustrations. “The one time they actually pay attention to me and it’s by spying. I guess that really shows how much they all care about me and my privacy.

Spike then heard a yell from within the castle which sounded like his purple roommate. “SPIIIKE, the girls and I are going to Sugarcube Corner to try some of Pinkie's new snacks, would you like to come with us?”

Spike was honestly surprised he was invited at all considering he was usually left behind. He quickly regained his composure and spoke evenly. “No thanks Twilight, you girls have fun without me.”

A few moments of silence passed before Twilight yelled a reply. “Well, if you say so. Do you want anything?”

Spike couldn’t understand why Twilight was actually thinking of him for once. He couldn’t help but wonder what was going on. "Maybe they feel bad about spying on me?"

"Could you bring me back a gem cupcake please?" Spike asked as sweetly as possible, despite the fact he was still slightly upset with them.

The loud reply came back not even a second later. "Of course you can have one Spike. We're probably going for a trot around town so we might not be back for about half an hour."

Spike was grinning happily at the news since he got some time to pad up once more. "It might not be very long but at least I've got some time to relax after such a stressful day." He then replied cheerfully to the purple alicorn. "You have a good time! I'll see you later!"

Twilight replied with an equal amount of cheer in her voice. "We will! See you in a bit!" The conversation suddenly turned to silence as he heard the castle doors open and then loudly close.

Spike was pleased with the results. So pleased that he couldn't help but chuckle to himself. "This worked out better then I'd hoped! They must need fresh air after seeing my little 'performance'. Chances are low that I'll get another chance like this once the girls get their thoughts in order. That said, I'm gonna enjoy every last second I have till Twilight gets home."

Spike then casually walked to his stash with his plushy in his grip and a triumphant smile on his face. "Well then. Let's get started!"

***

The girls walked casually to Sugarcube Corner, as Twilight was going over the plan quietly to insure nopony else was listening. "Alright, now that we're out we just have to be patient until we've reached the twenty minute mark.

"Woah hold on, what are we doing again?" Asked the raibow mare in confusion.

The posh unicorn tuned to speak to Rainbow Dash with a disappointed scowl. "Really Rainbow? Honestly I just don't get you. You want to find out what Spikey is hiding and you don't even pay attention to the plan."

"Hey, I did so! Sorta.. kinda.. maybe. Just repeat it again would ya Twi?" Rainbow Dash asked with her forelegs crossed in annoyance.

Twilight immediately went into lecture mode as they entered the bakery and sat down. "It's simple really. Spike probably thinks we fell for his trick and that we left to gather our thoughts. He most likely believes that I'll try to keep him from his 'reading' after today by getting him to have little to no time too himself. With the thirty minute time period I've given him, he'll feel obligated to indulge in his real hobby one last time before I supposedly keep constant watch over him. All we have to do is wait right here patiently for twenty minutes and then I'll teleport us all inside of Spike's room. Since he will try to milk out as much of the free time we've given him as possible, he will be currently indulging in his secret hobby right when we show up."

"I'm still not sure if we should do this. Spike will probably be very upset that we invaded on his personal time. Don't you girls think that we should just stop now before we do this?" Fluttershy quietly asked the group while nervously fidgeting and hiding behind her mane.

Applejack spoke calmly to ease the shy mares nerves while trying to get through to the yellow pegasus. "I get that your worried Shy but what if whatever Spike is doing is dangerous or sumthin. If Spike is willing to go through all this trouble to keep his private life ta himself then it might be something we need ta know."

"Well, I guess when you put it like that it makes sense... I wouldn't want Spike to hurt himself somehow." Fluttershy suddenly gasped and stood up in fright."I hope he'll be okay before we get to him!"

Twilight spoke up evenly and confidently attempting to keep the situation calm AND attempting to make sure the shy mare didn't run to Spike to make sure he's safe. "I'm sure everything will be fine. I doubt he's doing anything that could get him hurt. Even if it is dangerous, the point of this plan is to find out what's going on. We can't figure this out unless we do this plan perfectly. If it is dangerous then we'll find out and put a stop to it if necessary."

"O.. okay Twilight. I hope your right" Fluttershy said nervously, still not entirely satisfied.

Pinkie Pie then popped up next to Fluttershy and spoke softly yet cheerfully. "Don't you worry about a thing you silly filly! If something does go wrong then we'll know thanks to my pinkie sense!"

Rainbow Dash got up and pulled out a bag of bits. "Well I'm not just gonna sit here and do absolutely nothing. I'm gonna get some sweets like we told Spike we would be doing."

Twilight then looked to Rainbow Dash and smiled gratefully. "Thanks Rainbow. I'm sure we could all use something sweet to prepare for what's about to happen. I think Spike would also appreciate the gem cupcake. Maybe he won't be as upset once we give it to him." 

"That's pretty wishful thinking. I hope your right though" Rainbow said thoughtfully before she walked towards the cash register.

After a few moment of quiet contemplation, the white unicorn spoke wearily. "Twilight darling, do you think Spikey will be very angry with us?" Rarity asked the mare with a nervous look on her face.

Twilight looked at the mare and sighed sadly. "Honestly, I think he will. I just hope he'll be calm when we talk to him. I guess we'll find out soon...

The mares sat in silence, praying to Celestia that things would go smoothly...

***

Spike had filled up his bottle with milk and diapered himself with a small but still decent amount of powder. Once he returned to his room he noticed his plushy was about to fall. Spike immediately got into action, attempting to save his beautiful Rarity from falling off the edge of Mt. Bed.

Spike loudly spoke with a lisp caused because of his tail in his mouth, all while he crawled as fast as he could to his damsel in distress. "Feaw nawt! I shall save you fwom fawwing off da cwiff my pwecious Pwincess Wawity."

Spike quickly yanked his tail out of his mouth and then made an over-exaggerated leap towards his bed, catching the falling plushy before it hit the ground.

Spike then had the Rarity plushy speak her gratitude. "Oh I am ever so grateful you've come to save me my padded knight! How could I ever repay such heroism?"

