"Long ago, this crown rested on the head of those who would rule, and still it seeks the true liege." Spike thought it looked neat and put it on. Things happened, and he's not entirely unhappy with the result. Twilight does not approve.
"Long ago, this crown rested on the head of those who would rule, and still it seeks the true liege." Spike thought it looked neat and put it on. Things happened, and he's not entirely unhappy with the result. Twilight does not approve.
It sat there, on a bright red pillow. "Huh." Twilight had been given it, an artifact just moving through, actually. A relic of ages past. Spike leaned in to study the plaque. "Long ago, this crown rested on the head of those who would rule." He chuckled at the idea, imagining himself as some great king, the crown on his head.
That would have been something... "People wouldn't laugh at me then..." He put his hands at his midsection as if he were straightening out a shirt and puffing it, despite wearing no shirt. "King Spike. As powerful as he is merciful, loved by his people!"
He reached for the crown, picking it up and turning it slowly in place. It didn't feel that heavy. It didn't even seem that important, looking at it. But appearances could be tricky. He wasn't all that important looking, but he'd saved Equestria and the Crystal Empire! "I won't misjudge you, promise." Not that the crown responded to his well wishes.
He held it up over his head, turning towards a mirror. "King Spike," he repeated, fondly thinking of the possibility. Down came the crown on his head, his fins going... lose, running out like a mane instead, giving him hair as they became a curtain across his eyes. He brushed them aside and back as he wobbled, feeling off balance. "What the?" he asked with a new voice, higher pitched.
There, standing in the mirror, was a very female dragon, oddly proportioned, for a dragon. He... she... She was built like a human... dragon. "Woah," she said with her new voice, turning to look at herself. Her tail was longer, but shaped about the same way. "I'm..." Changed? Deformed? "Kinda pretty."
Suddenly he was back to normal, the crown bouncing away from him. "Spike," came Twilight's harsh voice, shaking him back to reality. "That is a dangerous artifact that has led to wars!" She threw that hoof wide as she ambled towards where the crown had landed. "Something awful could have happened to you." She was chastising him and worrying about all the things that could have gone wrong as she gathered up the crown, plopped it back on the pillow, and hurried it away.
"But..."
The Spike he had seen in the mirror was really nice looking, and... It hadn't hurt him, or done anything bad. He hadn't even considered taking over the world! What kinda evil thing is that? Not a very good one. Spike rolled his eyes with a huff. Twilight was panicking over nothing, which was a Twilight thing to do.
It was also a Twilight thing to hide the crown in a very obvious place. It wasn't obvious to her, at least in her opinion, but she really only had like two places she put things in like that. She'd usually bounce between the two places, thinking she had thought of a new place each time. Spike knew both of those places.
"Option B." There it was, tucked under her bed, where most other ponies would never stick their snouts.
Good thing he was a dragon. He pulled the cushion free, the crown still resting on it. "I don't even see the big deal." He popped it right on his head, becoming the svelte she-dragon version of herself. "I don't look as much like a Spike." She coiled her tail and ran a finger along it. She still had spikes, sure, but... "Spine," she decided to herself with a nod, feeling satisfied with it, and herself.
She rushed, not for a mirror, but to escape the castle entirely. She rushed along, noticing her legs were longer, making her jog more of an actual run than the toddling motions she had been used to. It wasn't a bad change, she decided as she descended the hill, bouncing in new ways that made her giggle. They amused her more than anything else. "Spine is visiting Ponyville!"
Her body felt lighter in some places, heavier in others, but as she pranced and twirled, she couldn't erase the smile on her face. It was, ultimately, better, in her view. Ah ha, another dragon! "Hey Smolder!"
"Hey... whoever you are?" Smolder cocked a brow at the strange dragoness with a crown. "You new in town?"
"What? No!" It was only then that Spine realized her mistake. Smolder didn't recognize her. Though she felt certain Smolder would eventually put it together. As funny as hiding would have been... "It's me, Spine, Twilight's little sister?"
Smolder blinked softly. "Headmare Twilight has exactly one dragon sib." She raised a finger. "He's..." She trailed off, it was hitting her. "Spike?!"
