Restart
Spike and Starlight let out a sigh of relief as they took in the mostly clean walls of the Castle’s main hall. After a full morning of cleaning and some goofing off thrown in for good measure, everything was ready… for the most part.
“Alright Spike,” Starlight said, levitating her checklist within immediate eyeshot. “Let’s go over the list one more time and make sure everything’s ready for our guest!”
Spike stretched out his wings and lanky arms, creating a satisfying crack. “Sounds good. After cleaning all morning, it better be done. I’m beat.”
Starlight chuckled. “Yeah, two hours of chores compared to your usual workload of ignoring your chores while sleeping in and leaving your dishes all around the house must’ve been grueling.”
“You’re telling me. I even took Twilight’s whole ‘music theory’ thing to heart and tried listening to some tunes while doing them. If an early SaddleKnot album can’t get me energized, well then all hope is lost,” he replied, snorting.
Starlight shook her head. “Fair enough. I just want to make sure everything is going to go well. You know, Night Glider and I didn’t leave off on the best of terms and it’s her first trip here and I’m not even going to be here all day to make sure you stay out of trouble and—”
Spike held up a claw. “Starlight, relax. It’s going to be okay. You’ve done great with the school, everyone knows you’ve changed since then and you can trust me to give her the best tour of Canterlot money can buy… but for free because I’m already rich, and generosity or whatever.” Spike nodded. “Besides, she’ll understand that you have to go to work at the school. It’s an important job being headmare.”
Starlight sighed. “I just hate that I’m gonna see her for like ten minutes and then bounce to work. I planned to be here for the whole thing but there’s just so much going on at school.” She looked up at the dragon and meekly smiled. “I know you’ll do a good job, I just want to make sure she knows things are different now. It’s her first time really getting to see our new home and the changes I’ve been able to make.”
“It’s okay. Everything's gonna be great, I promise.” Spike wrapped his arms around Starlight’s neck and pulled her into a gentle hug before letting her go. “Enough about all that mushy crap though, let’s hear this list of yours.”
Starlight glanced over the checklist. “Okay, item one: doing the dishes.”
Spike asked with a raised brow, “Was the whole ‘I leave my dishes everywhere’ diatribe the reason you put that on the list?”
She giggled. “No, but yes. The dishes needed to be done AND I literally found a bowl of half-eaten sapphire flavored ramen sitting in the rose bush by the front door. Why were you eating there anyway?”
Spike raised a claw to defend his heinous actions but quickly put it down. “I… don’t have a good answer to that question.” —yeah, she had a point— “Fortunately for you, I did do the dishes. I even grabbed the ones from underneath the royal visitor guest beds and inside the bathtub! Made sure to put them through the certified Spike Cycle so they were washed and glossed to the highest standard.”
“S-Spike Cycle? What in the good name of Celestia did that entail?” Starlight gasped out.
Spike twirled his claw toward her. “Wax on, wax off. Only without the wax and with soap, twice over. The good kind, too.”
Starlight rolled her eyes. “Well at least you didn’t use your Arctic Naval Shark Attack scented body wash like last time.” She giggled. “What am I going to do with you?”
“You’re going to tell me how we demolished this list, remember? That’s what you’re going to do!”
She smirked. “You’re right, Spike.” And with that, she checked off the first box with an emphasized flick. “Shaking out the entryway rugs?”
Spike grinned. “Yep, the dust has been transferred from the rug to its natural home on the front porch.”
“The porch?! Couldn’t you at least have shook it off in, I don’t know, the grass like two feet away from the porch?”
He shook his head. “You see, that would’ve required like ten more seconds of effort and I was already tapped out. I gave it my all, though.”
“It’ll have to do I guess,” she replied with a roll of her eyes while checking off the next box. Her eyes then darted to the next item. “Did you sweep the entryway and kitchen floors?”
Spike slyly glanced his eyes to the pile of dust expertly hidden in the corner of the room, placed just out of notice given he couldn’t find a dustpan to save his life. He figured he had at least three days before someone noticed, and that would be future Spike’s problem. “Yeah… pretty much.”
“Pretty much?”
Spike nodded.
“What do you mean ‘pretty much’? You either did or you didn’t!”
“Look at the floor. Are there any crumbs? No. Any dust? Nada. Any residue from recent adventures Twilight and them went on? Zip. All cleaned using my broom and claws. Besides, I’m sure I did a better job than you did cleaning the library.”
She gasped and furrowed her brows at him. “I’m sorry? Just because I’m not librarian certified like you doesn’t mean I can’t clean it.”
He chuckled behind his claw. “Heh, I guess I’ll take the compliment. But I know and you know that once Twilight finds out you didn’t alphabetize the books, she’s gonna have a cow.”
Starlight scowled. “Well, Twilight is out of town for a few days and that’ll be future Starlight’s problem to deal with anyhow.”