Spike then cleared his throat, making sure he didn't lisp or stutter around "Princess Rarity". He couldn't embarrass himself after all. "Ehem... No thanks is necessary my princess. I could never ask you too reward me for saving you when you needed it. Your safety is its own reward."

"Well, there must be some way I could show you my appreciation. Perhaps a kiss would suffice?" Said "Rarity" in a questioning tone.

Spike then gave "Rarity" a smile while slightly tipping his head forward as a sign of gratitude and acceptance. "Such a priceless reward would be an honor my lady."

"Rarity" slowly moved toward his cheek as she then began to give Spike a very big smooch while making an exaggerated kissing noise. "Muwahh... I thank you again for you heroic deed.

"Anything for such a lovely mare" Spike smoothly replied all while smiling in happiness.

After saving the lovely white unicorn, Spike couldn't help but feel thirsty. "Wow, I guess being a hero really is hard work, I'm parched. No wonder foals have bottles with them when they are playing."

Spike hopped on his bed and grabbed his milk. He lied on his back and held his bottle with both his arms and his feet. Spike slowly closed his eyes and slipped the bottle in his mouth while suckling on the rubber nipple at a steady pace. This position caused his diapered rear to stick out but Spike didn't care, he felt so relaxed and so happy, he just couldn't help but smile contently. He felt as though the world around him was irrelevant as his mind went blank.

An almost silent but still noticeable popping noise was heard seconds later but Spike was too focused on suckling his milk bottle to bother opening his eyes as he simply moaned quietly in delight. He looked like a baby, he felt like a baby, and he loved every second of it. He even liked the suckling noises which loudly echoed within his room.

After what felt like only seconds but in reality had been a minute, Spike had finished his bottle which was now only feeding him air. He then pulled his bottle out of his mouth with a loud pop while he hugged his plushy and muttered quietly to himself in happiness and relief. "This is... wonderful...."


Spike's calm smile was suddenly replaced with a look of fear as his eyes popped open to reveal pinpricks at the next noise to be heard within his room.

"S...Spike?"

Spike only had one thing to think of at a time like this. "Oh please Celestia, please don't tell me this is bucking happening!"
> Chapter 7: Spike The Dragons Secret Exposed + A Hurtful Conversation
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The room was silent. Tension filled every corner, every space, every molecule of Spike's room.

Every pony felt differently about the situation they forced themselves into. Spike however, clearly looked angry and fearful If the red face, dilating pupils, and livid scowl were anything to go by.

Rainbow Dash not realizing how Spike was feeling while also being the blunt and rash pony she was, filled the once silent room with deafening laughter. "Pffft, HAHAHAHA! Oh man, what's with the getup Spike? I must admit while I don't know what's going on, you really do look like a baby dragon now!"

Somehow Spike's face got even redder. So much anger and fear building up behind his "wall" which kept his emotions in check. He dared not reply to avoid making a fool of himself.

Two ponies couldn't help but giggle and smile sweetly at such an adorable scene.

Fluttershy with surprising confidence started to coo at Spike while speaking with a much cheerier and slightly louder voice then normal. "Dawww, I knew you were a baby dragon the moment I first saw you. your such an adowable wittle baby dwagon too aren't you?"

"HOORAY! This means I have another baby to babysit! *GASP* I know what kind of party I can make now, a BABY SHOWER! There will be sooo many games that are sure to be fun, fun, FUN! 

Spike, filled with so much hatered and fear, couldn't think rationally. Everything sounded so cruel. Pinkie who sounded like she would expose his secret to Ponyville with a party. Fluttershy's condescending way of speaking to him. It hurt. It felt so painful. It felt like he was being ripped apart by their eyes. "Why? Why is this happening? Why are they being so mean? I Knew they wouldn't understand but I thought they were my friends."

The next voice Spike heard filled him with absolute dread. His crush, the beautiful, generous, and overall lovely Rarity, spoke with a slightly uncertain yet amused tone in her voice. It was obvious she had no idea how to handle the situation. "Ehem. Well... this is certainly an interesting development. While this is definitely an... odd... situation to stumble upon,  I have to admit, you look so adorable and fabulous in your little... ehem... padded garment Spikey-Wikey. The red of your face mixed with the diaper and bottle certainly goes quite well together. It's most becoming~."

Spike was completely embarrassed. Nopony would look at him the same way again, especially Rarity. "She doesn't know how to react to this. She's just trying to find something positive to say. I've probably lost any chance I had with her."

His depressing thoughts were attempting to overwhelm him. Spike felt like he could cry like a baby at any moment. Everything was being destroyed. Ripped apart. His friendship, his pride, whatever life he had, all gone.

Applejack definitely wasn't hard to figure out. While she wasn't like Rainbow Dash who was blunt and still currently laughing, she is still the element of honesty. "Well sugarcube, I ain't quite sure what ta say. This is sorta strange. Mind explaining what's going on here?

"Actually, I want to know as well. It's time to give straight answers." Twilight spoke sternly while trying to hold her composure. She wanted to giggle at her adorable looking assistant but she was very confused and upset about all of this.

Spike couldn't bear the pressure. It's just too much. Having all the ponies who he was supposedly friends with; laugh and demand answers after breaching his privacy. His vision seemed like it was turning red. He heard a high pitch sound echoing in his overflowing mind. His thoughts and feelings made him want to throw up. He couldn't take it anymore.

"What gives you the right? What makes you think you can ridicule and spy on me? Why do you get to have everything you want?" Spike said, as he spoke with a stone cold look on his face and an emotionless voice.

Spike didn't give them time to answer. They didn't deserve to talk. He rose his voice slightly, adding more emotion into it. "You just have to stick your muzzles wherever you want don't you! You thought you deserved to know my secrets? You think you're better then I am?"

The ponies all looked at the dragon in shock. It was like they were speaking to a completely different Spike. No, a completely different dragon. Twilight attempted to speak out against the drake who dared raise his voice like that. "Now hang on just a min-."

