Spike has a discussion with Rarity about their friendship.
Ever since he and Twilight Sparkle had first moved to Ponyville, Spike's had a crush on Rarity. At first he'd thought it was a secret - the big secret in his life - but he'd soon come to realize that the signs he had been displaying since day one were...really, really obvious. His first reaction had been mortification, followed by anger (after all, how could his friends have just let him act like that?!), but eventually he'd come to the conclusion that, sometimes, a friend within a circle just happens to develop a crush upon another friend, and that it's really no big deal.
But then something starts to nag at him: If Rarity's known about his feelings for some undetermined amount of time, how come she's spent all this time without even acknowledging that she does know? So, he decides to ask if he can come over for tea, with the intention of discussing these thoughts and feelings with her.
NOTE: Sex tag is for brief mentions of it during their conversation. There's no explicit talk, and it's not a recurring point of discussion.
"Okay, just be honest with her, and it'll be fine. It's not going to turn into a fight, and it'll be awkward, but it won't be that awkward, but it'll still be really awkward oh my Celestia what in the hay am I doing I gotta get outta he- no! You da man, Spike! And da man has to commit to his appointments, no matter how terrified he is, a-and how sweaty his claws are, and- augh!"
With a whisper-scream of irritation towards himself, he takes a few deep breaths to try and calm himself. It sort of works. His heart's still thrumming like a hummingbird's as he raises one shaky claw to knock on the door to the Carousel Boutique.
Three sharp raps announce his arrival.
The door swings open, and an alabaster face framed by royal purple locks greets him with a smile. "Spikey-Wikey! Ooh, thank goodness, I thought Twilight had held you up with chores again," she says with a polite titter, stepping to the side of the doorway to make room for Spike to walk through.
His cheeks flush with pink at her words, and he offers her a weak, thin-lipped smile in response, nearly stumbling as he walks in.
'Right...chores...'
It never feels good to lie to his friends, especially not his longstanding crush, but...it was tough to come to terms with what's been going on for the past few years that they've known each other. Even tougher to try and convince himself to approach Rarity about it. So, in order to avoid hurting Rarity's feelings, suddenly Twilight's been absolutely bombarding him with chores.
Allegedly.
He notices her cocked head at his odd behavior, but when she sees him glancing her way, he offers an awkward smile - really, more of a grimace - in response, hoping that it'll ward off any prying questions. Her response is to simply look away as though she hadn't been observing the dragon in the first place, lips pursed slightly as a small smile plays at her lips. He gets the feeling that she's attributing his bordering-on-terror nerves to his "secret" crush, and...she's half-right.
With a slight shake of his head, he hops up onto a loveseat before placing his claws on the cushion in-between his knees, giving her a smile that's just a little bit more genuine and a little bit less fraught with fear. "So, um...w-what kinda tea are we having today?"
Rarity's horn glows with a turquoise aura, a silver tray engulfed within it floating into the boutique's sitting room before setting itself down upon the coffee table a little over a foot away from Spike. Resting atop the tray are a blue ceramic tea kettle, two light blue teacups, and a circular arrangement of cranberry scones. "My favorite! Honey citron, with just a hint of lavender." She tosses her mane with a delighted grin before stepping over to seat herself upon the couch opposite from Spike. Her arcana surrounds the ear of the teapot before tipping it so that steaming hot tea comes delicately pouring out into first one teacup - which she floats over to Spike - then into another, which she takes for herself. Sipping from it politely, she gazes at him with a curious look. "...Spike, do forgive me for my bluntness, but is something on your mind?" She flutters her lashes at him, her voice pitching up slightly with her next words. "You know that you can tell me anything, right?"
Leaning forwards to take ahold of the other teacup (and a scone), his claw shakes slightly as he lifts it to take a sip of the tea. Despite his nerves, he can appreciate the flavor; he can definitely see why it's her favorite. He takes a deep breath, takes another sip, then raises his emerald gaze from the ground to meet Rarity's. "Y-Yeah, actually. I, uh...I came here today t-to- to t-" He bites his lip and chews on it for a moment, scowling at his stammer, before releasing it with a low, deep exhalation of breath. "Look, I...I came here to talk to you about something." He gulps. "A-About us."
The unicorn's eyes widen in surprise, and she sets her cup down upon its saucer for just a moment before she blinks a few times.
'Oh, goodness...I never expected him to actually...ask me out...'
She's already beginning to formulate how best to reject him before Spike continues talking.
