Chapter 1
For Spike the Dragon, the most frequently asked question he encountered in his relatively short life was: "Spike, did you finish all your chores yet?"
Followed by: "Jeez, why do you always sleep so much? You're going to get fat."
Which was trailed closely by: "Spike, do you mind getting more quills? And ink? I don't know why we keep running out. I think the mice are stealing them. Maybe I should go have a talk with Fluttershy..."
For Spike the Dragon, the most head-scratching question he encountered in his relatively short, hypothetically Twilight-less life was: "Do you have ears? It doesn't look like you have ears."
"Ah always thought them lettuce-like things were his ears. Hey, y'all reckon they're earflaps or somethin'!?"
"Huh. That must mean he has ears somewhere. Ooh! Secret ears! Hidden in plain sight!"
"Cool~! Hey, maybe we can get our Cutie Marks by finding them!"
"Let's give it a shot!"
"Cutie Mark Crusaders Dragon Friskers!"
...............
For Spike the Dragon, the most confounding, less insipid, and significantly less traumatic question to answer was: "Which do you like more? Canterlot, or Ponyville?"
While it was a question always primarily directed at Twilight, it usually got passed down to him as an inquiry for a second opinion, or more aptly, as an embarrassed afterthought to include him in the conversation. He didn't really mind, though, since it kind of came with the territory of being Twilight's assistant. Twilight was the main badass protagonist and he was the elusive but awesome and resourceful supporting cast, if he were to describe their roles by channeling Rarity's dramatics. Somepony might think he would feel agitated for not getting his chance under the spotlight, but in all honesty, he was content with his temporary place by her side. After all, Twilight and Princess Celestia were the ones who cared for and raised him when he was a hatching, it somehow only seemed fitting that he would return the favor. At least, for one of them. But that by all means didn't imply he enjoyed the thought of being left behind. It would not be an exaggeration to say that the mere suggestion that he might one day find himself alone, denied and unwanted, estranged in a familiar darkness, unseen and unheard, scared him more than any campfire horror tale told by Rainbow Dash ever could.
In fact, he still occasionally relived the emotional desolation he experienced from Sombra's illusion spell all those days ago, always rousing him from a restful slumber in cold sweat. But if Time heals all wounds, it also eases all memories. Now, he tried to see the event less as a nightmare brought to life and more as a metaphorical push from behind to, maybe, finally dragon-up and race past his greatest fear. After all, whilst the dark visions would never play out the way they were presented, the implications were not entirely basely fabrications. One only needed to look at where he and Twilight stood now for the chance to understand. Twilight, or Princess Twilight Sparkle, to be respectfully exact, was no longer just Princess Celestia's student, just as the newly alicorn royalty had previously feared deep within her barrel. But when events came to pass, instead of a door closed, it was the demolition of the door altogether. She now had the opportunity to climb higher and travel further, beyond the spire of limitation and towards the boundless skyline. She had told him in confidence that it was scary, being elevated to a status so daunting that only a select few dared to perch. But at the same time, the sight was breathtaking.
I wish you could have seen what I saw. What I see now, Twilight said to him, when they had a chance to be alone, merely a day ago. It's so grand that it's scary. Can't you see? I wish you could see. You'd be so amazed. The world. It speaks to us. It's scary. But, it's worth it.
Spike tried to see, he really did. But leading the blind is the same as challenging futility. So he just listened. To her words. As she spoke in exaltation at a scenery he couldn't fathom. Simply content in knowing that Princess Twilight was still Twilight, just with wings and additional insight into a world he never knew much about to begin with.
Deep down, Spike knew that he wasn't going to be Twilight's assistant forever. That she wouldn't always be the first one he saw in the morning. That she wouldn't always need him to keep her cared for and clean up after. That they wouldn't be practicing, with the occasional comically failing, at their spell casting sessions forever. But he clung to that, because it was his sanctuary, his favorite sunny meadow. The time to say goodbye simply ringed a little early. He had to learn to accept that.
As for the question itself, well, the answer was a tossup, but in the end, he honestly had to lean towards Ponyville.
On one claw, Canterlot was his place of birth, the first home he ever knew, housing the family he loved and the many ponies he befriended and cherished. It was where he learned to read and write, where he ate his first gem, where he threw his first hoofball, where Shining Armor and Twilight taught him how to fly a kite, and where he went on his first aerial adventure on said runaway kite as Shining and Twilight chased after in flailing panic. It was his Home. It was a place of many wonderful Firsts for him, and he relished it every time he meandered through its streets and marveled at its archaic radiance basked under Celestia's sun.
On the other claw, Ponyville was the place where both his and Twilight's world expanded. It was in this almost rural town in the whole of Equestria where Twilight learned the Magic of Friendship and the first time she braved her comfort zone. It was where the two of them made lifelong friends and where they underwent adventures and learned lessons together. It was a place filled with memories of tasty, crunchy apples, awesome shenanigans, the world's best parties, and so much more. It was the town in which he began to grow up, both as a dragon as well as a pony.
And, perhaps most significantly, it was the place where he met the most gorgeous, wonderful, generous mare known to ponykind.
Speaking of the beautiful fashionista, his recent favorite question was: "Spike, darling, I know this request might sound odd, but the entire town's supply of hot water has mysteriously vanished yet again! So I wanted to ask if you would terribly mind heating my bath water for me?"
"All of my yes!" Spike shouted, amidst the task of drying the dinner plates.