Spike immediately cut her off. He wasn't having any of her manure. He simply continued on his rant. "Clearly you aren't. You might have more power, more strength, and even more skill then myself but don't forget, I do EVERYTHING for you! Chores every day. The same thing over, and over, and OVER again. I can't take all the stress!

Applejack tried to step in but it was clearly shown on her face that she was disturbed by Spike's rant. "Now don't ya think that's a bit much-"

"A bit much. A BIT MUCH! I do practically all the work in the castle besides the paperwork that only Twilight is allowed to do! While I'm working your all just BUCKING AROUND!" Spike shouted in angry disbelief, he couldn't believe how these ponies were so blind.

Rainbow Dash quickly getting over her laughter, decided she wasn't allowing this to continue. "HEY! I work the weather and I have to practice my tricks. Nopony gets to be as awesome as me without work."

Spike couldn't help but laugh loudly at the rainbow mares statement, causing the ponies to look at him in worry and slight fear. To him,  It was the funniest thing he'd heard in awhile. "HAHAHAHA you, awesome? Oh that is rich! You think because you work one job and are a fast flier that your awesome? Your not awesome, your LAZY and self centered! You practice tricks which you practically beg ponies to watch and you take naps whenever you feel like it. You work, that's great, SO DO I. Now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure I do MORE THEN YOU!"

Rainbow Dash was shocked. Appalled at how Spike was speaking to her. She wasn't going to let such disrespect stand. She flew in Spike's face ready to "scold him". "You take that back before I–"

Spike then pushed his face into hers while looking directly into the speedsters eyes. "Before you what, huh? You really think I'm afraid of your threats? What, are you gonna buck me across the room? It won't matter. I've been bucked by both you and Applejack across the ORCHARD during your "Iron Pony" competitions. Remember that? I was your kickball when you wanted to gauge your strength and see who could kick me the furthest! Have you heard of child abuse Rainbow? It's definitely not an awesome subject. I suggest looking it up. Need me to assist you by getting you a dictionary?"

Rainbow Dash who was in shock, backed off after hearing about Spike's child abuse allegations. The brash pegasus coincidentally bumped into Applejack who had a similar look on her face. The rainbow mare never thought of it that way. "Spike always offered his services and he is a dragon so he has a tough hide. I wasn't abusing him... right...?"

The other ponies were angry about what Spike was saying about their friends. However, all eyes looked at the "Iron Pony" competitors in shocked realization. They witnessed the baby dragon being kicked around and they did nothing.

"Now Spike, no need to be a meanie dragon. I'm sure they never meant to hurt you. Pinkie Pie said with a slightly sadder tone in her normal bubbly voice along with a slightly deflated mane.

Spike then whipped his head towards the party pony in anger. He wasn't going to let her defend the very ponies who've hurt him. "Oh I wouldn't be so quick to defend them Pinkie. You really outta defend yourself first. Have you ever considered the possibility that some of your pranks might go a little overboard? I've been hurt by some of your pranks, MULTIPLE times. I hope you had a good laugh at my misery miss "Element of laughter!"

Pinkie's mane at this point looked like it was melting. She couldn't believe it. She was the problem? Her desire was only to make ponies smile and have some fun. How could she have not seen it before? "I.. I... But-"

Rarity cautiously took a step forward, hoping to calm the tension within the room. "Now Spikey-Wikey, darling, we understand your upset but making the others feel bad certainly isn't helping."

Spike was livid. He didn't care about what he was about to say. He didn't care how she felt. All he wanted was some kind of closure. At this point, his rage was guiding the conversation as well as his mouth. "Helping, HELPING! did you really just say that?! All I've ever done is help. Why should I be helpful now? It's time the truth came out. It's time they've heard their mistakes. I wouldn't even talk if I'd been in your position considering you've made mistakes as well!

The white unicorn flinched backwards at the hateful tone being directed towards her. aghast at how her innocent little Spikey-Wikey could accuse her of being a part of the problem. "Wha..! B..but that can't be true. I'd never want to see a single little scale on your head be harmed!

Spike scoffed at his crush playing innocent like the rest of the guilty party. Did she really not believe him even after providing evidence for all three ponies he mentioned so far? "Oh you know what, your right. You'd never want any scales on my head hurt. I don't think the rest of my body's scales matter to you though. With how many times you've used me as a pin cushion I'd say that's proof enough. Then there's the times where you make me carry your mountain of bags for you. I've even seen you use your own sister as your bag carrier. They are your bags and your a unicorn so use your magic!"

Rarity quickly looked away from Spike with a guilt ridden face. She felt sick. She had no right to talk, in fact, she didn't even think she could talk at this point. Everything Spike said was true. She knew it. She could feel it. She couldn't even look at the baby dragon without feeling disgusted by her own actions. "This is the WORST POSSIBLE THING! What have I done?!"

Fluttershy couldn't bear to to look at her friends looking dejected and sad. She was terrified of this whole conversation and even though he was wearing a diaper, she was still slightly intimidated by Spike. Nevertheless, she pushed forward, hoping to get Spike to calm down. "Now you listen here mister. I know your upset but bullying the ones that hurt you isn't the answer."

Spike knew how fradgile Fluttershy was. He wasn't cruel but he wasn't going to sit here and allow himself to be scolded like he's suddenly the bad one. "Oh so I just ignore them instead? You've done an excellent job at doing that with me. When you first met me you were only interested in talking to me because I was a baby dragon. I wasn't a pony so I wasn't your equal. I was nothing but a pet, right? That's what you saw when you first met me right?!

