Go Back To Sleep, Twilight
Serving in the Canterlot Royal Guard wasn’t a job that the word “difficult” would apply to. It demanded patience more than anything else, a willingness to stay dedicated to routine without losing focus or drive. If a guard for the town’s palace could get used to seeing the same checkerboard patterned floors, rose-colored rugs and diamond-studded doors every day, they could maintain their occupation all the way into a cozy retirement. The job occasionally faced some danger now and then whenever a new threat loomed over Equestria, every enlisted stallion and mare called to action to do their part in defending their kingdom. Aside from the yearly incident or two, serving in the guard was more of a ceremonial job, sometimes requiring some surveillant eyes from its enlisted troops.
Whoever was appointed to guard the head princess of Equestria’s chambers usually had it the worst. There were seldom any creatures roaming the halls for passing entertainment, since everyone had retired to their beds with the setting of the sun. The cerulean griffon guard standing in front of a large and decorative door had once thought he’d never be able to sit still for hours without going insane. Much to his friends and his own surprise, it had only taken him a month of service for the monotony to stop affecting him. He’d even gained such a knack for the job that he’d been promoted to train new recruits serving the militia. Before he’d realized it, half a decade had passed him by, leading him to take an officer’s position of his own squadron. He almost felt dirty for having exceeded so much in a job that demanded so little from him.
“GYAAHHH!!”
The griffon rolled his eyes and sighed through the nostrils of his beak after he’d heard the scream from behind the doors, while the green mare at his side looked to her right in surprise.
“Uh… W-was that the princess?” she asked, wary of speaking while at her post.
“Mhm,” the griffon replied in a disgruntled tone.
“Should we… go in?”
“No. Let’s just peek and make sure she’s alright.” Gallus looked toward the other soldier, seeing her shoot him a very confused stare. “It’s your first night on Sparkle Duty. You’re jumpy, you want to do a good job, I get it. Just watch what I do.” After clearing his throat, Gallus gently pushed the door open, peering his head into the dark room inside. “Everything alright, your majesty?” he asked with a rehearsed inflection, before turning back to the mare guard and whispering, “She’s gonna tell us she needs to check something.”
“I… I need to check something!” the frantic voice from the darkness responded.
“Wait for the pop…” Gallus continued, just a moment before a purple flicker of light lit up the room for a fraction of a second, then returned it to darkness once again. “And there she goes.”
“Where did she go, exactly?” the mare asked as she watched Gallus walk away.
“Same place we’re going. To Spike’s room.”
“Her advisor?”
“The same,”
“You sound very calm about this, Captain Gallus,” the mare said as he turned around and put a claw and closed the door behind him.
“Because I’ve lost count of how many times this has happened over the years I’ve been at this post.”
“Wait, this happens a lot?”
“Yeah. Look, I’ll explain on the way. Just do me a favor — if you see anyone else, put a lid on it. I don’t care if the soldiers talk, but we do need to maintain an image,” he instructed as he led the new recruit down the hall.
Within a darkened room, the night sky’s pale moonlight shone within a window upon a long and scaly tail hanging out of the side of a mattress. A large bump on the top of the bed rose and fell along with the sound of soft snoring, as well as the sleepy mutterings from a somewhat deep voice.
“Mm… Smoulder…” the voice mumbled as the lower end of the lump squirmed and wriggled with enthusiasm, “Ember… Rarity… don’t fight over me… trust me, there’s plenty to go around. You can all get a little piece of — .”
“SPIKE!!” a voice yelled out following a magical pop next to the bed, causing the mound on top to jump in surprise and smack against the bedrest.
“Ow!” the shape called out in pain, followed by an agonizing series of groans, “Ghh— ack! Haaah!”
“Oh my gosh, Spike! Are you okay?”
“I’ll live, if that’s what you’re asking — ow. What’s going on, Twilight?”
“Spike, I need you to tell me everything that’s going on in the world, right now,” the voice said in a frantic tone.
“... You had that dream again, didn’t you?”
“NOW, Spike!”
“Okay okay, geez, keep your wings on,” Spike grumbled as his shadowy form sat up and reached for the lamp on his nearby dresser. After a light click of the chain, the room was illuminated to show his tall and slim mulberry form towering that of the small alicorn in front of him even as he remained seated. He tiredly rested his lanky arms over his limber thighs, only a bit of muscle apparent on his trim arms and legs. The small lavender alicorn looked up at him, her disheveled mane clinging to the back of her neck with a number of locks sticking out wildly here and there.