"I know how- I mean, I know what that sounded like, and, um...I'm not really good at talking about stuff like this, so just...let me say everything on my mind first. Then...I guess we go from there." His eyes, which had drifted back down to the ground, glance back up to Rarity, and when he sees her nod, he returns to staring at the floor, unable to meet her questioning stare as his cheeks begin to tinge red.
"...okay, so, uhm." An audible gulp echoes throughout the boutique. "H-Here goes, I guess." He takes a deep, shuddering breath before releasing it as a just as shaky exhale. "When Twilight and I first got to Ponyville, I didn't really- I mean, I wasn't really...interested, I guess, in making friends with anypony. It just wasn't something that I thought of as part of my job description, you know?" He takes a bite of his scone, chewing to buy himself some thinking time. He washes down the crumbs with another gulp of tea before continuing. "But...that stopped the second I saw you." His anxiety breaks for just a moment as a tiny smile curls the corners of his lips upwards. "I'd never seen anypony - anything - as pretty as you. It wasn't just your mane, or your makeup, or anything. I just thought that everything about you was so- so perfect."
Against his better judgment, he shoots another quick look towards Rarity, finding her with a tiny, fond smile crossed over an expression that looks conflicted and, if he didn't know any better, apologetic.
"I thought that my c-" Suddenly, he finds that his throat is drier than the Samarea Desert, and he takes a series of small sips of tea to wetten his vocal folds before daring to attempt speech again. "...I thought that m-my...my crush..." Something in his chest twists unpleasantly. It's as though a deep knot within his heart has been unbound - uncomfortable and perhaps a little bit painful for a moment, but as the seconds pass, he finds that he can breathe much more easily than before. "...was a secret." He takes several more bites of his scone, nibbling on the dried cranberry bites and not really tasting them as he fiddles with them with his tongue. Another sip of tea accompanies the pastry and fruit. "But...over time, I realized that it wasn't a secret. Twilight knew the second that it started, and the more that our friends saw us toge- er...saw me looking at you, the more they realized that I was c- c-crushing on you."
Now he looks up, some unknown emotion fluttering within his eyes. Something just a little bit dark, something confused, something more than anxious but less than scared, and something imploring.
"I was kind of upset with the others, at first, because as I thought back on all of the times we hung out as a group, I realized that, yeah, I was really obvious." He glances off to the side, gaze fixating upon some mundane point on the couch near Rarity's left forehoof. "That didn't last, though. I don't think I was emotionally...uh...mature enough, I guess...to handle them telling me to my face how I felt. To handle them telling me to my face that they knew how I felt."
His head turns back up to lock eyes with Rarity, brow furrowed with contemplation as he continues.
"So...y-you must've known, too. Even if nopony told you directly, I mean...come on." One side of his muzzle quirks up into an awkward grin. "If I know I was - and sometimes still am - a ditz, all for your attention, maybe even l- l-love, then..." He reaches out to set his tea and half-eaten scone down, pressing his face into his claws with a heavy sigh.
"Why didn't you say anything?"
Her head swims with a maelstrom of thoughts and emotions. She was expecting a heartfelt love confession, which she had been prepared to reject with the utmost care and compassion whilst still reassuring the dragon that they would still be very good friends. Friends, and only friends, yes, but still very good friends.
But this...
"Spike. Just because I was aware of your feelings for me, it does not mean that I owed - nor owe - you anything in response. I-"
She's interrupted not by his words, but by the incredulous look in his eyes as he pulls his hands off of his face, something just below the level of irritation flashing across the reflective surfaces.
"'Owe'?" He groans and tops off his tea, taking a large gulp of the piping-hot liquid - silently, he thanks his draconic heritage for allowing him to give in to his impatience - before setting the cup back down and dragging the back of one claw across his mouth. "Rare, I- I-I'm not demanding a date or anything! I just- I-I've been thinking about this for- Celestia, I think weeks, now?" He leans back into his hands, but this time he rests his elbows on his knees, then his jaws in his palms, cheeks smushed together slightly as he speaks. "I just needed to know: Did you know? And if you did...did you have me do all of- well, pretty much everything that I've ever done for you, just because you knew?"
His tone is, the distant, detached part of her mind chimes in, just a touch more accusatory than she'd like, but as she flinches as though she's been struck, she must fight back the conflicting feelings of guilt and anger that rise up within her all the same. "No! Spike, I-I would never take advantage of- of any of my friends, and that includes you!" She purses her lips in thought before picking up her own tea saucer, the cup trembling slightly as she lifts the rim to her mouth for a drink. The soft 'clink!' of porcelain meeting silver announces the start of her next words. "Why would you say such a thing?"