"Oh my," Velvet, Twilight's youthful looking mother, said with a mild laugh as she continued washing the dishes. "What a lively way to volunteer. Thank you, Spike, for agreeing to take out all of the trash. Be careful, there's quite a heavy load."
As Spike finally managed to push the last cumbersome garbage bag into the bin, he decided that if there was ever an appropriate time and place for daydreaming, it certainly wasn't when one was cleaning up after dinner.
As he made his way out of the alleyway, both the moon and the towering silhouette in the distance caught his eye. Oh yeah, he realized. Perhaps the most inspiring and noteworthy aspect of Canterlot: the Royal Castle. A symbol of the highest order, the monument of equine history, a testament to architectural ingenuity and artistic brilliance of ponies past. If Canterlot was a painting, then the Royal Castle was the theme, the centerpiece, and yet, it served as to be part of the scenery as much as the blazing sun in the ocean of blue and the moon in the night sky. Well, at least that was how the author of that one overly embellished poem described it.
To Spike, however, the castle was his nursery and playground. He lived there as a hatchling, and explored its halls and rooms and every nook and cranny as a whelp. He was very likely the only dragon in Equestrian history to think of the Royal Castle in such familiar terms, but that was also because he associated it in familial ones as well. After all, it was where Princess Celestia, and now, Twilight, both resided.
Suddenly Velvet called for him from the house, sounding concerned about his extended absence. Broken out of his reverie, Spike quickly verbally responded to allay the older mare's worries and began his trek back to the house.
On his way back, he made eye contact with a neighboring unicorn stallion he didn't recognize. The young drake smiled and gave a wide, friendly wave. The unicorn blinked, and took a moment to unsmilingly inspect him, as if trying to evaluate an exotic cretin or an onerous smudge on the side of the road. After a few looks of cautious disapproval, the unicorn finally returned an ambiguous wave of the foreleg and hurried back into his residence.
Ah, there it was. The reason he ultimately preferred Ponyville over staying in Canterlot.
Canterlot, for all its renown, sophistications, illustrious history, and glorious wonders, had its flaws. And with a city so grand and radiant, the flaws only stood out that more apparent, like a giant ink blotch on a sparkling, untouched sheet of parchment. Okay, perhaps 'flaws' was a strong word choice. It wasn't as if he was singled out. Most of the Canterlot elites turned their haughty noses on any creature they deemed beneath them as they criticized imperiously whatever and whomever. And with a population density as high as theirs in the city, it was only inevitable he'd run into a furry cold shoulder or two, which was probably some kind of oxymoron, but he digressed.
Unfortunately, understanding did little to improve his mood about the less than lukewarm reception, however brief and inconsequential it be, that he just received, and he couldn't help but sigh in mild dejection as he continued walking back indoors.
In contrast, he noticed that in Ponyville, everypony mingled with each other, as if they were in celebration of their differences, being able to be together in one common ground they called home. Of course, that didn't mean everything was perfect, as Ponyville was a town founded by earth ponies and thus sometimes a few traditions or customs demanded certain things to be done in specific earth pony ways. But overall, those issues were entirely negligible. The most important thing to him was that nopony in Ponyville seemed to care that he was a dragon, not like many of the ponies did here in Canterlot. Sure, upon the initial meeting some ponies were surprised or, at worst, apprehensive, but all of them quickly warmed up to him, simply accepting that there were stranger things out in the wide, wide world of Equestria. They lived next to a forest crawling with far more dangerous creatures, after all. They also had Pinkie Pie, and he was several hundred years too inexperienced to outdo her on any level.
When Spike stepped back into the house, Twilight's parents were there to greet him. As Velvet smiled motherly at him and Night Light gave him an affectionate pat on the head, he knew that indifferent ponies like the one he just met were what made ponies like them and those in Ponyville that much more special. They treated him as if he were truly accepted as part of their world, and not just as some visiting alien from beyond the Borders.
Twilight had wanted him to stay with her at the castle, probably for his sake more than her own. But he couldn't bring himself to cling anymore, not as he currently was. Twilight grew up without him knowing, and the only way to make her proud was by demonstrating a similar growth, whether it be physical or emotional. So he decided he would return to Ponyville. Maybe takeover the library in her stead, or get a job at Sweet Apple Acres, or even see if he can't come up with some sort of trade on his own. He had a knack for cooking, so there were possibilities for that skill set. Nopony could bake a mean jewel cake like he could. Too bad it wasn't much of a growing industry. Those were decisions to make later, however, as there were more important things to prepare for tomorrow. Namely, celebrating Twilight's mostly smooth transition into royalty and the Mid-Autumn Lunar Festival congruently. He couldn't wait to be able to give the princesses their presents. He especially anticipated Princess Celestia's reaction. It had been awhile since he was able to get his mo—his beloved eminence something special.
Tomorrow afternoon, Rarity and the others would be arriving by train for the festivities, which would last probably well into the night. Princess Celestia had even arranged for their overnight stay at the castle. And when the confetti were thrown and the food depleted and party was over and the tearful but inspiring parting words spoken, he would catch the one-way trip back to Ponyville with the others.
The young dragon knew he would miss his first home, or, more accurately, the days he lived once upon a time. But he knew Twilight would visit, and would hold him accountable to do the same. And knowing the inadvertently bossy lavender mare, she'd drag them all on some mild to apocalyptic adventure sooner or later.