“Alright, where to start…” the dragon said as shook his head to rid himself of sleepiness for the time being, “You’ve been the princess of Equestria for a little over a decade now. Celestia and Luna still control the sun and moon while they’re enjoying retirement in Silver Shoals. Eternal retirement. Because they’re immortal.”
“Uh huh,” Twilight nodded with worry as he spoke.
“I’ve been the Friendship Ambassador AND your Royal Advisor for just as long. Gallus is captain of the Royal Guards. You teach the School for Gifted Unicorns, just like Celestia did when you were younger. You have a prized pupil named Luster who you sent to Ponyville, and is pretty much like you were in every way when you were her age — it’s kind of eerie. Uh, what else… oh yeah, friends. Pinkie Pie and Cheese Sandwich got together — big surprise — and had a kid. Rainbow Dash and Applejack are involved with each other, also not surprising, Granny Smith is, uh… feeding Sweet Apple Acres,” Spike said before clearing his throat, “Which means AJ is pretty much in charge of the farm now. Big Mac and Sugar Belle are parents, Rarity is single but loves every minute of it because it gives her more time to manage her MULTIPLE clothes shops across Equestria.” Spike opened his mouth and let out a yawn and smacked his lips in a tired fashion before forcing himself to continue. “Fluttershy and… Discord are…” the tall dragon’s eyes began to droop as he spoke, until they closed completely while his head lowered. Twilight looked up at him with an impatient glare as she emitted an inaudible growl within her throat.
“Spike!” Twilight shouted, prompting him to bolt upright in alarm.
“I’m awake!” he yelped with surprise, taking a moment to pant and collect himself before continuing, “Fluttershy and Discord are — eh, it’s complicated. Which actually kind of makes sense, given it’s Discord we’re talking about. Yona and Sandbar are a thing, they help out with Rarity in her house-slash-boutique in Ponyville. They’re also teachers at the School of Friendship along with the rest of their friends. The Cutie Mark Crusaders are teachers too, all of them under the guidance of Headmare Starlight Glimmer and Vice-Headmare — er, Vice Headstallion — Headpony? Whatever, it’s Sunburst, they both run the school. Oh yeah, and Flurryheart saved Equestria once — she’s actually gotten crazy powerful, Celestia advised you to keep an eye on her...”
“Uh huh,” Twilight nodded as Spike continued to speak.
“And. Most importantly,” Spike resumed as he looked directly at Twilight, “You and I don’t look like freaks. You don’t look like Celestia with different colors, and I don’t look like an overly muscular jock. Granted, I am bigger than Garble, heh… but only slightly,” Spike said as he smirked and rubbed a claw over his grapefruit sized bicep, “Just enough that I can pin him to the ground if he ever tries to wrestle me.”
“Are you sure Spike?” Twilight asked in an anxious voice.
“Oh yeah. It’s a pretty close tussle, but I can beat him every time.”
“That’s not what I mean!”
“What, you mean how you and I look? Well come on Twilight, look at me!” Spike said as he lifted his claws from his lap, “Do my arms look like watermelons? Are you and I at the same height? No, I’m looking down at you, while sitting in my bed.” Twilight’s eyes continued to dart up and down every inch of him with uncertainty. Following a frustrated grumble, Spike reached a claw into his dresser and pulled out a mirror. “Look. Look at yourself,” he instructed as he held the mirror in front of her. “Normal, plain purple hair. No sparkling ethereal mane. No long legs. No long snout. No giant wings. You’re. Still. You.”
Twilight’s eyes gazed into the mirror, taking in the sight of her reflection staring back at her. It was just as Spike had told her: her mane, despite looking like a birds nest without proper brushing, was just plain hair, no magical waviness keeping it afloat. Her face was still small and round, her legs short and stout, her entire body the same relative height as most mares in Equestria. And her wings weren’t much bigger than any pegasus either, perhaps even slightly smaller than that of Cadance’s. Taking a deep breath inward, Twilight released a heavy sigh as a smile formed on her face.
“Thank goodness,” Twilight said as her shoulders lowered, the rest of her body beginning to relax, “I’m so sorry Spike. I promise I don’t mean to keep doing this to you… however many times, but — .”
“Six.”
“What?”
“This makes the sixth time you’ve had this dream and come to find me,” Spike explained with a smirk, “Twice a year since you sent Luster to Ponyville. I’ve been counting.”
“... Wow,” Twilight uttered, her wings rising toward her cheeks turning a soft red, “I just — wow. Seriously, six?”
“Mhm.”
“I don’t know what’s going on. I can’t figure out why I keep having this dream — what could be bothering me that I’d see both us looking so… unnatural?”