The only way to describe the look that Spike gives Rarity is deadpan. "Rarity, I don't think there're enough claws in all of the Dragonlands to count how many 'favors' I've done for you just because- b-because you asked me, specifically, to do them." He looks down at the tray and starts counting the crumbs surrounding his scone. "A-And I did them all without even thinking about it, because you fluttered your lashes in just the right way, or you tossed your mane like that, or flicked your tail that one time when I was really scared." He gives her a tiny, sardonic smile. "Good play, by the way. I-It really did motivate me to rappel down into those jagged mineshafts to gather more pyrite for you." He sighs and mutters under his breath, "'Fool's Gold' is right."
When faced with the...evidence...of all of the times that she's exploited her knowledge of Spike's crush for her own, personal gains, she can't keep a grimace from marring her features. Any indignance she feels now is directed towards herself. It had felt so natural at the time - she's used to puckering her lips or giving perhaps just a hint of what the lucky stallion (or mare!) might get access to if they'll give her just ooone little discount, or ooone extra sack of cherries - to simply use her beauty to profit off of someone who she had known was attracted to her. She's used to the ponies she teases simply wanting sex, and she has no problem with implying things whilst never paying up with ponies who will never give her the storybook romance that she so desires, but...
...but Spike isn't just anyone that thinks with their bits instead of their brains. He's a friend, and he's been through more for her sake than most of her other friends.
Suddenly, she feels very, very small.
"...I-I didn't reali-"
"I know."
Once again, his voice causes her to react as though she's been hit, a wince crossing her features. The coldness of his tone seeps deep into her core.
"But..." His gaze, which had hardened throughout the scolding, softens substantially, as does his voice. "...it's fine." Spike's muzzle wrinkles with thought as his expression turns pensive, and he stares once more back at the floor. "Just, please..." A quiet bark of a laugh leaves him. "The dreaded question, but...what are we, Rare? I-I need you to be honest, and clarify things, because..." Sharp fangs clamp down upon his lower lip as he attempts to control the wavering in his voice. "...I-I can't deal with the confusion anymore. You remember the whole, uh, 'incident' with Applejack, the timberwolves, and my Dragon Code, right?" He catches a minuscule flash of movement out of the corner of his eye as Rarity nods, and he continues. "Well, then, that, combined with how I've been through the years...I need to know if I can, um..." He winces, worried about how this may come off. "...i-if I can stop being loyal to you. Because as much as I wish I could just tell myself that it's all up to me, and as much as I know that it's true...emotions and c-crushes don't really listen to logic." Rubbing at the back of his head, he lets out a sheepish chuckle. "Guess I've been livin' with Twilight too long. Man, talk about an egghead line."
Something warm and fuzzy engulfs him and blocks out the light from the source above, and as the scent of lavender perfume fills his nostrils and his eyes focus just enough to get a blurry view of white fur, he realizes that Rarity's hugging him, soft sniffles leaving her as she does so.
"Oh, Spikey-Wikey...of course you can. I- I-I'm sorry that it took us so long to talk about this. That it took so long for me to talk to you about all of this." She squeezes him tighter for just a moment longer before pulling away, smeared mascara running down her cheeks in rivulets as she smiles apologetically at him. "I really do love you, Spike, and that will never change. But...as a friend." Taking one of his claws into her hooves, she pats it gently, nuzzling at his cheek. "I know that that's hard for you to hear, but I owed that truth to you a long time ago, and I shouldn't have taken advantage of your feelings the way that I did." Rarity lifts her other hoof to wipe at her tears - only managing to ensure that grey is now all over her cheeks instead of in lines down them - before returning her gaze to lock with Spike's. "You don't need to forgive me. Not right now, and not ever. However, I am sincerely grateful for the fact that you're even willing to consider it, let alone try."
The smile that he gives her is still conflicted, but it's the first one of that afternoon that seems genuinely at peace, and as he hugs her back with all the strength that his adolescent-sized dragon body can muster up, the both of them feel just a little bit lighter for it.
"Okay, just be honest with her, and it'll be fine. It's not going to turn into a fight, and it'll be awkward, but it won't be that awkward, but it'll still be really awkward oh my Celestia what in the hay am I doing I gotta get outta he- no! You're an adult now, Spike! And adults have to commit to their appointments, no matter how terrified they are, a-and how sweaty their claws are, and- augh!"