This is why Spike loved her so much.
“Anyway, check sweeping and library organization off the list. What’s next?”
Starlight let out a brief blow as she checked off the next box. “Did we set up the snacks in the dining hall? Salad, fruits, and gluten free bread just in case she’s one of those ponies who can’t eat it for whatever reason?”
“Yep! I even brought out a few of the gems I haven’t eaten yet, in case she’s into it.” Spike folded his arms and grinned. “I got it on lock.”
“Night Glider is a pony, so they’d literally kill her if she tried to eat them, but it's the thought that counts, I suppose.” Starlight checked off the final item and wiped a bead of sweat off her forehead before turning back to Spike. “Phew. I think we got it all done.”
Spike, who at this stage of his growth was a foot taller than Starlight, looked down on her and winked. ‘Not bad considering we waited until two hours before she got here to do any of it. We’ve always been good at the whole procrastination thing though. I wish I could get a cutie mark for it. That’d be legit.”
Starlight chuckled and tossed the list over to a nearby table. “I’ll see if we can somehow magically etch-a-sketch that cutie mark for you, although it’ll be hard. Scales are not exactly friendly to pixie dust and tattoo ink.” She scrunched her muzzle before shaking her head. “Thanks for helping me with this, by the way. I’m just super nervous about the whole visit. It’s been so long since I’ve seen her, I just want to make sure she knows that I’m different now and things have changed, you know? I won’t be here to oversee everything, so it just needs to be, I dunno, perfect I guess.”
He nodded. “No, I totally get it. The Fascist Communism Hodgepodge (The F.C.H. for short) you made isn’t something ponies get over so easily, but I’m sure it’ll be fine. Besides, didn’t they forgive you when you went over there last?
“Well yeah… but—”
“And I mean, if Sugar Belle is the one who convinced Night Glider to come visit us, she has to know that Night Glider has forgiven you too, right? I mean, if she was still bothered by the whole ‘everyone’s equal and has no rights’ thing, she wouldn’t bother showing up in the first place.”
Starlight shuddered. “Oh, gosh, please don’t make me think about my old political agenda again—but, you’re probably right though. I’m sure it’ll be… fine.”
He lightly placed a claw on her shoulder. “It will be fine, Star. It’s just a quick visit for the weekend from an old friend who wanted to see what the city was like, right? And what better tour guide than me! I mean, I know the area, live at the castle, and essentially do nothing all day. These are the perfect ingredients for a Starlight-approved tour guide!”
“Pfftt, speaking for me there, aren’t you?”
“Hehe…” Spike began, scratching the back of his neck while his voice trailed off. He found where it went and picked it back up, “Just trying to reassure you that everything will be fine. I know you’re really nervous about this.”
Starlight chuckled before rubbing the top of Spike’s spines. “You’re right. I am nervous but I should have a bit of faith in you too, even if it’s miniscule.”
“Thanks, Star.”
“No problem, Mr. Tour Guide.” She lifted a hoof and gently touched Spike’s claw for a moment before he pulled it back. “It’s hard to revisit some of those old memories, Spike, no matter how much time has passed.”
Before they could continue their heartfelt moment, however, the sound of the large castle doors creaking open echoed off the walls of the room. Spike and Starlight turned to the front door just in time to see Sugar Belle walking in with the deep blue pony flying in beside her, engaging her in an unheard conversation.
Starlight stiffened up and put on her best, albeit forced, smile and whispered to Spike, “Oh my gosh, they’re already here! This is it, Spike. Just… act. Natural!”
Spike gave a wave to the two visitors and smiled. “You got it. I’ll grab the comics and Oxycoltin.”
Starlight shot him a glare and stomped her hoof onto his closest foot. “Scratch that, be the more socially acceptable version of yourself.”
“Got it.” The dragon gave her a quick salute and flapped his wings to glide a bit closer to the pair that were headed toward them. He landed a few feet away and gave a quick wave. “Hey guys! Good to see you again, Sugar Belle, as always. And… you’re Night Glider, right?” He bounced his eyes from Sugar Belle to the pony floating next to her, who was flapping her wings rather slowly, while wearing a shy smile of her own.
Night Glider landed rather shakily, her hooves quivering in place. She adjusted her satchel that was wrapped around her chest before she folded her wings. Then, she turned her attention to Spike, giving him a quick nod. “Uh, yes sir. T-That’s me. I appreciate you all inviting me to visit Canterlot for the weekend.”
Spike chuckled. “Don’t worry about the whole ‘sir’ thing or any titles. Yeah, I may be a Royal Advisor to Twilight, but I’m not exactly the spitting image of royalty.” Spike jokingly pointed out his lanky body he still hadn’t grown into yet. “Just call me Spike. And don’t worry a bit. It’s awesome to have you here! We’re gonna have a great time today showing you around, so don’t even worry about it.”
