> A Dragon's Nest
>  by Phantom Wolf
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spike woke to Owlowiscious soft hooting and a brush of feathers. Spike cracked open an eye before blinking and sitting up.

"Thanks Owlowiscious. Sleep tight."

Said owl clicked his beak before flying over to his perch for the day. Spike uncurled himself and stretched much like a cat. Arching his back, Spike yawned before climbing out of his bed. It wasn't the same basket he had slept in two years ago when he was smaller. Spike now slept on a large sofa cushion. At first, when Spike had started to grow, everyone panicked. Afraid it was greed growth, they had contacted Princess Celestia. She reassured them that it was not greed growth, but normal development. When Spike's first growth spurt stopped, he was almost as tall as Celestia herself. It was because of his new height that made it impossible for him to walk upright.

Spike shook his head, spines coming to rest against his neck. He trotted down the stairs, pass a still sleeping Twilight. Heading into the kitchen, Spike started to prepare breakfast for himself and his adoptive sister. Two bowls of cinnamon apple oatmeal, one with gem powder on top, soon sat on the table.

"Twilight! Breakfast!"

A short shout and a loud thump informed Spike that Twilight was up and out of bed. She soon came down, mane sticking up oddly. She yawned and sat down at the table. Taking a bite of the oatmeal, she paused. Spike lowered his head.

"Is it not good?"

Twilight looked up at him and smiled.

"No, actually, it's really good. Where did you learn to get the cinnamon baked into the apple slices?"

Spike snorted.

"Applejack taught me, but Pinkie Pie showed me how to get the flavor even through the oatmeal."

Twilight laughed slightly before taking another bite. Spike sat down across the table and started to eat his gem sprinkled oatmeal. The oatmeal was good, but the gem powder made it so much better. Twilight turned to the adolescent dragon.

"So, what are you planning on doing today?"

"I was thinking about going digging for gems, or maybe go help Rarity at the boutique. I'll probably also-"

Spike was interrupted as the front door burst open. Rainbow Dash tumbled in, head over hooves. She rolled thrice before skidding to a stop on her stomach. Twilight and Spike rushed over to her and helped her to her hooves.

"Oh my gosh, are you okay?"

"I'm fine, but Fluttershy's not! She need all of us to meet her at the edge of the Everfree Forest!"

Twilight shared a look of worry with Spike. The three of them rushed towards the Everfree Forest.





"Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear, oh dear."

Fluttershy was flying back and forth nervously when they got there. Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Applejack were trying to calm her down. Twilight cantered over to them.

"Fluttershy, what's wrong?"

"Oh, Twilight! I'm so glad you are all here! It so terrible! So horrible!"

Spike gently bumped the shy pegasus with his muzzle.

"Tell us what happened, Fluttershy."

"Oh, okay. Well, I was gathering some herbs this morning in the Everfree. I needed them for Mr. Beaver Beaverton, you see he has a cold-"

"Sugar cube, please jus' skip ahead to tha problem."

"A dragon! There's a dragon! He's just laying in the forest, and he looks really bad."

Fluttershy wiped her face, clearing her tears.

"I- I think he may be d-dead."

Pinkie Pie gasped and grabbed Spike, nearly crushing him in a bear hug.

"Oh no!"

Rarity looked like she was about to faint. Twilight shuffled her hooves before nodding.

"Alright, everypony. That dragon needs our help! Fluttershy, take us to where he is. Rainbow Dash, go get the first aid kit from Fluttershy's cottage. Catch up to us, and keep an eye out. Applejack, do you have any rope, just in case?"

Applejack started no shake her head no, but Pinkie Pie pulled a rope out of a tree nearby.

"Here you go AJ. I have these stashed all over town in case of a rope emergency."

Applejack took the rope with a raised eyebrow, but didn't question the pink mare. It was just Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie. Twilight rolled her eyes before nodding.

"Alright, lets go!"

Rainbow Dash flew off at neck breaking speed towards Fluttershy's cottage. Everypony else turned towards the forest. Rarity stopped and turned towards Spike.

"Spike. . . maybe you should stay here."

Spike snorted, smoke quickly dissipating in the air.

"I'm coming."