The yellow pegasus was saddened by how Spike felt. She never meant to make him feel like he wasn't an equal just because he was a baby dragon. She couldn't show weakness though. She had to help Spike. She needed to show him that she cared. "Spike... I'm so sorry. I never meant to make you feel excluded or make you feel like you were a pet but–"

Spike quickly cut the animal lover off and spat his frustration at his speaking target. At the moment, he wasn't interested is getting apologies. He wanted revenge for all the pain he's had to endure. "Oh no. No, no, no, I'm sure you didn't. Y'see, once you realized I was more then a pet you suddenly ignored me. You weren't interested anymore. You didn't care about me or my safety. Do you know how I know that? Don't answer that, I'll tell you. There was that time during 'Winter Wrap Up' and I was floating on a block of ice in very cold water. You knew dragons were cold blooded and that meant you also knew how dragons were affected by the cold, how it could be much more dangerous for us, specifically me. You didn't care though did you miss health expert? No. You like all the other ponies laughed, LAUGHED at my situation! I could've DIED! What kind of sick pony laughs at death?!"

The yellow mare was about to speak but she froze. It wasn't just Fluttershy who'd become stiff as a board. Everypony froze. All of them had looks of horror on their faces. None of them knew what to say. How could any of them justify such an action? An action which could have resulted in death.

Spike couldn't help but inwardly smile. He wasn't happy though, he was far from it. He felt satisfaction and pride. He felt strong, being able to control the situation. He felt justified and free but he certainly wasn't happy.

Spike had a put a smile on his face and slowly turned to Twilight. He couldn't help but relish in their pained guilt, especially hers. Which is why he chuckled at the fear plastered on her face. "Hehe. Don't worry princess I didn't forget about you. I saved you for last since your mistakes were the best. Actually, they were the worst".

Spike cleared his throat, wanting to sound and look like he was teaching a student. "Ehem, Living with you for so long has made me realize something. I can't rely on you. You rely on me though. Once I was deemed 'ready' I was instantly put to work. Things started out small. Putting a few books away here and there and taking notes once I learned enough about writing.. Very simple things. You even used the excuse 'If you take notes your writing will improve'. It didn't stop there though did it? No. I became your delivery system. When you needed something, you asked me to grab it. Then when Princess Celestia decided she wanted a way to instantly message you, you both used me as the tool to do so.

Twilight tried to speak but she couldn't. She felt her will to speak disappear the further Spike went with his speech. Spike didn't mind though, he just continued his musings which he made sound like a lecture. "The princess was able to use magic to send a note through me to you. Why can't you just send a letter now that your a princess. You certainly have the power and the ability to do so. However, we're getting off track aren't we? Let's continue. 

Spike then cleared his throat yet again, wanting to explain his "knowledge" to the studious purple mare. "Your studies continued and you stopped preparing meals. You were so obsessed with getting your work done that you couldn't take care of me, much less yourself. I couldn't expect you to do much so I had to learn to cook, by myself I might add. Since you neglected me I really had no choice. I got better at cooking and you went along with it. Soon I was expected to cook practically every meal for you. That's when you believed my 'maturity' was showing. You took advantage of this to make me go out and get groceries for you. Whenever you needed something that you didn't have, I went out with bits you provided which had been given to you by either your parents or the princess. Eventually the expectations the princess gave you grew and I was given more work as a result.

Twilight tried to find her words but her thoughts were completely focused on everything Spike had said. "S...Spike. I-"

Spike cut Twilight off knowing she had nothing interesting to say. With his palm pushed in her direction he silenced any possible response. "There is a word which matches my job description y'know. If you asked anypony what my life sounded like they'd say I grew up to be a slave. That I grew up as a slave. I wouldn't have minded doing a few chores here and there but... you took advantage of me."

Twilight shouted in desperation, attempting to change the young dragons thought process. "NO! We never meant to hurt you! We're your friends!"

Spike walked over to his mattress and pulled out a book from under it. It was the same book he used to find out why he had his foalish thoughts in the first place. Luckily for him, he pulled it out of his hiding place ahead of time since he planned on reading it and looking through other topics out of curiosity.

Spike then slid the book on the floor towards Twilight and the girls before turning his back on them and making a final chilling statement which shook all the girls to the core. "No. Your wrong Twilight.... we aren't friends. If you truly think that then you are mistaken, especially after this. The girls are your friends and your just a slave driver. Nothing more... and nothing less.

That was it. That was the final straw. None of the girls could take it anymore. They all had tears streaming down their faces. Each harboring immense sadness and guilt. As they all got close to Twilight, they teleported away, book in tow.

With Spike's rage all being let out it was replaced with pain and sorrow. Nothing could cure his sadness now. There was nothing more he could do to hold back the tidal wave of tears cascading from his eyes. Spike felt broken. He wailed. He howled. Each sob filled with depressed agony. Each sniffle being replaced with another. He didn't know what else to do other then stick his tail in his mouth and suckle, wrap his arms tightly around his plushy, and bury his head as well as the rest of his body under his blankets and pillows, trying to muffle his sounds of terribly immense depression.

Spike whimpered sadly and pitifully into his plushy. With nothing but negativity to keep him company. "I've lost everything. I have no friends, no way to relieve this stress, no way to take back what I've said and done, and now I have to live with this forever..... What have I done? ...What do I do now?"
> Chapter 8: Learning The Dragons Ways
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

After speaking to the very angry dragon, the group teleported back into the map room. They all looked like they had seen better days, especially Twilight. Each pony had tears rolling down their cheeks and puffy red eyes.

After about five minutes of constant sobbing, each pony finally regained their composure, or at least enough to be heard clearly.

"I knew Spike would be upset but I never would've guessed he'd be that... livid" Twilight said as she sighed dejectedly.

Rainbow Dash, trying to wipe any remaining evidence of sadness off her face responded angrily. "I can't believe he said all that to us! The worst part is, is that we did nothing to punish him. If he wanted to act like a bratty foal then we shoulda spanked him like one till he couldn't sit down properly for a week! He'd have to wear his precious diapers in front of us whether he liked it or not just to avoid the full pain.

Applejack scoffed at the rainbow mares plan. "Yeah that's a great idea Rainbow. If we'd done that then we would be proving his abuse allegations to be true. We'd also be humiliating him in the process. Let's face it, while we never intentionally meant ta harm the little guy, what he said was the honest truth."