With a big smile and wave to bid goodnight towards the castle, Spike closed the door behind him as he started preparing for bed.
It was quiet, temperate, and it was uneventful. From her humble millennium-long experience as a sovereign of Equestria, in that, there was contentment to be found.
High above, on the balcony of the observatory, Princess Celestia watched over her kingdom with an enlightened gaze, nothing escaping her sight.
Over the innumerable days, she was presented with all manners of words, whether they be questions, problems, accusations, challenges, praises, proposals, or even pleads. Some of those words, she remembered. Many others, forgotten until needed. One set of words, however, was never said to her: What does the world look like?
She often wondered how she would explain it; how she viewed the world and the living creatures that dwell within. And every time she contemplated, she always knew it was ineffable. How could she describe how the world truly worked? How the world was this amalgam of beautiful simplicity and magical complexity. And that everything, be it breathing or otherwise, was interconnected in ways unimaginable to the uninitiated.
The alicorn princess could still remember, eons ago, when she too couldn't see. Equestria had been her whole world, her only world, and its beauty was something to be revered. But the appreciation ended there. There were far more important matters to attend to than admiring the scenery, such as increasing her proficiency in the spell crafts and her manipulations of the heavenly bodies on top of bearing the responsibility as part of the Elements of Harmony. Understanding the intricacies, seeing the whole for its parts, as Star Swirl the Bearded had often penned in his journals? That could be done later. She had time, after all.
That changed, though, once upon a night. She had been too blind, too ignorant. Her dearest sister succumbed to darkness without her knowing until it was too late. It began and ended in Fear. She did the only thing she could outside of destruction of the only family she had left, and stalled the inevitable until a solution could be achieved, someday, somewhere.
She didn't wait idly, though, no. She scoured tomes and scrolls and ancient tablets and anything else she could get her hooves on that might give her that solution, that Hope, as she gazed at the moon every single night. And in those times, bleak days she entirely forgotten, she learned to see. Learned to really see. Both beyond and within the world. She learned to see the magic in everything.
Every droplet in the rain, every rock in the mountains, every flower in the field, and every creature in the lands. Everything had its place, in perpetual uniformity, their roles as cogs in the machine they called the World. A world that was simply just one beautifully gargantuan spell, interconnecting nigh infinite things at once in an oxymoronic simple complexity that can only be observed, and never fully dissected.
It was amazing.
From that point on, from the moment she could see, Celestia looked to the ground beneath her hooves and felt humbled. She was powerful, her knowledge and control over the magical unparalleled. She possessed spectacular wisdom, honed from endless stretches of literary culminations and experience. She could raise and lower both the sun and the moon, as easily as one would part and close the curtains. But she was not omnipotent, nor was she omniscient, and nowhere near eternal. That, she understood perfectly, and somehow, happily.
So Celestia waited. She waited because for all her imperfections, she was blessed with more access to time than likely all other creatures in the world. She waited because she saw. Not in the manner of clairvoyance, but something much more comforting. She saw how the Elements churned and shone and orbited around her even as they finally disconnected the Bond, as if simultaneously bidding her farewell and giving reassurance. She saw the veins of the earth slowly began to intertwine and converge. She saw that one day events would come to pass, and if the fates permitted, she would be returned that which she had lost.
But still she didn't wait idly, because there was much work to be done, many foundations to build. Her little ponies needed her, her powers and her guidance, and she wanted to make sure their world would remain a beautiful one, for the time that would surely come to pass.
Celestia smiled when she felt a sudden surge of magic from somewhere in the royal gardens. Her former protégé and now recent social peer was observing the wildlife and critters with a new insight, following every root and vine and movement and the magic that always existed but couldn't be observed without seeing. She was like a giddy filly in a candy shop, giggling and gasping as she teleported and flew and danced in the night. The alicorn sovereign couldn't be more proud.
Still, there always remained more room for improvement, and Celestia vowed to be the guide when needed. In the meantime, she would do as she had always done, and observe in wait.
Before the white alicorn could fully return indoors, however, a distant sparkle caught her attention. A very familiar and important spark of magic. Celestia observed with a warm smile as she watched the young dragon, who she used to tuck in and read bedtime stories to, wobble as he valiantly tried to maintain balance while burdened with the rather large bag of what she presumed to be litter.
She watched as he wiped a claw across his forehead upon task completion, as he flexed both arms in a display of masculinity when he thought nopony was around, and as he basked in the city's ambiance with a melancholy smile.
"Ah, so you were watching the youngling," a familiar voice commented from behind.
Celestia managed to restrain even a twitch from centuries of accrued practice. "Oh, Luna," she said, with no trace of the surprise she felt internally. "Announce your arrival next time, or you're liable to scare somepony."
The dark alicorn raised an eyebrow as she trotted forth. "We called for you upon our descent, Sister. Thou didn't respond." She peered over the edge of the balcony, over the railing. "It is understandable. After all, it hath been a while since the youngling has returned to the city."
It was then that Celestia remembered, something so easily forgotten because there were few who possessed the sight. That Princess Luna, her dear sister, could see as well. It wasn't exactly the same sight, differing on some plane of comprehension, but the fundamentals were identical, and that was enough for detection.
"Pray tell," Celestia said carefully. "What do you mean, dearest Sister?"
Luna gave her a look and rolled her eyes a little. "Please, Tia. There is no need to play games with me."
Celestia sighed gently, barely making a sound. "Yes, you are right, Luna. How long have you known?"