His voice held no room for discussion. Rarity chewed on her bottom lip, but didn't say anything. Spike was a dragon. It was more his right to try to help another dragon than theirs. Five minutes into the forest, and Rainbow Dash caught up. Fluttershy's saddlebag was slung over her back, stuffed full of first aid supplies.

"Hey, Shy. Do you really think that the dragon is dead?"

Fluttershy pawed nervously at the ground.

"I'm not sure, but. . . it looked pretty bad."

They walked through some thick brush and into a clearing. Rarity fainted. Fluttershy was crying, hiding her face in her hooves. Applejack and Twilight stared, jaws dropped. Rainbow Dash shuddered and looked away. Pinkie's mane was a little less fluffy. Spike let out a low rumble deep in his chest. Rarity awoke and turned around, unable to see such a thing.

The dragon was about 15 feet tall and 30 feet long, almost three times as large as Spike. It had dark blue scales with a bright red underbelly and wings. His spines were pitch black.

Spike felt sick to his stomach. The dragon's neck was bent at an odd angle, obviously broken. The right wing was almost completely torn off while the left was crumpled in. Blood was seeping from his nose and mouth. Around the dragon, there were a bunch of broken trees. A pathway through the broken tree proved what Spike thought. The dragon had crashed. Stepping forward, Spike tasted the air. The dragon was dead, but had been for only a little while. Twilight walked forward, past Spike, to the dead beast. She looked him over before turning towards the group.

"Dead. Poor guy must have bled to death."

Fluttershy started sobbing while Rainbow Dash patted her back.

"Come on, lets get back to Ponyville. There's nothing we can do for him."

Everypony turned to leave. Except for Spike.

"Spikey? Deary, are you coming?"

The six ponies walked back to Spike, but he paid no attention to them. There was something in the air, Spike could taste it. His eyes turned to thin slits and his tongue darted out. A sudden wave of pure panic attacked him and he roared. Birds flew out of the trees and the Elements of Harmony jumped back in surprise. Spike was unsure why he was so panicked, but he followed what his instincts were telling him. He raced forward, right at the dead dragon's exposed underbelly. Screeching, his claws dug into the flesh just above the body's stomach. Spike started to rip away at the scales, clawing and biting to get through.

"Spike! What are you doing?!"

Twilight's magic grabbed his paws, but he yanked himself out of her magic. He snarled and finally broke through the armored scales. Blood seeped over his claws, but Spike ignored it.

"Spike! Spike, stop!"

Rainbow Dash dove down and grabbed him around his neck. He shook his head hard, flinging her away. Finally, Spike reached what he was searching for. With one last slice from his claws, a sack inside the dead dragon split open. Broken egg shells and a mixture of clear and white goop slid out onto the forest floor. Spike backed up and growled. There had to have been at least seven or eight eggs, but now they had died along with their father. Spike turned to leave when he saw it. A single black egg with red spots on it sat unharmed among it's dead brethren. Fluttershy rushed forward and picked up the egg, cradling it to her.

"Oh Spike! How did you know?!"

Spike paused. How did he know?

"I'm not sure. Some feeling I had? I don't know. . . "

Twilight looked sadly a the broken eggs before turning to Spike.

"I bet it was instincts. Come on, we need to get the egg someplace safe and warm."

"No."

They all stopped and looked at Spike.

"What da' ya mean, no? You went ta all that trouble ta save the egg, an' now you're gonna leave it?"

Spike shook his head and walked forward, gently grabbing the egg from Fluttershy's grasp. He wasn't sure why, but he knew that the egg would not be able to survive or hatch out in the open. Placing the egg on the ground, he huffed at it. He knew what he had to do, but would he be able to? There was only one way to find out. Spike picked the egg up in his mouth, tipped his head back, and swallowed. All six ponies screamed, and Spike winced at the loud noise. Focusing, he felt the egg drop down and he caught it in his crop. It settled down in the crop, right next to his stomach. The crop was warm, and the egg would be incubated there until it was ready to hatch. The girls, however, did not know this, and were freaking out. Both Fluttershy and Rarity had fainted, while Pinkie Pie was frozen solid in a form of shock. Rainbow Dash rushed forward and stuck her hoof in Spikes mouth, prying it open. She looked down his throat, calling out.

"Don't worry egg! If you can hear me, hold tight! I'm comin' after you!"