With a quiet cry of irritation towards himself, he takes a few deep breaths to try and calm himself. It sort of works. His heart's still thrumming like a hummingbird's as he bends slightly before lowering one shaky claw to knock on the door to the Carousel Boutique.
Three sharp raps announce his arrival.
The door swings open, and an alabaster face framed by royal purple locks tilts up to greet him with a smile. "Spikey-Wikey! Ooh, thank goodness you made it. I thought Twilight might've held you up with chores again," she says with a teasing little titter, stepping to the side of the doorway to make room for Spike to walk through.
His cheeks flush with pink at her words, and he offers her a weak, thin-lipped smile in response, nearly knocking the top of his head against the doorway as he walks in.
'Right...chores...'
It never feels good to lie to his friends, especially not his longstanding crush, but...it'd been tough to come to terms with what's been going on for the past few years that they've known each other. Even tougher to try and convince himself to approach Rarity about it. So, in order to avoid hurting Rarity's feelings, suddenly Twilight's been absolutely bombarding him with chores.
Allegedly.
As the fashionista's gaze burns into him, he flashes an awkward smile - really, more of a grimace - her way. At that, she simply looks away with a small, knowing smile playing at her lips.
Carefully, he seats himself onto a loveseat, struggling to get comfortable before simply laying on his belly and curling his tail around his body. Thankfully, the couch is just large enough to contain his form without squishing him. He gives her a smile that's just a little bit more genuine and a little bit less fraught with fear before asking, "So, um...w-what kinda tea are we having today?"
Rarity trots into the kitchen, horn glowing with a turquoise aura as she returns just a few moments later with a silver tea tray held securely within her magical grasp. Resting atop the tray are various teatime accoutrements, which click just slightly as she sets the platter down upon the table. "My favorite! Honey citron, with just a hint of lavender." She tosses her mane with a delighted grin before stepping over to seat herself upon the couch opposite from Spike. The fashionista's arcana delicately grips the teapot as she pours out a cup for herself, then a second for her scaly guest. Sipping from hers politely, she gazes at him with a curious look.
"Spike, do forgive me for my bluntness, but is something on your mind?" She flutters her lashes at him, her voice pitching up slightly with her next words. "You know that you can tell me anything, right?"
Leaning forwards to take ahold of the other teacup, his claw shakes slightly as he lifts it to nurse at his own tea. He takes a deep breath, then raises his emerald gaze from the ground to meet Rarity's. "Yeah, actually. I, uh...I came here today to- to t-" He bites his lip and chews on it for a moment, scowling at his stammer, before releasing it with a low, deep exhalation of breath. "Look, I- I came here to talk to you about something." He gulps. "About us."
The unicorn's eyes widen slightly with surprise, and she sets her cup down upon its saucer for just a moment before blinking a few times. "O-Oh. I see."
"I know how- I mean, I know what that sounded like. I'm not really good at talking about stuff like this, so just...let me say everything on my mind first. Then? I guess we go from there." His eyes, which had drifted back down to the ground, glance back up to Rarity, and when he sees her nod, he returns to staring at the floor, unable to meet her now nearly interrogative stare as his heart begins to race once more.
"...okay, uhm." An audible gulp echoes throughout the boutique. "Here goes, I guess." He takes a deep, shuddering breath before releasing it with an exhale that's just as jittery. "When Twilight and I first got to Ponyville, I wasn't- I didn't really know how to make friends with anypony. It just wasn't something that'd ever mattered while we were living back in Canterlot. Twilight was the solar princess's star student, and I was the star student's secretary." As he wrings his hands, he wonders whether Rarity's air-conditioning is on the fritz or if his palm-sweats really have just returned with a vengeance from his preteen years.
"I'm not sure if you noticed, but that absolute disinterest in friendship was pretty big at the start of our time here in Ponyville. If you thought that it was bad then, you have no idea what it was like in Canterlot. Her friends were Princess Celestia, sometimes me, and books. Being her secretary and all, that meant that I also only had Princess Celestia, sometimes her, and books as my friends. Still, I never really minded it too much. But...that stopped the second I saw you." The dragon's brows unfurrow for just a moment as a tiny smile curls the corners of his lips upwards.