"During the youngling's commendation for his gallant deeds in liberating the Crystal Empire. We felt the fool for not noticing it sooner. It was plain for all to see upon closer observation, after all. At least, for those with the ability to do so, anyway."
Celestia made no visible reaction other than a slight tilt of the head. The implications of her sister's words were more than apparent. "You did not come to me immediately. So, who did you interrogate?"
"Sharp as ever," Luna commented wryly. "Hath no worry, Tia. We made certain to be prudent. Only some of our most trusted subjects have been questioned, and we made no allusions to our hidden intentions other than curiosity. As far as they know, we have merely shown due interests towards your faithful pupil's days as a filly. It was rather clear when no mention of the youngling's heritage came into conversation, that thou hath good reasons to keep it hidden."
A movement in her peripheral caught Celestia's attention. The small dragon had made to greet a nearby unicorn in simple courtesy. She could see how the pony wished for distance even from afar. The meeting quickly concluded when the pony absconded with reluctant acknowledgement. The small dragon's shoulders drooped.
"Art thou departing, Sister?" Luna asked.
Celestia blinked, then realized her wings were unfurled. Slowly, she retracted them to her sides. "No. No, of course, not."
Luna gazed in the same direction, seemingly failing to notice anything of worth when she gave her elder sister a quizzical glance. "Doth the youngling know?"
Celestia blinked, because before the young dragon disappeared behind closed doors, he delivered a spirited smile and wave in the direction of the castle—in her direction. "No, he does not," she answered slowly, with a small smile of her own.
Luna nodded. "We shall not ask. Thou must have good reasons."
Celestia's smile vanished into neutrality. "I have ...reasons."
After a short pause, Luna spoke up once more, "Rest, Sister. We shall guard the night and the dreams of our little ponies."
The two sisters traded posts, symbolically formalizing the transition into night. As Luna cast her spell and became occupied by the nightly energies of the ponies across the lands, Celestia took one more look in the direction of the young dragon. Through a window, she saw him snuggled into a bed much larger than he needed, reading the illustrated book of an old ponytale she used to read to him.
"Good night, my little dragon," Celestia whispered, and disappeared into the castle.
Spike sighed as he sagged into the bench as Twilight chatted with several other ponies on the street.
Walking around with Twilight during the day in Canterlot public was different than doing so in Ponyville. For one, he couldn't take his favorite reserved spot on her back. Many unicorns would stare, and in rather contempt manners to boot, as if he had somehow offended the entirety of them just by letting the relationship between him and Twilight show as it genuinely was.
For another, he usually had to adapt to the supposed sophisticated dialect of the upper class. His usual manner of speech seemed to rub some of the ponies the wrong way, as if he was actively disgracing them in some way oblivious only to himself. Twilight never noticed these ongoing sideline things, though. Nopony in the castle seemed to carry the same attitude as those spiffy aristocrats, and if they did, they certainly kept it well hidden and under wraps. Twilight herself was always too busy studying and excelling in assignments to have taken notice, and the few times they really needed to hastily reach a certain destination in Canterlot they usually went by the royal chariots.
Walking around with Princess Twilight, however, was an even more daunting journey than he could ever predict, as now ponies seemed to materialize out of the ether in order to appreciate the newest royalty to grace their fair city. There were the parents who wanted their children to meet the newly minted princess, who was a worthy role model simply by virtue. There were the snobbish elite class ponies who suddenly weren't so snobbish when they greeted and complimented with absolute adoration. He also swore he saw flashes in the bushes accompanied by sounds produced by mechanical gadgetry.
It started small, with most of the ponies simply satisfied with cheering and waving as he and Twilight passed through. But then the encounters began when the ponies with either more nerve or curiosity began to approach. Some of them even talked to him and a few older, pretty mares even pinched his cheek and called him adorable, as if Twilight's royal celebrity status erased all of the misgivings about the irregularity his presence normally presented.
But eventually, as he feared but expected, Spike got pushed out of the conversations as well as his place when the number of admiring ponies increased and there wasn't enough space to sustain the converging circle around Twilight.
"I told her to take the chariot," Spike grumbled as he rested his chin of his upturned claws in boredom and exasperation. After all, there was a reason neither Princess Celestia nor Princess Luna roamed the city on hoof without accompanying guards.
The young dragon was just about to find something interesting to pass the time when he heard Twilight's distinct yelp for help. There was now a veritable ocean of ponies surrounding the lavender princess, who looked like she was about to be drowned by the sheer number of idolizing gazes from the crowd alone.
Spike rolled his eyes as he got to his feet. "You have wings, Twilight!" he shouted.
Twilight blinked before she chuckled sheepishly and took off into the air, leaving the adoring masses below to coo in awe at her majesty.
With a spark of magic, Twilight made way towards Spike and expertly picked him off the bench and deposited him on her back before arching her trajectory back upwards higher into the air.
"Sorry," Twilight said with a giggle. "Had a moment of mental flatulence back there."
Spike huffed a bit, but soon couldn't help but laugh. "Gee, Twi, you're so popular now. Hey, wanna see how many autographs you can sign? You can write, Princess Bedazzling Twilight. I bet you can set some kind of record! I'll even make sure to get all the quills you'll need!"
"Laugh it up, Spike," Twilight replied, with a palpable smirk. "Maybe I should mention all those innocent little pinches and kisses you got from that group of pretty mares to a certain dressmaker in Ponyville, hm?"