Sugar Belle beamed at him and then turned her attention back to Night Glider. “You see, I told you he doesn’t bite! Even if he is a growing dragon, you can take one look at him and see how much of a big softy he is.” She lightly bumped a hoof into his stomach. “Thank you, Spike, for opening up the castle for her this weekend.”
“No problem.” Spike cleared his throat and turned around. “And, of course, I’m sure you remember Starlight, right? She’s hanging back there.” Spike pointed behind him to the magenta unicorn who was almost hyperventilating at this point, deadlocked with a plastic grin on her face, hoof waving slowly. “She’ll be joining us, too, if only briefly.”
Sugar Belle waved vibrantly as they continued walking into the castle toward Starlight. Night Glider, for her part, gave a light grin and waved as they approached.
“Hey there,” Starlight said through her teeth, the shakiness in her voice apparent. She cleared her throat the best she could and offered her hoof. “I-It’s good to see you again, Night Glider!”
Night Glider nodded and took her hoof and gave it a light shake. “For sure. It’s been a bit! Sorry I haven’t had a chance to come say hi or anything. I’ve heard you’ve been up to a lot of cool stuff over the last few years.”
Sensing the inevitable awkwardness that was about to come out of Starlight’s mouth, Spike decided to pull what you’d call a pro friendship move and step in. “Yep! She sure has!” He gently patted Starlight’s mane. “She’s Headmare of the Friendship School here in Ponyville and gets to stay here at the Castle as well. No felonies or traffic stops either! Pretty cool, right Starlight?”
Starlight took her queue and ran with it. “Oh, for sure! It keeps me busy enough looking after the kids during the day and this dragon at night.”
That got a giggle out of both Sugar Belle and Night Glider while Spike grimaced at the pure injustice coming from his friend’s lips.
“Hey, I’ll have you know I can look after myself just fine. I made a bowl of cereal this morning and only burnt like half of it.”
Sugar Belle chuckled again before speaking up. “Well, I’m glad that you all get a chance to catch up and show Night around. I wish I could as well, but I have to help Big Mac at the farm today. The apples are coming in early this year, and family business is never done.”
“Oh, that’s no problem. We promise to take good care of her, right Starlight?” Spike winked at her before turning back toward the visitors. “So don’t worry about a thing. She’ll be staying here in one of our guest rooms for the duration of the weekend so she doesn’t have to go hunting for a random local motel tonight.”
Night Glider dropped to the ground and rubbed the back of her neck. “Oh, y-you did? I was planning on staying at the Sunrise Motel just down the road.”
Spike waved a claw in protest. “Nah, their AC is always broken and the front counter mare isn’t exactly customer service material. Besides, why spend money when you can get the royal treatment for free! I mean, once you turn twenty-one, the amount of free stuff you get in life decreases by like ninety-nine percent, so you may as well take advantage of it when you can.” Spike sighed. “I learned that lesson the moment my birthday hit this past year.”
That finally earned an honest chuckle out of the shy pegasus. “Okay, you might be onto something. I appreciate it.”
“Good, otherwise, I would have had to show you Twilight’s presentation she made a few weeks ago on How To Accept the Charity of Others in Two Million, Five Hundred, And Sixty-Five Easy Steps. Trust me, that thing isn’t for the weak of heart.”
Night Glider’s eyes widened. “Wait, that’s a presentation done by the Princess?”
“You don’t know Twilight very well, do you.”
Spike was about to tell Night Glider all about how Twilight spent weeks staring into the mirror with her hooves flung about while she acted out her dissertation and subsequent academic word vomit for several rehearsals, but he stopped himself when Starlight Glimmer hopped in between them and smiled. “It’s… a long story! One that would most likely cause you to miss half of our tour we created.”
“You’re right, Star,” Spike said. “There’s a lot to see in Canterlot and only a weekend to check it out.”
Sugar Belle nodded with a bright smile. “Well, I guess I’ll leave you all to it then!” She turned her attention to Night Glider. “Trust me, I know it seems overwhelming at first, but this city is a beautiful place. I’m so happy you agreed to come out here.”
Night Glider’s eyes darted to the floor as she took in a deep breath. “Yeah, me too.”
The two of them shared a quick hug while Starlight and Spike awkwardly looked around the room waiting for the sincere moment to end.
Sugar Belle released her hooves from her friend and started making toward the large doors. “Thanks again, you two, and have a great time Night!”
And with another creak of the hinges and a loud thud, Night Glider was alone in front of her tour guide and previous oppressor-turned-friend.
Night Glider looked from the large door she was waving goodbye to and back to Spike and Starlight, who still had their unique yet awkward grins plastered on their faces.
“So, uh,” Spike started, trying to clear the silence out of the air before it became a problem. “I’ve got a full day planned for us. It’s gonna be a great time! Are you excited?”