"Spine," she corrected, gesturing over herself. "Cool, huh?"
"Uh... Spi...ne... I hate to break it to you, but you're not a guy anymore."
"You noticed, huh?" She set her hands on Spine's shoulders, reaching them so much more easily than before. "Why didn't you ever tell me how cool it is to be this way?"
"How do you even start to describe that?" she counter-challenged. "And you're alright with this?! Oh, wow... If Gar Gar could see us, neither of us would hear the end of it."
"Why not?" innocently asked Spine. "Is something off?" She turned and flexed, looking herself over, however odd she was compared to her old self. She had hips! She had more, well, round parts, less flat parts. She felt... ornamented, in a good way. "I think I look pretty good."
"Perfectly good," agreed Smolder in uncertain terms. "For... Look." She gestured at herself. "I'm a girl, been one forever. You are not shaped like me. What's up with that, leaving out the fact that you're a boy dragon."
Spine didn't have an easy answer for that. "But I know who might!"
"Might what?"
"Know. Ember. She's the dragon lord, bet she knows all kinds of stuff." Spine clapped her hands together, a hopeful smile on her face. "And she gets to see the new me."
"New... Spike, er, Spine, hold up. I need you to be flat with me here." She crossed her arms at what was still the younger dragon. Younger and very confusing. "Is it the crown?" It was the only new thing. "Did it make you a girl? Why are you alright with this?"
"Because I feel great!" Spine did a twirl in place on one foot, landing with a big grin at Smolder. "Why? Something wrong with being a girl?"
"Well, no... I happen to like it plenty."
"So no problem," cut in Spine. "Let's go!"
"Not so fast." She thrust out an arm to bar Spine's progress. "Being a girl means a lot. Are you sure you're alright just... tossing aside everything it meant to be a guy and take up all the stuff it means to be a girl?"
"I have never felt more here than right now," spoke Spine with conviction. "You're a girl and a friend. You'll help me figure it out, right? Please."
Smolder tried to resist the pitiable look Spine was giving. "No fair! Ugh, Spine... This is probably not going to end well." A little smile tugged at her lips. "Starting with me razzing on you. Let's go."
Spine sprang to walk alongside his older sister of a dragon friend. "Thanks. It's nice having someone who understands this kinda stuff. You helped a lot when I was, you know... getting wings. Wow, that was a scary time."
Smolder tried to think if becoming a girl was less or more of a change than the process of getting her wings. Hm. "You made it through that... with friends." She smiled a little. "Which you still have."
"Yeah!" Spine pumped a fist, bubbling with energy. "It's hard to nail it down, but I feel like I got out from under a weight that was pushing me down forever and I never noticed it! Looking back, I feel kinda dumb not... doing something about it."
Smolder looked confused. She just... didn't get it. But she knew Spike, er Spine... They were a good dragon, a good person. If this made them happier... "Did you notice you're wearing a skirt?"
Turns out, Spine hadn't, grabbing it in her hands and doing a new set of turns to examine it. "How's it look?"
"Your first question, 'how's it look?'" Smolder hiked a brow. Teasing Spine about it wasn't much fun if she was so... comfortable... "Looks great," she decided, coloring in her cheeks. She could never admit to liking a skirt like that. It... wasn't fair. "Matches your scales spot on."
"Why don't you wear one?" asked Spine. "I bet you'd be pretty too."
Smolder's color increased in an intense wave of heat over her face. "No! I mean, nah... Not for me, you know." She puffed her chest out and looked tough. "I'm not in for that girly stuff."
"But you are a girl," Spine reminded, looking a little perplexed.
"It's complicated." She threw a hand. "You were a boy dragon yesterday, you don't get to lecture me on how I want to be a girl."
"Alright alright." Spine put up her hands in a placating way. "You're right, I'm being super rude right now. Sorry."
"Forgiven." She threw an arm around Spine's neck, dragging her closer for a one-armed hug. "You're still a dork, girl or boy."
Spine laughed, a half giggle as she wriggled free of Smolder's grip. "You're the expert, really. Like you said, kinda new to this."
"And you're cool with it," led Smolder quizzically.