Spike physically felt his eyes widen in horror. "Nononono! Please, Twilight, anything but that! I'm sorry that I made fun—aw, drats."
Twilight laughed and performed a smooth glide through a few low clouds. "Princess Twilight, one. Spike the Royal Assistant, zero~!"
Spike blinked at her chosen title for him, and sighed.
"Is something wrong?" Twilight asked, her previous giddiness replaced with concern. "Am I flying too fast?"
"Nah, I'm good. It'll take more than a little wind to blow this noble dragon away," Spike assured in a playful fit of bravado. But then he frowned again and twiddled the tips of his claws. "Listen, Twilight. About the assistant thing..."
The young dragon must have mumbled weaker than he thought, because the winds whisked the words away and Twilight said, "Look, Spike! That's Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns!"
Spike followed the mare's gaze down below, finding a bird's eye view of a rather expansive and ornate reddish building structure, looking more like a diorama of a foal's play set from their perspective.
"Want to go have a look?" Twilight asked with a smilingly quick glance behind. "It's where we first met, you know? Where everything began."
Spike blinked. What Twilight said was true. Technically, that was where he was born, er, hatched, all those many forgotten years ago. Twilight made the occasional visit to the school back when they were both still solely Canterlot residents. He never followed because he had enough schooling to deal with back at the castle, and it somehow never occurred to him that the particular school mentioned was also his literal birthplace. More importantly, as Twilight suggested, it was where everything started.
"Yeah!" Spike answered, suddenly feeling a bit excited. "Yeah, I wanna have a look!"
Twilight grinned. "All right then! Hang on! I'm going to give one of Rainbow's tricks a try!"
A vision of a dead princess and dead baby dragon flashed through Spike's mind. "Wait, wait a minute, Twilight—"
"Dive Bomb!" Twilight cheered and began her descent.
In the royal throne of the castle, Princess Celestia shifted her attention away from the ponies seeking council before her. She stared past the stained glass windows and the marble walls. She smiled. She blinked when a few of the ponies inquired about her wellbeing.
"My little ponies are lively today," she said in explanation, to the audience's confusion. She shook her head in amusement and signaled for her audience to continue.
The school was empty, as was to be expected. It was an extended holiday after all. The spacious, eerily quiet halls almost seemed alive as it reverberated with the echoes of their steps on the marble floors. That changed when Twilight remembered that the classroom she took her entrance exam in was on the second floor, where the halls were more narrow and were padded with carpeting. The sunlight filtered in through the many windows, glossing the walls and the many doors in an airy glow. It was a different sort of serenity, almost like that of a lofty dream, Spike almost felt speechless.
"Wow," Spike uttered. "It's actually pretty awesome. I'm glad I survived to see this place."
Twilight blushed. "I'm sorry, Spike. I guess I got carried away back there. Are you sure you're okay?"
Spike tried to look regal. "C'mon, Twilight. It'll take more than a little stunt like that to get to this noble dragon."
"I don't know. You were screaming so loud that my ears are still ringing a bit."
It was Spike's turn to blush. "Uh, hey, look!" he exclaimed with a pointing claw and a dash forward. "Is that it?"
"Close," Twilight said with a bemused smile. "It's the one after the next. Subtle distraction tactic, though."
Spike ignored the mare's teasing because the proximity of their intended destination brought the excitement back up. He jogged towards the door, and tried in vain to reach a vantage point high enough to be able to see inside through the glass until Twilight lent a helping telekinesis.
After several failed attempts at getting a satisfactory angle, Spike asked, "Do you think we can go inside?"
Twilight gave the doorknob a try. It didn't budge. "I thought so. They generally lock all the classrooms when school is out."
"Couldn't you just, I dunno, teleport us inside? It's not that big of a deal, is it?"
Twilight frowned slightly. "We can always come back later, Spike, there's no need to—"
"I'm afraid school is out for the approaching holidays," a masculine but refined voice suddenly came from the other end of the hall. "If you are here either for a tour or an interest in enrollment, I humbly request that you—oh dear, Twilight Sparkle, is that you? I must say, my eyes aren't as they used to be."
Twilight turned and smiled. "Headmaster Glory! It's so good to see you!"
The stallion who approached was a unicorn with a grayish mane and bronze colored barrel. His full name, as Spike remembered, was Glory Stanza. As his title suggested, he was a pony who wore a traditional, but nonetheless spiffy, professor's tweed jacket and donned a fashionable monocle, carrying an aristocratic, respectable air about him. His voice was strong and sagely, the type to elicit instinctual deference from its listeners.
For Spike, though, his instincts led him to hide behind Twilight as quickly as possible.
Twilight, for her part, glanced at the young dragon curiously before resuming a polite smile at the elder stallion.
"My, it has been awhile since you've graced us with your presence, Twilight Sparkle," Glory said amiably before he gave a bow. "Or, should I say, your royal highness."
Twilight gently laughed away the gesture. "Please, Headmaster, there's no need for any of that. I haven't changed on an intellectual level, and I don't want any sort of royal business to become a barrier between us."
Glory rose with a knowing smile. "I suspected as much. You always were much too humble for your own good." He gave a laugh. "Back in the day, you'd come here and volunteer to aid in research or rearrange the library so often we simply considered having you take over my job! And I, for one, was rather looking forward to an early retirement."
Twilight blushed. "You're too kind, Headmaster."