"I'd never seen anypony - anything - as pretty as you. It wasn't just your mane, or your makeup, or anything. I just thought that everything about you was so...perfect. I wanted to get to know you better, to be your friend, and to do that, I'd have to...well, learn how to make friends." Against his better judgment, he shoots another quick look towards Rarity, finding her with a tiny, fond smile crossed over an expression that looks conflicted and...apologetic?
"Of course, making friends with you was really more of a stepping stone on the path I'd wanted to travel with you." His muzzle quirks slightly. "Still, baby steps for a baby dragon, right? Anyways, at the time, I thought that my c-" Suddenly, he finds that his throat is drier than the Samarea Desert, and he nearly chokes on the large gulps of tea he attempts to fix the sensation with.
"...I thought that my crush-" Something in his chest twists with a jolt, colliding unpleasantly with a flurry of frantic thumps of his heart. "-was a secret."
He leans forwards to grab a scone from the tray, electing to simply stare down at the fruit-laden pastry to avoid facing Rarity's judgemental stare at the moment. He doesn't think that his knotted stomach would take well to any food at the moment.
"But...over time, I realized that it wasn't a secret. Twilight had had me figured out the second that it'd started, and the more that our friends saw us toge- er...saw me looking at you, the more they realized that I was crushing on you."
Now he looks up, a jumble of emotions fluttering within his eyes. Something just a little bit dark, something confused, something more than anxious but less than scared, and something imploring. He tries hard not to flinch at the coldness in her own gaze.
"I was kind of upset with the others, at first, because as I thought back on all of the times we hung out as a group, I realized that, yeah, I was really obvious." He glances off to the side, gaze fixating upon some mundane point on the couch near Rarity's left forehoof. "For a week or so, all I could really think was 'Twilight, how could you let me run off with Rarity when so many books were unshelved?!', or 'Rainbow Dash, for Celestia's sakes, you couldn't have told me I was staring at Rarity for five minutes straight?', and just...feeling a bit peeved at them for letting me act like that."
A fond smile crosses his lips as he thinks back on the realizations that had come to him during those weeks of self-reflection.
"That didn't last, though. I don't think I was emotionally mature enough to handle them telling me to my face how I felt. To handle them telling me to my face that they knew how I felt."
His eyes return to meet Rarity's own, stare hardening and brow furrowing with contemplation as his voice gains confidence, growing slightly in volume as it does so.
"But what about you, Rarity? I mean, while I've been doing all this thinking, of course I remembered that one day, years and years ago, when Rainbow and Fluttershy saved us." A sardonic little grin quirks across his muzzle. "I'll save us both the trouble of even bringing up the rest of that disaster of a day, but, Rarity..."
Spike groans, finally breaking the eye contact as he presses his face into the arm of the loveseat with a heavy sigh. His voice is muffled when he next speaks.
"Why didn't you say anything?"
Rarity's head swims with a maelstrom of thoughts and emotions. She'd been expecting a heartfelt love confession - along with a pleading request for a date - both of which she had been prepared to reject with the utmost care and compassion whilst reassuring the dragon that they would still be very good friends. Friends, and only friends, yes, but still very good friends.
But this...
"Spikey, I- I just assumed that that was all of the discussion we'd have to have concerning that issu- er, topic."
She's thrown off-guard by the incredulous look in his eyes as he pulls his hands off of his face, something just below the level of irritation flashing across the reflective surfaces.
"'Discussion'? Rarity, we never even talked about it afterwards! If anything, you- that day just made it worse!" When he huffs, a small puff of grey smoke seeps forth from his nose, and he winces at his body's display of anger. "...sorry. Uh, anyways, we didn't discuss anything. You just called me your hero. But we never went on any dates, and you never paid me any more attention than you did before that day. It's like I just never said anything."
The white mare's brows furrow as she watches Spike bring one fist up to his mouth to begin gnawing on one of his knuckles. She opens her mouth to speak, considers whether she should or not, then closes it again, getting the feeling that the other isn't quite finished speaking yet.
"Speaking of attention, though, I guess it's pretty obvious by now, but I'm sittin' here demanding clarity, so I'll give you the same. A lot of the times I came over here were with an ulterior motive." He pauses, removes his finger from in-between his teeth, then facepalms. "...not like that."
His bottom lip is the next body part to fall victim to his anxious fangs.