"I never would've imaging our innocent little Spikey-Wikey could feel so awful. I guess you were right Fluttershy dear, we should've just left him alone" Rarity stated sadly while mascara ran down her face.

"Actually, maybe what we did was the right thing to do. Sure we could've done it differently to avoid hurting his feelings but Spike finally let out all this pain that he'd been bottling up inside himself for who knows how long." Fluttershy said quietly but confidently before dropping her voice to a shy whisper, ending with a squee. "Plus, Spike was sooo cute. We never would've gotten to see just how adorable he was if we didn't do what we did. I just wanna wrap my wings around him and rock him while cooing, telling everything's going to be alright."

Pinkie Pie who looked like she was melting onto the floor, added her thoughts in a mopey whine. "I wanted to hug and play with baby Spike too. I wish I could've turned his itty bitty frown upside down."

Everything was silent. The ponies felt terrible, Spike felt terrible, and they broke Spike's trust.

Twilight sighed as she hung her head. At that moment however, she spotted something. She spotted the book Spike had given her before they teleported away.

Out of curiosity, Twilight opened the book to a page that seemed too have been marked and widened her eyes in shock. "Wait girls, I found something!"

All the ponies looked at the purple mare in confusion before trotting slowly over to her. "What a book? No offense Twilight but I don't think reading is going to solve this problem" Rainbow Dash muttered sadly

"I think reading this book will. Look at this page, Spike marked it. He even underlined the topic!" Twilight cheered happily

After each pony read over the page a few times, things started to become clearer to the group of six.

Pinkie Pie read the text in her normal bubbly voice. "Look here!" The pink mare cleared her throat like she was preparing for a speech. "While this topic is still being learned about, these types of ponies commonly known as 'Forever Foals' are much more common then you think."

Rarity then took over reading "Most 'Forever Foals' are ponies who like to wear diapers to 'regress' to a state of childlike dependency. Some wish to take back a childhood they never had before. Ponies can become 'Forever Foals' in a number of different ways. Stress, trauma, unknown random attachment, and recommendations from others are the basic ways most individuals become 'Forever Foals'.

Twilight then pressed her eyes to the page attempting to swallow the knowledge of the page. "To many, this is a simple yet slightly unorthodox method of relaxation and stress relief. Other ponies may be 'aroused' by the loss of control and total dependency on another. 'Forever Foals' don't entirely know why they have these feelings but they mustn't ignore or force them away. Doing so could damage their mental and possibly even physical health which in turn could cause depression and anxiety.

After a few more minutes of reading through each detail throughly and then rereading, each pony finally had more of an understanding of the current situation.

"So... Spike is this.... 'Forever Foal?' This seems pretty harmless and sort of... sweet. While a bit strange, it certainly isn't dangerous. While I'm not into the whole idea of some of them using their garments, I don't see a huge problem with any of this. In fact, if this is more common than we realize, I could make a whole line of 'Forever Foal cloths, diapers included"  Rarity stated positively with a glint of inspiration in her eyes.

Rainbow Dash spoke sadly at what she learned "It's kinda upsetting how we all sorta pushed Spike to be like this. I know I laughed at him earlier but I wasn't trying to be mean, I just got caught off guard at how he looked. Yeah it was kinda funny but I didn't stop thinking of Spike as a friend after I saw him.

"Ah don't think we pushed him to do this RD. Honestly, Ah guess ah didn't know what ta think at the time but ah didn't think any less of Spike" Applejack said with confidence in her voice.

Fluttershy then adoringly spoke softly and squeed in delight. "Dawww, I'd love to babysit Spike as often as I could. I can already imagine how cute Spike would be, all cuddled up in a warm blankie suckling on his baba.

"I wanna babysit him too! After a day with his Auntie Pinkie Pie I'm sure he'll be begging to pad up more often!" Pinkie Pie loudly stated in serious yet silly manner.

"T... This is all my fault. I should've just paid more attention to him and then he wouldn't have had to feel so terrible. I.... I don't care what it takes. I will do whatever I can to see my baby dragon happy" Twilight stated with no uncertainty in her voice.

Pinkie then started to chant. "Yeah, let's do this!"

With all the ponies in agreement, they smiled, put their hooves together, and cheered.

"FOR SPIKE!"
> Chapter 9: Acceptance, Love, And "Rebirth" (edited)
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Constant sadness, constant avoidance, constant shame, stuck on repeat.

It’s been a week since the girls found out about the baby dragons secret, but it had felt more like a month. Life for Spike has been terrible ever since the aftermath of his exposure.

Everything has been practically worse than before. Now all Spike did was his chores, eat, and then go back to his room. He didn't even leave his room to use the bathroom anymore, he just used his diapers for everything, all to avoid seeing Twilight as much as possible; but he couldn't enjoy it. He could hardly look at her, both because of her breach of his privacy, and because of the hurtful words he had said to her.

Spike sighed to himself as he dusted an empty room, just to keep busy. "Day in... day out... Everything was fine before I started wanting to be a baby again. Ugh, if I hadn't been so stupid my life wouldn't be worse than it was before. If I had been able to just 'suck it up' I wouldn't feel like horseapples but noooo, I just had to buck everything up like I always do."

Spike's depressed mumbling was suddenly interrupted as his stomach rumbled. He walked out of the room he was currently in and started to head towards the kitchen.

Before he even walked ten steps out the room he just exited, he heard a familiar voice which belonged to the purple alicorn he now loathed. "S...Spike."

The dragon turned around to face the voice with an expressionless face and a glassy look in his dead eyes. He looked like he was empty. A void, as if he was old and had experienced too much in his life.

"I'm not putting up with this. Just... not now" Spike thought to himself emotionlessly as he turned his back on Twilight and walked away towards his 'sanctuary'.

Twilight noticed this reaction and expected it however, she couldn't help but desperately beg with tears in her eyes anyways as she dove down to his clawed feet and took hold. "Spike please, please don't go. Please don't leave me. Don't lock yourself away again. I'm so, so sorry. I can't live like this, knowing you hate everything. Knowing you hate the girls. Knowing that you hate me. I hardly see you anymore, I can't take it!"