"Now," Glory said after a good chortle, "What can I help you with? I'd imagine it's something important if you've taken time out of your presumably busy schedule to visit this old school?"
"Well, Spike and I," Twilight began with a brief nod behind her, "were wondering if we could take a look inside this classroom. It's where Spike was hatched during my entrance exams, you see, and I guess we just felt compelled by nostalgia to have a look."
"Spike?" Glory said, with a lost expression.
Twilight moved to the side and nudged the dragon hiding behind her. "Spike, don't be rude. I don't think you two have met. This is Headmaster Glory Stanza. He's pretty much the sole reason the school doesn't fall apart."
With extreme hesitation, Spike peeked out and gave a small wave and a weak smile. "H-hello, sir."
The young dragon was immediately reminded of the unicorn from last night, when he was treated to a mostly apathetic dismissal. But this one. The gaze he was facing now was one of veiled disdain, perhaps even more so than the worst of it he experienced elsewhere.
"Ah, yes," Glory said. "It."
And it all came flooding back. Twilight was wrong, about them meeting for the first time. Spike knew, from the recesses of his memories, that before now he had met this imposing stallion twice in his life. The first time, was somehow so long ago that everything was but a blur, but the second and last time, he remembered.
It was years ago, on a summer day when Shining Armor had taken both filly Twilight and the baby dragon on a fun day outdoors. They played games, visited parks, got balloons, had fun all around. Then, by coincidence, they ran into Glory Stanza. It was pleasant at first, with Glory simply showing due interest in the life of the filly who became the personal protégé of Princess Celestia herself. Shining welcomed the praise directed at his little sister, and the two of them discussed topics Spike was too young to understand. Throughout the interactions the baby dragon had thought the older pony to be a very nice one. But then, when Shining tried to give some of the attention to Spike himself, the previously uplifting visage of Glory collapsed almost instantly. He didn't remember much after that, only that the stallion had uttered words in a tone that screamed rejection. Wholly. Completely.
The clearest thing Spike remembered from the encounter was that tone. From Glory. That, and the fury. From Shining Armor. The white stallion had been livid with the tone accompanying the words, however trivial they were. A few more words had been exchanged, and the white stallion had only gotten angrier. It was a testament to Shining Armor's discipline that a physical confrontation hadn't occurred.
Without a single syllable of farewell, Shining Armor ended the encounter and took both Spike and Twilight away, figurative hot steam huffing from his nostrils. The filly Twilight had been so afraid that Shining was angry with them. That almost instantly calmed the stallion down, and he assured both of them that they were in no way the target of his rage. The baby dragon believed the stallion's consoling words. He knew them to be true, because he recognized Shining Armor as a protector long ago, and that tone had triggered something within that made the proud protector so agitated.
To make up for the almost ruined day, Shining Armor then treated them all to ice cream, and the event quickly faded into a dull sour note. That night, however, when Twilight was being given a bath, Shining Armor took Spike aside. The stallion asked the baby dragon to promise to inform him or any other trustworthy authority figure upon facing any semblance of hostility from ponies or any other creatures. The very young Spike understood the gist of what was asked, and nodded his head. It was not a promise kept.
Now, what he worried the most came forth: Twilight was much more alert and perceptive compared to when she was just a filly. Now, she was fully aware and within earshot of that tone, and her reaction mirrored the beginning of Shining's, all those years ago. It was a look of bewildered disbelief, the same kind when she first learned about Pinkie Sense.
"Well, I suppose I can allow it," Glory grunted out, looking through his front pockets presumably for the keys.
Twilight shook her head, her brows nearly scrunched together as she frowned. "Excuse me, but, what did you mean by—"
"It's okay! No need!" Spike found himself shouting, catching the two ponies' attention. "We're actually really busy but I was being really whiny and selfish and dragged Twilight here and she let me because she's so nice but we really gotta go!" He breathed deeply for a moment before bolting off.
"Spike!" Twilight called out before turning to the unicorn stallion with a suspiciously look. "It was good to see you, Glory," she said without much conviction, and hurriedly chased after the dragon.
Glory watched the two disappear around the corner and listened to them descend the stairs. When the echoes silenced, he gave a rough snort and trotted towards the other end of the hall.
"What was that all about?" Twilight asked pointedly once Spike stopped running upon reaching the exterior of the school grounds.
"Nothing," Spike answered far too quickly to be convincing as he continued walking at a fast pace. "I just, um, really want to get a head start on getting to the train station and meet the girls! Yeah! We have to make sure everything goes off without a hitch! Here, let me get the checklist and you can—"
The dragon knew it was futile when Twilight's eyes widened and her expression twisted into horror. The mare may not have been particularly perceptive when it came to reading social cues of other ponies when younger, but she was very quick on the uptake, and her time spent in Ponyville only honed it further.
Twilight stared. "How long?"
Spike groaned. "Twilight—"
"How long, Spike?" Twilight almost screamed. "Has it always been this way? How many other times? How could I have never noticed? I just let it happen? You...you just kept this kind of thing to yourself!? Why didn't you ever tell me!?"
"Because it's not that big of a deal!"
"How is it not a big deal!? He addressed you by a genderless pronoun! The way he looked at you...he thought of you as some kind of lesser creature!"
"He...he could have just been confused, you know? It's not like ponies can tell the difference between a boy dragon and a girl one. Maybe he was just trying not to look silly—"
"Spike!" Twilight cried, and, oh boy, she was beginning to look distraught. She blinked. "Is this why you never followed me here? Because of ponies like him!?"