“I’ve got a hunch. But I think you might want an answer to the question you’re going to ask me next.”
“What?” Twilight asked, before she saw Spike lifting the covers of his bed and scooting over, “Oh. Right. Can I, uh… sleep in your bed tonight?” she asked as she lowered her head, bashfully climbing up the side of the mattress.
“Eh, I guess so,” Spike chuckled as he watched the alicorn pull her hindlegs up. She stuck her tongue out at the dragon, before turning her back to him and laying herself down and resting her head against the large pillow, “Alright, so I’m no psychiatrist, but if I had to wager a guess, you’re having this same dream because you’re worried you’ve become just like Celestia.”
“... That’s it?” Twilight asked as she turned her head to the side to look at him.
“Yeah.”
“That doesn’t make any sense! Celestia was my idol from when I was a filly all the way up to becoming the head princess, and I still respect her even when she’s in retirement. Why would I be upset that I’m becoming like her?”
“Hey, a lot of creatures don’t enjoy the idea of becoming like their parents — or in your case, their mentors. It’s not because you hate them or anything — most of the time — it’s more about wanting to have your own identity instead of just reflecting someone else. I mean, I was hanging out with Rarity a few days ago, and when Sweetie Belle told her she had a boyfriend she said,” Spike took a moment to clear his throat as he closed his eyes and tilted his head upward, “‘Now Sweetie Belle, you be careful with this stallion,’” he said in a feminine, posh voice, “‘Don’t let him in too easily, make him work for it. Oh, my word — I sound just like our mother!’ Cue the frantic gasp, running for a mirror, seeing how she’s aged, waterworks, the whole nine yards,” he explained in his regular voice, eliciting a giggle from Twilight as she turned herself over completely to face him head on.
“Aw, why would she be upset over that?” Twilight asked, “Cookie Crumbles is so sweet, it’s not a bad thing that she and Rarity are looking out for Sweetie Belle.”
“That’s what I told her! I said her mom was wonderful, and she should be happy if both of them are alike. That… didn’t go over very well.” Twilight continued to laugh, before taking a breath and settling down.
“I guess that makes sense. Well, not really, but I get it. It’s something we all feel. I suppose I’ve been feeling something similar regarding Celestia, even if I didn’t realize it.” Twilight’s smile faded as she rubbed her chin with a hoof and lifted an eyebrow. “Wait, something still doesn’t make sense. What about you?”
“What do you mean?” Spike asked.
“Why am I dreaming about you looking like a baboon? Your frame shouldn’t have anything to do with my identity crisis.”
“Huh. Good point,” Spike replied as he drummed his claws against his skull, “Oh, I know what it is!”
“What — ahh!” Twilight gasped as Spike reached a long arm out and pulled her close, holding her face against his sturdy chest.
“You’re still having trouble adjusting to me growing up. I remember when I was small enough to ride on you without hurting your back. If I ever had a bad dream or was worried about something, you’d offer me to sleep in your bed, and you were the one who’d wrap me up in a hug. Maybe now that the tables are turned, your brain is making me out to look bigger than normal, because it’s something you weren’t ready for?”
“Spike?” Twilight asked as her eyes darted back and forth from the scaly chest in front of her.
“Yeah?”
“... How did you get so smart?”
“I had a good teacher!” he said as he jostled the alicorn lightly, prompting her to lift her wings and hide her face completely.
“Let’s just… get some sleep, okay?”
“Heh heh. As you wish, your majesty.”
Twilight emitted a soft grumble as Spike reached over her head and tugged the chain on his lamp, cutting off the light and letting the darkness cover them along with the blankets under Twilight’s chin.
“Spike?” Twilight asked while the dragon closed his eyes.
“Mhm?”
“You’re an amazing royal advisor. I don’t think I could have picked anyone better for the job.”
“Aw, thanks. But you know I don’t see advising you as a job, right?”
“Yeah. That’s why you’re so good at it.”
“Heh, thanks Twilight,” Spike said, his claw rubbing the back of her head while she smiled, “What do you say? No more bad dreams tonight?”
Though the cover of darkness prevented her from seeing it, Twilight could feel Spike’s sturdy form holding her close. Despite being so much younger than her, she felt like she relied on him so much more now in recent years. Though she may have had the intelligence, patience and resolve to lead Equestria, it was Spike that was there to catch her when she ran out of energy. She was glad that despite his growth, he’d never stopped being that sweet and supportive dragon he’d been since he was a child.
“No more bad dreams. Not tonight at least.”
“That’s all I can ask for. Goodnight, Twilight.”
“Goodnight, Spike.”