"Yep." Spine nodded once firmly. "I mean... most of it hasn't changed. I'm still me. I'll still help Twilight! Oh no..."
"What's wrong?" She could see that sudden downturn in Spine's expression. "Did you leave the oven running?"
"Worse." She sighed sufferingly. "Once Twilight sees this, she's going to take it away again." She grabbed her crown and held it close to her head. "Why can't she just let me enjoy a thing."
"It is kind of a weird thing..." argued Smolder, rolling a hand in the air. "But she's still your sister..."
"A sister who makes up her mind and gets stuck in it," groaned out Spine, sagging against a signpost.
"Hey... I can try talking to her?" offered Smolder with a little smile. "I'm not her little br...sister. Maybe she'll listen."
"You're her student," noted Spine, clearly unsure if that was better or not. "But thank you... I'll go to the treehouse."
"Huh." Smolder tilted her head. "I didn't think you knew about that, but sure. Meet you there." She lifted on strong wings and took off towards the castle to talk with a princess.
Spine was left to head through town.
"Hey!" Pinkie bounced in front of Spine. "Wow, crazy new look there, Spike!"
Spine blinked softly. "How did you even..." But it was Pinkie. "Good job."
"Gee thanks! But what did I do?" She tilted her head at Spine. "You're taller! And..." She inclined her head the other way. "Built different."
"I'm a girl," noted Spine. "My name is Spine."
"Awesome name!" Pinkie threw her hooves up to either side, clearly sharing in the joy of this new thing. "Wow, this so calls for a party. Is this like a birthday? This feels like a birthday! Happy birthday, Spine!"
Spine could but smile at Pinkie's unabashed enthusiasm and unquestioning cheer in the face of something others were confused by. "You're not worried about me... not being Spike?"
"Why should I be?" She shrugged softly. "You're still you, and you're a great friend, last I checked. So you got a new name, big deal." She leaned in, brows waggling. "It does mean I get to talk girly stuff with you." She gigglesnorted at the idea. "Not that I do that a lot, to be honest."
Spine realized then that a lot of the females he was in contact were not very... girly. "You're a lovely mare just the way you are," she assured. But she knew exactly the pony to approach to get a full blast of femininity... and one she feared to even think about.
"Twilight? Teacher?!" The door was open. The door was always open to Twilight's castle. Smolder pushed it shut behind herself, still unlocked. "Anyone?"
Clip-clops came from around the corner as Starlight came into view. "Something wrong, Smolder? Your counselor's here to help!"
Smolder flashed a bright smile. "Hey!" Her voice was tinged with insincerity. "Not exactly the pony I was hunting for."
Starlight listed a little to the side. "Ow. Well, who are you looking for, Twilight? Why not wait until tomorrow?" Surely school would reopen, giving more chances to see the headmare.
"It's about Spike." Smolder gestured behind herself. "They're going through some... stuff... and they're counting on me to hash it out with Twilight."
Starlight leaned forward with obvious interest. "I know Twilight pretty well. Tell me and maybe I can help."
"Well..." Smolder kicked lightly at the ground. "Alright, well... you see, he... has decided he prefers being a she." She pointed up just above her head. "And her name is Spine, and she has a magic crown that I'm like 80% sure is part of the process."
Starlight slowly inclined her head. "Oh... Oh! Oh..."
"Yeah, kinda freaky, right?" Smolder threw up a hand, though her arm didn't move, hooked by her other hand so it just swiveled. "I don't--"
"--I've seen this."
"Pardon?" Smolder hiked a brow at Starlight. "You have?"
"Ah-huh, for sure." Starlight looked into the middle distance. "Party Favor, quite a stallion, but wasn't always that way... I remember when he came to me about it! 'If all ponies are equal, why can't I be what I want? Are mares and stallions not equal?!' And, let me say, I was really stumped at first."
Smolder returned with a glass of water. "I bet."
"Hey, were you listening?" Starlight glared at the dragon. "Anyway, I helped him. And now Spike's... gone the other way..." She shrugged softly. "Didn't see it coming, but what's the harm?"