Spike didn't react. He didn't speak. He couldn't think about anything other than his suffering. A part of him knew Twilight was there, but another part of him didn't notice her presence at all. He just lifted his feet up and slipped out of Twilights hold. This was a part of the constant routine that he loathed. Twilight always tried to stop him. She was never forceful, but she always begged, whined, pleaded, and cried. "Wash. Rinse. Repeat."

Spike walked to his room at an almost zombie like pace as Twilight desperately tried to crawl and reach for his feet again. However; right when she was about to take hold once more, a door slammed in her face. Looking up she could see it was the door that connected to Spike's room.

Twilight sobbed as she banged on the door in desperation. She didn't dare use her magic, not after what happened the last time. "No... NO! Please open the door Spike. Please let me in!"

After moments of silence behind Spike's door, Twilight simply got up and trotted away as she wailed. She went to the kitchen to grab a cup of cider. Alcoholic cider. Normally she hardly ever drank, but she needed to feel the burn in her throat. A burn that wasn't caused by her yelling. The cider she drank was just fine, yet it tasted like sewage. She forced herself to swallow it though, after all, she felt she deserved it.

A knock on the door was heard shortly after finishing her beverage as she went to answer it. Behind the door were her friends. Seeing them made her smile, even if only a little.

"Twilight dar...ling... oh my. No offense dear, but you look simply dreadful" said the white unicorn as she and the other four walked in carrying bags.

Twilight replied with a dead laugh as tears fell down her face. "I feel terrible. He's the same as we first left him. He hasn't said one. single. word. Spike has never been like this before. I've tried everything I can think of but he won't talk to me. He hardly comes out to eat, he doesn't come out to use the bathroom, and he has been doing most of his chores at night, all to avoid me."

"Well, at least we now know he uses his diapers. That's a plus right?" The pink mare replied in a somewhat less bubbly tone then normal.

The rainbow mare tried to sound annoyed, but she was as desperate as the rest. "Ugh, I can't take this anymore. Who cares if the little guy uses his diapers? This is way too depressing. We already have a plan to get Spike out of his room, so let's do it already!"

"Now hang on Dash, we aren't ready yet. We still need ta paint don't we?" The farm pony asked in confusion.

Twilight shook her head. "No, I did that myself. Around the time Spike would get hungry I finished everything up. It gave me the chance to finish the plan and make sure Spike was eating and drinking."

"S… so, we are ready then?" The yellow pegasus asked with a quiet excitement in her voice and a big smile on her face.

"I think so. I... I just hope it works. I honestly don't know if it will anymore. You haven't seen Spike like I have. He doesn't even look like he's alive anymore. He looks like he was brought back by a necromancer" Twilight said in despair.

Rainbow Dash put her foreleg around Twilight's neck and grinned. "Relax Twi, we've got this. No matter what, we will make Spike happy again. Now let's do this already. I've gotta admit, even I wanna see him dressed up like a baby. He was pretty ahem... cute... Any of you tell a soul about me liking something cute and I'll buck you to the moon.”

"Alright girls, you know the drill. Keep quiet and wait for us." Twilight then walks away before glancing at the girls gratefully. Thank you again. For all of your help.

Each of the five ponies nodded confidently and ran off to another part of the castle.

Twilight starts walking towards Spike's room, nervously trembling with each step. "Alright, it's time. Dear Celestia, please let this work."

***

Everything was quiet. Peaceful. Yet, no matter how silent it was, Spike felt miserable.

Spike just finished wetting another diaper, knowing he'd have to deal with Twilight if he'd left his room to use the toilet. He simply didn't care anymore. He saw no point in getting out of bed. The covers were his only source of warmth, and yet it wasn't enough. His heart and soul remained frigid.

As he struggled to tightly wrap his blanket around him, he heard knocks at his door. Not loud bangs on the door like normal, just... knocks.

Twilight was heard speaking from the other side. "Spike... I know you don't want to talk to me. I know you don't want to look at me. I get that you despise me more than anything right now but please hear me out.

Spike couldn't help but stay quiet and pay attention. The way Twilight was talking sounded sad and guilty, but it sounded sincere rather than the desperation of the last few days.

Twilight then continued her speech. "I have made many mistakes. Mistakes I can never take back. I know I can't make up for them with a simple apology. It would take thousands of gifts before you would even consider forgiving me, but I want to show you something. I want you to come out of your room and let me give you something the girls and I have been working on. If you aren't satisfied with what we have for you, I swear, I will keep out of your way as much as possible. You'll never have to worry about me again. I'll make sure you'll never have to leave your room if you don't want to. If you want, I'll even 'Pinkie Promise' to do everything I just said I'd do. All you have to do is give me this one last chance. I might not deserve it but please, please, consider it. I'll give you a moment to think."

And then silence. Spike knew Twilight was waiting behind that door. He knew she was trying to get him to come out willingly to spend time with her. How could he refuse? If he did what she said, Spike would never have to leave his room. He could hide from everything and everypony. He would never have to fear being judged ever again after today. He'd be free.

On the other claw, if Spike ignored Twilight and her friends who betrayed him, he wouldn't have to risk his feelings being hurt anymore. Things would probably stay like this for a while but eventually, somepony would barge in and force him out. In the end, it was a no brainer.

"...Fine... just let me get ready and I'll-" Spike was then sharply cut off by the purple mare.

"No. I know you’re wearing a diaper and I don't care. Come out as you are. I promise I won't laugh at you or judge you. Please..."

Spike was about to deny Twilight's plea but, in the end, it didn't matter. If he did get laughed at then at least that would be the last time. Spike knew Twilight wasn't dumb enough to break his trust again.