"I just meant that, while I did really enjoy spending time with you as a friend, and I did genuinely want to help out...well, a lot of those times, I was also really hoping that you'd somehow just magically have fallen deeply in- in love with me, and we'd go out on a romantic, candle-lit dinner date, and ta-da! After the day with my Dragon Greed, those hopes only increased. You're not stupid, so I'm sure you noticed that I managed to find even more reasons to come over after that day."
"I- yes, Spike, I did. A-And I do appreciate all of the help that you've given me throughout the years, not to mention your honesty - which was very brave and mature of you to admit - but...why did you tell me?"
"Rarity, I know I was a really cute baby dragon - though I'm kind of amazed that you tolerated teen me so well - and that I had puppy-dog eyes to kill for. But every time I went over with those high hopes, no matter how much time we spent together, they were repeatedly crushed the second I got sent home without you even mentioning anything about us. So, I have to ask: Did you have me help you just because you knew how I felt?"
His tone is just a touch more accusatory than she'd like, but as she flinches as though she's been struck, she must fight back the conflicting feelings of guilt and anger that rise up within her all the same. She can't fight it quite hard enough to keep a pink tinge from coming to her cheeks. "No! Spike, I would never take advantage of any of my friends, and that includes you!"
A brief period of relative silence fills the boutique as both parties take a deep breath in unison.
"Why would you say such a thing, Spike?"
The only way to describe the look that the dragon gives Rarity is deadpan. "Rarity, I don't think there're enough claws in all of the Dragonlands to count how many 'favors' I've done for you just because you asked me, specifically, to do them." As another plume of smoke - the grey just a little bit darker this time - rises from his flared nostrils, he simply waves a claw to try and dissipate it as he speaks undeterred.
"And I did them all without even thinking about it, because you fluttered your lashes in just the right way, or you tossed your mane like that, or flicked your tail that one time when I was really scared." The smallest of cynical grins curls across his lips. "Good play, by the way. It really did motivate me to rappel down into those jagged mineshafts to gather more pyrite for you." He sighs and mutters under his breath, "'Fool's Gold' is right."
Both muzzles in the room soon have matching grimaces as the young adult dragon's last words hang in the air like a heavy fog, symbolized by the literal dark cloud of draconic irritation that Spike hadn't managed to shoo away. The tautness in the room is soon cut through by Rarity's voice, her expression a cross between embarrassment and indignance.
"I really don't know what to say to you, Spike. It was wrong of me to-" She raises a forehoof to sheepishly rub at the back of her head, pink rising to dust across her cheeks. "-to do that to you at the mineshaft." Her tone grows stern, however, with her next words.
"But, you keep mentioning dates and hoping for a relationship that I never owed you. I acknowledged your crush, Spike. How could I possibly have discussed that with a baby dragon in any sort of appropriate manner?!" Her voice comes out just a little bit sharper than she meant for it to towards the end, and she frowns at the tiny flinch that it elicits from Spike.
"I know you don't owe me anything! But it sure didn't stop you from flashing me, so why was I mature enough to see your vagina, but not enough to hear you reject me?!" His nose whistles when he takes a deep breath, and it cracks the tension running between the two of them enough that they both share a small smile. It reminds him that they are still both friends despite the drama currently occurring. "I- uh. I didn't mean to raise my voice. Sorry."
"It's quite alright, dear. I'm sorry too. Please, continue; I know you weren't finished."
"I just need to know, Rarity." When he looks into her eyes, the coldness he saw there before is gone - he's starting to think that, perhaps, it wasn't ever really there in the first place - replaced with a neutral inquisitiveness.
"I need to know what we are, because this- this confusion is what's been really eating away at me." Pursing his lips, he glances down at the feel of something hitting his foreleg and realizes that he's crushed his scone into crumbs. He places the rest of the destroyed mess onto the tea tray before continuing.
"I know it's probably obvious at this point. You already told me that you don't owe me any dates, and that's not something that you really say to a guy that you plan to start dating." He waves off her apologetic frown with a good-natured smile that's only half-forced. "Just let me finish. You remember the whole, uh, 'incident' with Applejack, the timberwolves, and my Dragon Code, right?"
Rarity nods as understanding starts to dawn in her eyes, and he continues.
"Well, then, that, combined with how I've been with you through the years, I need to know if I can, um..." He winces, worried about how this may come off. "...if I can stop being loyal to you. Because as much as I wish I could just tell myself that it's all up to me, and as much as I know that it's true, emotions and crushes don't really listen to logic." Rubbing at the back of his head, he lets out a sheepish chuckle. "Guess I've been livin' with Twilight too long. Man, talk about an egghead line."