"The harm is that she has a sister, and that sister is very protective, and has really strong ideas of right and wrong and this, in her eyes, falls in the wrong camp and I don't want Spine to... She's right behind me, isn't she?" Smolder peered over her shoulder to see Twilight, a quill in her magic, hanging limply. "Hey, teach."
"He took the--"
"--She," interrupted Starlight with an innocent smile.
Twilight's brows fell in a severe frown. "Their mind may be being influenced by the artifact on their head. How do I take anything they say with it on at face value?"
Starlight inclined her head. "Don't mean to propose wild ideas, but if this is what she wants to be, first accept that it's a possiblity, then approach her, like a big sister, which you are, and let them explore it, even if it means taking the crown off a moment, respectfully."
Twilight squinted at her once-student. "When did you become a font of advice?"
"I learned from the best," Starlight sang out with a smug expression. "Smolder, I think I got this."
"I think you do." Her shoulders lifted. "Huh, goes to show I shoulda tried you in the first place."
"What are counselors for?" Starlight rolled her eyes dramatically. "Now where is... Spine was it? That's a cute name."
"It's not cute!" Twilight clopped a hoof on the ground before flopping to her haunches. "This is... almost certainly the thing on their head."
"But it might not be." Starlight shrugged softly. "And even if it is, they will remember if you were on their side, or if you just shouted at them a lot."
The door closed behind Twilight, Smolder making good her escape. "Oops." Starlight nodded at the closed door. "There goes our best lead on where they're hiding."
Spine knocked lightly on the door. "Come in," sang a familiar voice from beyond it.
She cleared her throat and dusted herself, making sure her skirt was in place, not that she was absolutely sure what a skirt out of place looked like. "You got this," she whispered to herself before throwing the door open. "Rarity!"
"Creature I don't know!" she shot back, matching the smile. "Hello there, Darling. What can I do for you today?"
Spine blinked and burst into a fit of giggles. "It's me, Spine." She hiked a thumb at herself. "Little dragon, helps you with fashion... basically all the time?"
"Spike?" Rarity inclined her head. "You're trying to pull one over on me. This isn't the first time a dragon came claiming to be involved with Spike who turned out to be--"
"--No, really! Ask me something only Spike would know," she flailed her hands in the air, nervous grin worn.
"A test?" Rarity pushed a pin into the dress she was working on. "You're either quite the confident dragon..." She was quiet a moment, sewing silently. "Very well. What first attracted you towards me?"
Spine lit up a bright red. "Oh, um..." Her eyes went to Rarity's curly mane. "It's still pretty amazing."
"What would that be?" Her lips curled into a bit of a smirk, watching Spine out of the corner of her vision. "Be specific, or I'll have to assume you're making things up."
"Your mane!" Spine squeaked out, slapping her hands over her face at almost the same instant as if to keep the words from escaping, but failing. "The way your mane... It's... I really like it."
"My mane is fabulous, there can be little doubt." Rarity set her sewing supplies aside and turned to Spine. "But that doesn't even start to explain how my Spikey-Wikey became a..." Her eyes darted up and down Spine. "I'm no expert on dragons, but you appear, and sound, like a mare. Am I wrong?"
"Um, nope?" She inclined her head a bit, leading into a full body swirl. "I'm a girl, and my name's Spine. Nice to meet you, again. I'm still me, promise!"
"I... see?" She approached, her magic felt as she took hold of Spine's face and began to turn it left and right. "Spine, was it?" She chortled softly in her dainty way. "A lovely name for the purpose. You seem... larger?"
"I am!" She swatted at the magic and was able to back up a step. "Look at me." She gestured over herself. "I was hoping you could help me. I'm, uh, not an expert at girl stuff, but you? You totally are."
Rarity raised a hoof to titter into. "Well, I can't argue with that logic, darling. But there are few ponies, or dragons, that can keep up with me, and I feel there are a few things we should touch on before we even consider approaching that."
"Not to distract..." Spine worried her fingers among themselves. "You seem... alright with this. Everycreature else acted like it was this big... awkward... thing. You're not. I'm not complaining! But... why?"