Spike sighed and felt his wet diaper with his claw. He wasn't worried. In fact, he hoped she'd laugh just so he could walk right back in his room. "Alright fine. I'm coming out. If you laugh or judge me at all, then I'm walking back in my room and we're done. You won't get to show me whatever it is you want to show me, but you'll still never bother me again. Deal?"

Almost immediately after Spike finished talking, Twilight jumped in to insure Spike would come out. "Deal! I won't laugh or judge!"

Spike walked over opened his door slowly. Outside was Twilight who instantly teared at the sight of him. Her grateful smile couldn't have been anything besides what it stood for. "Thank you Spike" she whispered quietly.

Twilight pulled out a blindfold and held it in her magic. "Wear this for me Spike, please. I promise, everything will be fine. Trust me."

Spike was about to walk into his room and slam his door shut, but the way Twilight spoke struck a chord in him. He couldn't get her words out of his head. "Trust me."

Spike then nodded in acceptance and let Twilight blind him. He sincerely hoped this wasn't some sort of crazy prank or something.

After tying the blindfold around her baby dragons head, Twilight levitated Spike onto her back, feeling the wet diaper squish against her. She didn't mind at all though. In fact, she liked the feeling. She liked it because she knew her little dragon was with her.

"Alright, hang on tight" Twilight said calmly but happily.

After a few moments of complete darkness, Spike heard a door open. Wherever Spike was, he knew there was a gentle brightness on the other side of his blindfold. He didn't know what was happening, but he was incredibly nervous.

Twilight then lifted Spike off her back and spoke softly to the baby dragon. "Okay Spike, I'm going to remove the blindfold and let you see again. Get ready.”

Spike closed his eyes as the blindfold began to come off. He was terrified of what he might see. After a moment of nothing happening, Spike opened his eyes slowly which then grew to the size of boulders.

He was in a nursery. He knew he hadn't left the castle, but he was in a nursery, no doubt about it. The room was painted a sky blue with white little smiley faced clouds all over it. Inside the room was everything a baby needed. A changing table filled with countless types of diapers, a crib with a baby blanket covered in a hot air balloon pattern, a mobile that had all of the elements of harmony's cutie marks on it which hung over the crib, a chest filled with countless toys, and a shelf filled with children's bedtime stories. The whole room was also illuminated by a magical nightlight which looked like Celestia's sun. There was even a window which was off to side of the room, allowing others to look outside, but not letting anypony look inside.

Spike's jaw had dropped much like how his diaper sagged. Right to the top of his knees. The room was like a foal’s paradise. If Twilight led him here, that meant this "paradise" was... his.

Spike jumped high in the air after hearing a deafening yell in six different pitches. "SURPRISE."

Spike quickly turned around to face the doorway. All the girls were there, each giving Spike maternal smiles, even Rainbow Dash! Above the girls on top of the doorway held a light blue banner which said "We all love you baby Spike. Never grow up!"

Tears instantly appeared in Spikes eyes as he ran to the girls, desperately wanting to hug them all. He was then rewarded as he was put in the middle of a group hug.

"Y... you did all of this for me... Why?" Spike asked in overjoyed shock.

Pinkie Pie giggled at Spike's question since it seemed so obvious. "You’re silly Spikey! It's because we all love you! I thought the banner explained that."

Spike then shook his head in guilt. "B... but after what I said to all of you. After how mean I was... how could you even consider doing any of this for me after the terrible things I said?"

Applejack spoke softly to Spike as she gave him a quick, tight squeeze. "It's 'cause everything you said was true sugarcube. Even if we didn't mean to, we all hurt you so much and all you did was speak the honest truth. We had been lyin ta ourselves fer so long that we couldn't see the truth anymore and it took what ya said ta bring us back ta our senses."

"B... but Rainbow Dash. You laughed at me. You had every reason too. Why are you supporting me now?" Spike asked in an accusatory yet uncertain tone.

Rainbow Dash gave Spike a quick noogie and spoke confidently. "Spike. I was surprised by how you looked, and I didn't think about how you'd feel. You wearing diapers would never change anything between us. I'll always have your back no matter what! Besides, like I told the girls earlier, you’re kinda... adorable... If you tell anypony I said that though, I'll deny it!"

"Okay but what about you Rarity? I look like a freak. Why would you want anything to do with me considering I am doing something extremely childish and 'uncouth'?" The dragon asked in nervousness.

"You are not a freak darling, never say or think such a thing again! Ahem, at first, I wasn't quite sure how to take this. After listening to what you said and thinking about everything you've done for us, especially me, how could I ever stop enjoying your company? Just because you wear and use diapers doesn't mean I'll suddenly dislike you. Also, like Rainbow here said, you’re adorable! You have the cutest wittle chubby cheeks!" Rarity squealed as she squished his cheeks together and gave him a kiss on each one.

Spike felt his heart flutter at the kiss. Somehow, it felt better than all the others he's gotten from her in the past. He quickly regained his composure which then turned to guilt. "Fluttershy, I was awful to you. I was probably the worst with both you and Twilight. Why would you want anything to do with me?"

Fluttershy spoke in a surprisingly normal voice. Although it was still quiet, it was warm and much easier to hear. "That's because you were hurt. You said all those things because you were filled with so much pain. All I saw was a hurt little cutie who needed love, attention, and kindness."

Spike was beginning to feel overwhelmed. He couldn't speak. All he could do was look at Twilight with misty eyes. His face showed what he was trying to say though.

Twilight smiled and kissed Spike on the forehead lovingly. "Spike. You've lived with me for so long and put up with so much from me. You did everything I asked and didn't really get much in return. Every day, your life got harder and harder without me even realizing it. You’re not just my assistant, you’re so much more. You’re my baby. My wittle Spikey-Wikey. My son."

Twilight started to get teary eyed as well as she continued speaking. "I used to see you as a little brother but after thinking things over, I knew I not only had to be, but also wanted to be your mommy. I hatched you, I tired caring for you at a young age and I failed. The one test that mattered, I got an 'F'. I swear to you though, I will never fail this 'test' again. Whenever you need to be fed, I'll bring a spoon to your mouth. Whenever you need a diaper change, I'll lovingly powder you and give you a fresh new diaper. When you’re sick in your crib, I'll feed you soup. Even if the whole world ridiculed you, I'd be by your side. No matter how old you get, you'll always be my baby dragon."