Spike scratched his arm. "Uh, actually, I didn't know he was the headmaster here. I honestly just thought school was kinda boring..."
Twilight suddenly looked even more horrified, if that were possible. "Did this sort of thing happen in the castle? Were they all happening behind my back!?"
Spike waved his arms frantically. "Nonono! Twilight, I promise you that everypony at the castle has only been genuinely nice to me! It's just some of the ponies out here..."
Twilight looked visibly relieved, but then the emotion picked up again. His hope of offering any kind of distraction, however weak and flimsy, proved useless when Twilight began pacing. She was respiring hotly, her expression all pointing to the negative, and parts of her mane began to spring to disarray. Oh boy.
"Twilight," Spike said slowly. "Calm down. It's okay—"
"It is not okay!" Twilight vehemently declared, now starting to match the angry look from Shining years ago. "I have a half a mind to...to do something!" She began trotting back towards the school grounds. "I'm going to defenestrate that old bigot!"
Spike didn't know the meaning of the word Twilight just used, but somehow he knew it was going to involve a lot of pain. "Twilight, no! Please, just calm down! Don't blow this out of proportion!"
"I'm Princess Bedazzling Twilight!" Twilight snarled. "I can blow up whatever I want! To any proportion I want! I'll even leave him an autograph! No, something better! Like my hoofprint up his—"
"Twilight, please, stop!" Spike continued to plead; futilely he feared. "He's not worth getting yourself in trouble for!"
"But you are!" Twilight cried, swiveling around to face the dragon. "Nopony is allowed to talk about you like that!" She took a deep breath, and seemed to finally regain some control over her emotions. "We have to take care of matters like this early. We can't let it fester and come back biting us on the tail."
Spike sighed. "What are you planning to do? Intimidate everypony who decides not to like me?"
Twilight's eyes narrowed sharply. "If I have to, yes."
Spike blinked and stared at the pony in bafflement. "Now that's just crazy," he said. "It's not even necessary!"
"Of course it's necessary!" Twilight retorted, emotional control once again lost. "You...you're going to be my royal assistant! We can't let anypony just waltz into the castle and blatantly disrespect you like that! Not on my watch!"
Spike took a moment to truly appreciate how riled up Twilight was for his sake and felt moisture at the corner of his eyes. Unfortunately, it also made what needed to be said that much harder. He looked away. "About that...Twi? I'm going back to Ponyville. That's why I said it's unnecessary. I'm...I'm not staying."
Perhaps he truly had the worst timing in the world, Spike thought, as he watched Twilight stare at him blankly. At least she wasn't homicidal anymore.
"You mean," Twilight began slowly, carefully. "You mean to get the rest of our packages, right? We can do that later. Better yet, just get Applejack to haul it up here the next time the girls come to visit. I'm sure they'll—"
Spike raised a claw. "Twilight. Come on."
Twilight began to look panicked, then angry again. "It's because of those other ponies, isn't it? Isn't it!?"
"No!" Spike said, but then relented. "Okay, yes. But not just because of that!"
"It could happen in Ponyville, too!" Twilight interjected.
"You know it won't, Twilight. Everypony has been wonderful to us. To me. They may not all be the friendliest ponies in the world, but they never once looked at me in the same way some of the ponies do here."
Twilight nodded. "You're right." She took a deep breath. "Then, I'm going back too."
It was Spike's turn to look flabbergasted. "All right, so you still haven't calmed down yet—"
"I'm perfectly calm," Twilight said, almost convincingly if it weren't for that misbehaving strand of hair. "It's the rational decision, after all. You're happier back in Ponyville, and I'm not leaving you on your own. So, the only logical conclusion is that we return together."
Huh. That was sort of true. And Spike would truly have preferred it that way, but...
"...and I see that you're still talking crazy..."
"Spike, I'm being serious!"
"I know! That's why it's crazy!"
"How is it crazy!?" Twilight demanded. "How is it crazy that I just want my oldest friend, my number one assistant by my side!? What's really crazy is letting the worthless opinions of parochial ponies like them dictate the decisions we make! The ones that you're making!"
"And you're a princess now! You can't let my decisions get in your way. You have so many more new things to learn about here in Canterlot."
"Who says I have to learn them here!? I could commute from the library! Or even better, I'll just be the princess of Ponyville! Cadence and Shining Armor are running the Crystal Empire. I'll just do the same with Ponyville!"
"And then what? Kick Mayor Mare out of office? How is that being fair? How will that make everything all right!?"
"It's better than what you're doing! You're just running away! You're allowing yourself to get bullied out of your own city! Our own home!"
"Y-you think I don't know that!? But that's my problem, not yours!"
"Your problems are always my problems! That's how it's always been!"
"That!" Spike pointed. "That's why I have to go back! If I stay here, I'm just gonna end up relying on you to help solve my problems while you depend on me to keep your psycho tendencies in check! But that's all I can do and it's not enough!"
"So it's my fault now!? Little baby dragon can't take a little baby pressure and so we all just blame the new princess because she values friendship more than she fears hardship!?"
"No! It's because the little baby dragon knows the new princess is being a big dumb pony and needs to stop acting like she knows everything!"
The two of them glared at each other heatedly. Their breaths were like steams. A tenuous and long silence followed.
Then, Twilight made the first tackle.