Night Glider gently nodded. “Uh, yeah, definitely. I don’t get out of the village much, so I’m excited to have a look around. You two probably know all the best places, I’m sure.”
Starlight cleared her throat. “So, about that.” She nervously rubbed her hoof. “I did plan on doing this with you to give us a chance to catch up, but unfortunately I have to go to the school for the day. There’s been a major paperwork mixup to the point that I got mandatorily invited to a meeting with Chancellor Neighsay that I’m now…” She glanced at a clock on the wall. “Ten minutes late for. So, I’m so sorry to hop out on your first visit, but it’ll just be you and Spike for today.”
Night Glider gulped. “Just us two?” She looked at Spike who merely gave a forced thumbs up in return.
Starlight sighed. “Look, I wanted to be here to show you around, but unfortunately, duty calls, even at the most lousiest of times.” Her gaze met Night Glider’s. “But I promise, Night. Spike is great and will show you anything and everything about Canterlot. Hey, if he plays his cards right, he may even get time to show you Ponyville and run by the school! Right, Spike?”
The dragon snapped back from his awkward trance. “School? Oh, yeah! We can definitely do that. I can show her the classrooms… and the gardens… and even how messy your office is!”
Starlight chuckled. “You’re right about that last part. Does the whole plan sound okay?”
Night Glider looked up and down at the dragon who was to be her guide for the day and gave a weak smile. “Yeah, it sounds like fun.”
Spike and Night Glider hadn’t had a ton of interaction up until this point in their lives, so it was definitely awkward for both of them, but that’s just how the cookie crumbles sometimes.
Starlight gleefully nodded. “Awesome! Glad to hear it. Hopefully this whole debacle doesn’t take the whole day. I should be back home by around seven or so tonight, so maybe we’ll do dinner or something as a group. My treat, since, well, I had to dip out for this school emergency. We can go anywhere you want.”
Night Glider seemingly settled her nerves and nodded with confidence. “Okay, sounds like a plan. I’ll make sure to save up an appetite.”
Spike smirked. “And if she doesn’t, I will. Since you said anything, I’ll make sure to have her recommend some of the best spots in town!”
“Just make sure it’s not too expensive. I’m not made of bits, Spike!”
“Well, you work for the school system, so that checks out.” He grinned. “But no promises!”
Starlight rolled her eyes before she levitated over a knapsack that had all the supplies and paperwork Spike assumed she’d be needing and slung it around her neck. “I know you’ll have a great time with this experience.”
Spike smiled. “You know it. Anyway, we can’t miss you if you don’t leave, so go on before Neighsay fires you and puts Trixie in charge or something crazy.”
“Kind of hard to do that when she’s got her hooves full, blowing off her counseling reports as is, but hey, anything’s possible nowadays.” Starlight lifted a hoof to start walking away but paused and turned to Night Glider. “Thanks for giving this a chance. It means a lot.”
All Night Glider could do was give a weak smile and lift her head up to meet Starlight’s gaze.
Starlight then turned to Spike who at this point was just waiting for a chance to enter the conversation again. “And Spike…” Starlight pulled his head down until they were nose to nose and whispered to him under her breath. “Stay out of trouble. Just for today. No craziness, please?”
Spike enthusiastically nodded before he was released from her magic vice grip.
Starlight then continued her walk toward the castle’s front doors and waved goodbye as she pushed them open. “Have a good day, guys! I’ll see you later!”
And with a final thud, Spike and Night Glider were left alone in the middle of the room with an awkward silence as their only companion.
“So, uhh…” Spike began, rubbing the back of his neck.
“Yeah?” Night Glider replied, averting her eyes.
“Look,” he said, waving his claws in an attempt to dismiss the awkwardness. “I get it. I don’t know you very well and you don’t know me very well; it’s a whole smorgasbord of weirdness we got going on here, but I promise we’ll have a great time today. Are you ready to get started?”
She smiled. “I guess so. Before we start, do you have a place where I can put my bag?” She used a wing to hold out her satchel in front of Spike.
“For sure!” He scratched his chin and then snapped his fingers. “If we’re gonna start the grand tour of Canterlot, it may as well be with your room for the weekend. Follow me!”
Spike turned toward the staircase at the side of the room and began walking towards it. Night Glider flapped her wings and slowly trailed behind him, taking in everything around her.
As far as the tour went, so far so good, Spike thought. Nothing crazy happened with Starlight, nobody noticed the pile of dust in the corner, and he was able to break up any potential weirdness that had come up already. Everything was going to be A-OK and Starlight was going to have to eat every word she said about him being ‘irresponsible’ and ‘getting into trouble’.
He grinned as he started his way up the first few steps with the pegasus floating behind him.
…If only he knew how insane things were going to get before Starlight even got home.