Spike couldn't hold back the tears anymore. He sobbed loudly. He wasn't sad though. He was crying tears of joy. All he ever wanted was to be loved and he finally got it. He and mama Twilight have finally been reunited.

As the girls backed up slowly, they all could be seen with misty eyes as well. Despite the movement, Twilight and Spike continued hugging.

After a moment, Twilight started patting Spikes bottom with a loving touch. "Uhh ohh. Some wittle dwagon had an accident. Don't worry my wet wittle baby, mommy will make you feel all fresh and clean in just a minute.”

Spike felt like his body was high in the air. Everything felt so light. His heart felt like it was floating. Everything felt perfect. He couldn't help but blush at the coos coming from everypony in the room.

As Spike was placed on the changing table, he spoke up in nervous protest. "W... wait. The girls are still here. Can we-"

Spike was suddenly cut off as a pacifier that said "I  Mommy" placed itself firmly in his mouth by a light blue aura. He couldn't help but blush a deep red and suckle at the new item he'd been given. It worked much better than his tail. "Don't worry Spikey-Pooh. You just let the grown-up ponies handle everything. Besides, there's no reason to be embarrassed. We'll all be changing you at some point, even Rainbow Dash will. She agreed before we set all this up. Your aunties can't let such a cutie get a diapee rash, now can we? No we can't. No we can't!" Rarity cooed as she babytalked to the little dragon.

Spike's face was completely red. All the cooing and the way everypony was speaking felt so embarrassing but he loved it. It all felt so satisfying. Sure, he was being talked to like a baby by his crush, but something told him everything was going to be alright.

As Twilight gave Spike a maternal smile, she ripped the tapes off of the diaper wiped him with warm foal wipes and removed it from under him.

Rainbow Dash and Applejack left the room to grab one more thing that wasn't in the room. Spike figured they left to give him some privacy which they partially did. He was definitely thankful for that. He was still completely embarrassed, but he didn't have to worry for too long as two other came closer to the changing table.

"Look Spike. Your Auntie Pinke Pie got you a rattle and a cute cupcake plushy to play with!" The party pony said as she popped in his face and passed the objects over which Spike took slowly.

As Spike began to hug the plushy tightly to his chest with his right claw and shake his new rattle with his left, he heard a calm soothing voice by his ear.

"Isn't this nice sweetheart? We all love you so much and want to make you very happy, especially your mommy. We'll always be here for you Spike" Fluttershy whispered into his ear as well as other sweet nothings while gently rubbing his tummy.

As all this was going on, Twilight pulled out a diaper from the side of the changing table which had little patterns on them such as; gems, rattles, small teddy bears, and stars. There was one thing about the diaper which stood out though. It was a cloth diaper, specially made by Rarity.

Twilight thoroughly powdered Spike after placing the diaper under him. Then she brought the sides to the center and pinned them together with a big rubber ducky pin, securing the diaper with a snug fit.

Moments later, Rainbow Dash and Applejack returned with a light blue baby carriage with white trim. It had a top to block out sunlight and space to place a diaper bag underneath.

As Spike tried to get off of the changing table, he was held in place by his mother’s magic. "Ah, ah, ah. Hold on now sweetie. We aren't quite don't yet" Twilight cooed softly.

Spike didn't understand what his mommy meant. He quickly tried to figure out what was left but came up with nothing. "I don't understand... After getting a diaper change, babies are supposed to be let down right? What else is there?"

Spike was broken out of his thoughts as he heard a zipper sound and a slight tug upwards. Luckily for Spike, there was a mirror placed by the changing table, most likely for Spike to see what was going on. He looked in the mirror to see he had been placed in a purple sleeper with the cutie marks of all the elements on it, also with little feet attached. There were even little purple padded mittens where his clawed hands would've been.

Twilight made a confused look before asking a rhetorical question. "Hmm you look pretty good, but you seem to be missing something. What could It be? Oh, I know!" She then attached a frilly light blue-ish purple-ish baby bonnet on Spike's head.

Twilight swiftly picked the now sweet smelling and cute looking Spike up while placing him into the carriage using her magic. "There we go~. Now don't you just look perfect!"

Everypony looked into the carriage at Spike while he looked back at them and smiled behind his pacifier. He loved looking at their warm eyes and smiles.

"Oh my goodness, he's the cutest little baby I've ever seen!" Fluttershy said as she 'screamed' and made an adorable squee.

"Gosh, he is one of tha cutest lil’ things I've ever seen as well" Applejack said as she put her hooves to her chest to avoid having a heart attack caused by cuteness.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but Spike makes me feel 20% more feminine" Rainbow Dash says with no regret.

Rarity then looks at the rainbow mare with a teasing smile "Having maternal instincts is normal for a mare Rainbow Dash. Anyway, how could you not want to gush at such cuteness? Spikey-Wikey looks even more precious in the fabulous clothes I made him. Maybe you’re finally ready to become a proper lady now."

Rainbow Dash was about to retort but Pinkie Pie stuck her face in the carriage and started making funny faces at the babyfied dragon who couldn't help but giggle at the pink mare’s antics.

"Oh, oh, I got him to laugh! Your auntie Pinkie Pie knows how to make you laugh, huh?

Spike simply smiled wider and nods his head up and down in confirmation as he suckled on his pacifier.

Twilight brought Spike's eyes to the toys she put into the carriage. She placed the rattle and the cupcake plushy with him as she rubbed his tummy slowly and spoke sweetly. "I love you with all of my heart baby Spike."

Spike then looked at his mommy with his big innocent eyes leaking tears as he lisped around his pacifier. "I wuv you too... ma~ma."

Everypony and dragon looked at each other with a great big smile. While they didn't know what was in store for the future, they knew that they would get through it together as a family...