One of the two royal guards, who had come before Princess Celestia to announce the arrival of the next audience, finally dared to raise his head when said princess made absolutely no response. He soon discovered that it seemed that the princess was not paying attention at all. Instead, she was gazing to the side, somewhere seemingly arbitrary he couldn't follow, with an intense concentration. He was about to speak up again when his partner, an older and more experienced stallion, nudged him, motioning for him to keep silent. He complied, and fruitlessly wondered just what in the world could be so interesting about that particular wall.
"Ow," Spike finally managed to say, splayed and panting on the roof of a nearby building.
"Ow," Twilight agreed next to the small dragon, lying on her side and nursing her right foreleg. "I'm glad we never fought before. I can't believe I forgot you have teeth."
"Did I bite hard?"
"Not really. Just hard enough that I'm going to hold a grudge until the teeth marks fade."
Spike laughed. Soon, so did Twilight. Loudly, and unrestrained. Letting so many dark things, just, wither away.
When the laughter finally died down, when they were done venting that which disrupted their balance, their symmetry, they turned their heads to each other.
"Sorry," Spike and Twilight said at once, and smiled.
Slowly, Twilight got up first, and sat back down on her haunches as she folded her wings. "Need help?"
Spike struggled to perform a few very disappointing sit ups before returning to his supine position. "No," he said.
Twilight rolled her eyes and levitated the small dragon upright. Once on his feet, Spike gradually made his way to the lavender princess, and plopped down next to her. There was another stretch of silence before Twilight spoke up again, "You know, getting into a hoof-fight with a princess and biting her leg is probably some type of capital offense."
Spike laughed gently. "Good thing I'm leaving tomorrow."
Twilight looked down. "Do you really have go?"
Spike looked away. "I don't have to go. I want to."
"And that's the part where I don't understand. What do you mean? Did I do something wrong? Why?"
Spike looked at his claws. "Because you grew up without me, Twi."
Twilight blinked.
"Not only that, but you're probably only just getting started. Princess Celestia practically groomed you for the position in the first place. Me? I'm just your assistant. The baby dragon you hatched during a weird test. I can't keep up with you like this. I'll only get in the way."
"That's not true," Twilight said, earnestly. "You're so special, that you don't even know. You're not aware, but you deserve a place in Canterlot, in the castle, more than anypony. And the only reason I'm even here at all is because of you. Because of our friends. Without you and the girls, I'd be nothing. Just a neurotic, reclusive pony who fawns over checklists and reads far too much."
Spike was silent for a moment before smirking. "Yeah, I am pretty great."
Twilight blinked. She giggled and pushed the baby dragon lightly.
Spike exhaled. "I need a chance to do things on my own. I'm not stupid. I know it won't be easy. I'll probably be sending you and Princess Celestia distress letters in a week or two. But I have to give it a try. I need to try and grow up."
Twilight seemed to tear up. "But...but that doesn't mean you have to grow up without me."
"You know I want to stay with you, Twilight. But if I stay now, I'm never gonna leave. I can feel it. It's too comfortable around you. You've always complained that I sleep too much. That's because I know you're there watching out for me. Well, that and because I'm a baby dragon, but you get the idea."
Twilight's eyes glistened and wavered. "I just don't want you to leave me, too. I'm already leaving the girls behind...I don't know what to do if you're not here either."
"C'mon, Twilight. You're not leaving anypony behind. And Ponyville is like, maybe a few hours away by train. Almost as close if you just take the royal chariot."
"It's not the same, and you know it."
"Maybe," Spike admitted. "But if things always stayed the same, then we'd stop learning too. Didn't you use to say 'the greatest enemy of, uh, of, um—"
"'The greatest enemy of progress is not stagnation, but false progress,'" Twilight finished with a small smile.
"Yeah, that," Spike said, nodding. "I don't exactly understand, but I know enough to know it's 'false progress' if everything just stays the same as it was. And that's not being fair to you or me. Do you remember? When we saved the Crystal Empire? You saw your greatest fear as failing and not being Princess Celestia's student one day. But look, you're not just a student anymore. You're a princess now. You grew up. And I wasn't even there for the whole thing."
Twilight opened her mouth mutely.
"I know it'll never happen, my own greatest nightmare. But I'm still so afraid, Twi, that I'll fail you one day. I don't want to be scared anymore. I have to be able to stand on my own claws before I can be at your side. To be your assistant again."
Twilight seemed to have finally found her voice when Spike got to his feet with a small fist formed, pointed at the sky. "I promise you. I'm gonna get stronger, smarter, faster, taller, and build a wider vocabulary. I'm gonna be so awesome that everypony will have no choice but to accept me. And even if they don't, I'll be too cool to care what they think. I won't be scared anymore. I know who I'm growing up for. I know which ponies are my true friends, after all. And that's enough for me."
Twilight watched her little dragon, almost in a new light. Then she remembered her tears, and her lips wobbled fervently before she engulfed the baby dragon in a fierce hug. After listening to her sob as his own tears fell, Spike hugged her back.
"I love you, Spike."
"Love you, too, Twi."
Day Court had been concluded early by several of the royal attendants with seniority. They had been around long enough to know that the mind of their princess was occupied and was concurrently concerned with something far more important than mortals such as themselves could comprehend.
They were wrong, of course, Celestia thought. The severity of one's problems had always been a relative equilibrium; comparable but never measureable. But then, the swell of pride in her chest and the unbidden smile adorning her features said otherwise. So she allowed the emotions within her to run their course, and the sun beamed brighter in response.