As the unicorn presses a hoof to her trembling lips, a few tears gather upon her lower eyelids as she nods, a small smile managing to show itself behind her hoof.
"Oh, Spike, of course you can. I- I'm so sorry that it took so long for us to even have this talk in the first place." She pauses to grab a tissue from a nearby box, delicately blotting her tears away before blowing her nose into it with a honk that draws a few giggles out of both dragon and pony.
"...and I'm sorry for- well, for everything else, too." Rarity's about to elaborate when a crumb-covered claw comes up to rest upon her lips, and she's met with an understanding smile from Spike. However, she pulls the appendage away with her magic for just a moment to continue.
"Aside from all my blubbering, though, I would like to tell you a couple of things." She sees the dragon visibly brace himself. The fashionista knows that he's mature enough to handle what she's about to say, but that doesn't make it any less difficult.
"First...we're friends, Spike." She places a gentle hoof to his cheek and uses it to guide his head down so that she can give him the most caring kiss to the forehead that she can muster up. "And I do love you from the bottom of my heart. However, that love is the same love that I hold for Fluttershy, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, or any of the other girls. That is to say: We're only friends, and I am quite certain that our relationship will fit neatly into that box for the unforeseeable future."
Despite his puffed-out chest and the way her affection melts his heart, he sags visibly at her words, wings drooping for a moment before he manages to give her a weak smile. "Thank you, Rarity. I love you too. As a friend, and as something a little bit more, but now I know that it's okay to 'officially' try and move on from you. Um...what was the second thing?"
The unicorn smiles and gathers him into a tight hug, hooves wrapped around his back - minding his wings - as she pours all of her love into the act. "The second thing is that, even though I acted in many horribly selfish ways, I really did enjoy all of our time together." She pulls back and boops him on the nose with a hoof and a little smirk.
"I always knew that you came over just to spend time with me, Spikey."
Her expression falls slightly as she recalls that she'd weaponized his attraction towards her every visit, too. It doesn't really help matters as she sees Spike's expression shift back into a frown crossed with a bit of a scowl, clearly not appreciating her little joke.
She clears her throat before shooting him an apologetic glance. "But, ahem, I didn't mind it, because at the end of the day? We were still two very good friends spending some quality time together. It could - and should - have been quite a bit more quality for you if I hadn't been so lazy, not to mention selfish, but all the same, I hope that you look back upon our little sojourns with even half as much fondness as I do."
Spike's not really sure if he's so comfortable with the reminder that she's only ever viewed him as a friend - especially when he's now had his suspicions that she's known all along confirmed - or if he will be any time soon, but the smile he gives her is more sweet than bitter.
"I do, Rare." He steps forwards to give her a hug, smiling into the top of her head and nuzzling her briefly before stepping back with the tiniest of blushes. "Look, please don't take this personally, but I think it'd be best if we took a break from each other." His gaze slides down until it's upon the ground, brows furrowing as he presses his claws together. "I-I just need some time to process everything we tal-"
"Not another word, Spikey-Wi- sorry- I mean, Spike." She gives him a small smile. "I will miss you, but take all the time you need. Whether that's a few days, weeks, months, or forever is entirely up to you. I believe I owe you quite a bit of generosity, and I'll start with time."
He chuckles lightly, nodding in appreciation before glancing at the door, muzzle skewing awkwardly. "Well, uh. I guess it's time for me to start using that time."
"Oh. Are you...are you leaving n-now, then?"
The part of his heart still devoted to her twangs at the waver in her voice, but he pushes it back down. "Yeah, I- I don't think it'd be good for me to stay any longer. I've got a lot to think about now." Before he can think too hard about it and turn back, he walks over to the door of the Carousel Boutique, opening it with a happy jingle before facing her once more and giving her a small salute. "I guess I'll see you around, Rarity."
Before she can respond, he's ducked out of the fashion shop. His exit is marked by another cheerful little tinkle of the doorbell. She simply stares at the painted wood for several moments before turning to look at the tea tray, two cups and a teapot full of cold tea, several untouched scones, and a mashed-up one sitting upon its silver surface. As she slowly sips upon her previously-abandoned honey citron tea and mindlessly examines the scones, she wonders if there's some sort of symbolism hidden within the juxtaposition between the perfect ones and the crushed one.
She chuckles. "Too many romance novels, Rarity. Faaar too many romance novels."