Spike grabbed Dash by her tail and gently pulled her away.

"Will all of you calm down and let me explain?!"

"Explain what? Tha't ya jus' ate a unhatched baby dragon? What in tarnations were you thinkin'?"

Applejack stood over both Rarity and Fluttershy, fanning them with a large leaf.

"What?! I didn't eat it!"

"Yes you did!"

Rainbow Dash crossed her hooves and hovered in front of him.

"No, I'm incubating it."

Four confused looks was all he received. He sighed.

"A dragon egg can not hatch out in the open, even if incubated by another creature. Only a dragon can keep it warm enough. The egg is in my crop, not my stomach. It's sitting next to my fire pouch, were it'll be warm."

Pinkie Pie looked confused.

"But Spike, you a boy dragon. Not a girl dragon. You can't lay an egg."

Spike blushed heavily, ducking his head.

"I'm not going to lay the egg! I'll spit it back up! Jeez. . . "

Twilight looked at her younger brother.

"Well, why don't we go find it's mother? She can hatch the egg."

Spike shook his head no.

"Females lay the eggs and then leave. It's the males job to incubate, hatch, and care for the young. And even if we did find it's mother, she would simple leave it. Female dragons have no real ability to raise young. Their job is to breed, lay eggs, and move on to the next male."

Pinkie snort and rolled her eyes.

"Well of course, everypony knows that!"

Twilight looked at Pinkie Pie before turning back to Spike.

"I didn't know this, and how do you?"

Spike shrugged his shoulders.

"Princess Celestia sent me an old book and a couple scrolls. The rest of it's just instincts."

By now Rarity and Fluttershy had woken up, and were being caught up by Applejack.

"Oh Spikey-Wikey, you're doing such a brave thing! I'm so proud!"

Twilight smiled and nodded.

"I'm proud of you too Spike."

A chorus of agreement reached his ears. Spike shyly smiled. Applejack spoke up.

"Err, can we be proud out of the forest and not next to a dead dragon?"

Everypony nodded and turned to leave. Spike looked back at the dead dragon, and bowed his head.

"Don't worry. I'll take good care of your egg. I'm sorry I couldn't help you more."

Spike took a deep breath and shot fire at the corpse. The body caught fire and started to burn away. Spike felt something soft brush against his spine.

'Thank you, young Spike.'

Spike looked around, but nopony else was there but himself. Spike bowed once more in respect, and turned to leave. He could feel the solid form of the egg sitting in his crop. Pinkie Pie bounced around them while they left the forest and the ashes of the dragon.

"I'm so excited! I'm going to throw a 'You're Pregnant!' party for you Spike, once we get back!"

Spike blushed and glared at the pink pony.

"I'm not pregnant!!"

Everypony laughed.
> Chapter 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight watched as Spike circled around the library, checking every nook and cranny. Spike stuck his snout under the sofa, before snorting. He pulled back and sneezed, a cloud of smoke and dust filtered away. Twilight giggled into her hoof. Nopony else was in the library, so the unicorn let her curious nature take over.

"Spike, what are you doing?"

Spike glanced over at her and shrugged.

"I don't know, checking out the library?"

Spike looked slightly confused, but he turned back to his scouting. Twilight thought for a moment.

"Hey, Spike? Can I see that book the Princess sent you?"

"Sure thing, Twi."

Spike trotted up the stairs and returned with a brown book. He handed it to her and she looked it over. It was worn down, but in good condition. The title was written in gold cursive letters.


Dragon Breeding: An In-depth Look at Rituals and Habits


Twilight scanned through the table of contents before flipping to the chapter she wanted.

Male vs Female: The Mating, The Eggs, and The Young

Mating: A female dragon is well known for their violent behavior and anger. It is no different in the process of finding and mating with a male. A female chooses the male on his body size and shine of his scales. If she finds the male appealing, she will approach the male and lift her chin. If the scales under her chin are white, she is ready to mate. If the male is willing, he will make a whooping noise in his crop, to show he is not incubating any eggs. If the male is unwilling or already has a clutch of eggs, the female will attack. She will either force the male to breed or try to destroy the eggs.

Twilight looked down at the book in horror. Female dragons would go that far? Dragons breeding didn't sound like a very romantic, loving event. She hesitantly continued to read.