"You are still my Spi--ney..." She paused, considering. "Shiney, yes. Shiny Spiny!" She looked quite proud of her work. "Though I must confess this puts you out of the running, dear. I'm on the market for a strapping stallion, which you are... decidedly not. No offense, dear. You're still a treasure of a friend." She nodded softly, seeming so confident in her logic. "That is quite a fashion statement, if I may add." Her eyes were on Spine's crown.
Spine's eyes darted up to it, only to fall back to Rarity. "Wait, you knew?"
"Darling, I would need to be blind not to." She rolled her eyes dramatically, her magic snatching a pin and poking it into the dress she had been working on. "But if you're a lady dragon, our stars are not meant to be in that fashion."
Spine's finger curled and uncurled as her tongue worked silently a moment. "That just... I have so many questions! Wait... Wait wait... I mean... I'm a girl. I already figured... Girls don't..."
Rarity got out a little aborted cough, looking over her shoulder at Spine. "You're still... settling in, dear, but allow me to dispel that myth. For every pony, there is another, if they wish. That may be a stallion or a mare, or something else entirely, and what they are makes little difference." Rarity resumed her alteration work. "Don't get me wrong, most stallions prefer mares, and most mares prefer stallions, but just because it's the most popular thing doesn't mean it's the only thing, dear." She fluttered her lashes at Spine. "Why, you may decide you prefer a lady's company. It just won't be me, I'm afraid, though I do hope for the absolute best for my Shiny Spiny."
After all that... she had been shot down. Part of her heart ached, but... It wasn't the end. It was confusing, not being as torn apart as she felt she should have been. "Thanks," she weakly got out, trying to sort herself. "So, uh... About being a girl?"
"You're already on the right track." Her magic flipped Spine's new skirt and tugged at her shirt. "Looking sharp! Oh, dear, if you let me finish this one." She pointed at the article she was already working on. "I'd love to make you something that really brings out your charms."
Spine's cheeks warmed, imagining all sorts of frilly things. "That sounds... kinda cool actually, but I more meant, you know... being girly."
"Spine, dear, a hint." She stuck the pin in quite pointedly. "'Girly' is just an idea guys came up with. A mare will behave in the manner they see fit." She flicked her mane. "Now, me? I go for high station. You'd be surprised how little that varies between mare and stallion, come to think." She raised a hoof to her chin for just a moment before it came down and she resumed her work. "You're a darling little dork, and I can't imagine that suddenly changed, nor should it. You're a perfectly lovely Spine just how you are."
"But you'd never--"
"--You're not me," she interrupted. "Nor will you try to walk the same circles I do. Don't try to be me, darling. There's barely room for one." Spine jumped as something touched her nose. Oh, it was Rarity, touching nose to nose. "I'm still your friend, don't forget that. Speaking of that, I do hope you'll still be available to help. I do favor your input, Spine dear."
"Y-yeah," she stammered out, heading for the door. "Take care, alright?" She didn't get far, thumping into another pony on the way out. "Sorr--" The words faltered, realizing who it was. She clutched for her crown in a panic and scurried away from Twilight.
"I'm sorry."
Spine blinked at her words. "Sorry for...?"
She gestured over Spine's form. "How I acted, to you, about... this..." She waved that hoof up and down. "I don't understand it, even a little... But you're still my... sibling, and I'm not ready to set that aside."
Spine's fingers trailed away from her crown. "So... I can keep it?"
"I want you to be sure you want to keep it." She inclined her head. "And if you decide you're happier like that... then I get to get used to it." She smiled awkwardly. "Just... work with me a little to be sure it's not a strange artifact warping your mind."
"I'm not evil," Spine grunted eyes half-closing in a flat expression.
"I never said you were." She raised a hoof to poke Spine in the belly. "But there's a lot of other things. I just want to be sure this is you, and not that crown talking. If this is what you want, then it's... my job, as a sister, to help you."
Spine glanced up at the crown. Twilight hadn't said to take it off, but the meaning was clear enough. "You promise you won't snatch it away and try to hide it again or just melt it in a fire or lock it in a vault?"
"You've been thinking about this," she laughed out, moving in beside Spine. "Tonight, I'll make dinner, and we can talk about this, like adults."
"Like adults, yeah..."
Spine had a decision to make, but it would be made.