After two days, the female will lay a clutch of fertilized eggs. There can be between 3-12 eggs. The male will give a roar, to help clear and open up the crop. He will then swallow the eggs and keep them incubated in his crop. The female's role is now done. She will leave to go find another male. The male is on his own in raising the hatchlings.

Eggs: The male will incubate the eggs in his crop, regularly turning the eggs. He keeps them warm by having them sit next to his fire pouch, which he will stir to keep the heat flowing. A male can occasionally be seen making a gurgling sound. This is how the male filter air in and out. Filtering the air is only needed in the week before the hatching

Hatching: The eggs will stay in the crop until it is time to hatch. Each egg will hatch around two hours apart from each other. When an egg starts to crack, the male will remove it from the crop. He will not let the egg out into open air. He will keep the egg in his mouth until the baby dragon is completely hatched. Once hatched, he will place the newly born dragon down, and blow a small stream of fire on it. Once all the eggs are hatched, the male will re-eat the egg shells. The shells will be half digested and fed to the baby dragons. It is from this point on that the work really begins.

Young: A male dragon will only leave the young for a little time in order to eat and expel waste. He will almost always be with the baby dragons, keeping them warm and feeding them. Dragons are omnivores, but the babies need high protein. The father will half digest food before feeding the young. It is quite often that during this time, a male dragon could loose up to a third of their body weight. Some have been known to starve to death, trying to feed their young. A male dragon will not mate again until the young are four years old. Even once the young dragons are four years of age, they will stay with their father until they are eight. Female will leave to go breed, but males will stay together in a family group. A male will only leave once he has his first clutch of eggs.

Adoption: It has been observed that male dragons will adopt eggs and newborns as their own. It is unknown why male dragons are so willing to raise children that are not their own.

Twilight looked over at Spike, who was lounging on the sofa. He was happily munching away at a fire ruby. If that's how dragon eggs hatched. . . then how did she hatch Spike? She needed to write a letter.





Dear Princess Celestia,
My friends and I found a dead dragon. It has all of us saddened. The male had been incubating some eggs. Most of the eggs were crushed, but one was saved by Spike. I guess you could call it the silver lining of a dark cloud. However, it has now come to my attention as to how dragon eggs hatch. This has me wondering; how was I able to hatch Spike? Where was Spike's father? Were there other eggs from his clutch? It would be most wonderful if you could provide me with this information, along with anything to help Spike raise the hatchling.

Your Faithful Student,
Twilight Sparkle





Princess Celestia read and reread the letter, sighing. She knew this day would come, but not this early, or with these conditions. She stood up and headed towards the Canterlot Library. She needed to grab a couple things before she headed off. It was about time Twilight and Spike learned the truth.
> Chapter 3
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It had been two days since Twilight had sent her letter, and she had gotten no reply. She wasn't too worried. Princess Celestia had royal duties to attend, but Twilight would have liked if she had at least gotten a confirmation that the Princess had received the letter. No response at all. Okay. . . maybe she was a little worried. The two days since the egg had been saved, and Spike was taking it all very seriously. Currently, the adolescent dragon was out gathering some gems.





Spike looked back at the wagon he was pulling. After a couple hours of digging, he had finally the perfect kinds of gems. He had rubies, garnets, emeralds, and he had even found some fluorite. Happy with his selection, he headed back into town. Several ponies greeted him as he walked by, he smiled politely back. Spike walked by the quill and sofa store, and froze in place. Unhitching himself from the cart, he placed it by the door and walked in.

"Ah, Spike! It's good to see you again! Are you here for some more quills?"

"Hello Davenport. No, actually. I was wondering. . . do you have any feather stuffing?"

Davenport scratched his chin in thought.

"I have some feather stuffing, but it's not in any sofa cushions. That okay?"

Spike smiled.

"That's perfect. Thanks!"

Spike paid for the large bag of feathers. He placed them in his cart. He stopped by Rarity's and knocked on the door. Rarity answered and smiled up at the dragon.

"Spike, darling! Is there something I can help you with?"

"Yeah, I'd like to buy some fabric, if that's okay with you, milady." 

Rarity giggled and let Spike in.

"Sure thing, oh Sir Spike. What kind of fabric and what color?"

"Cotton. One in black, one in purple, please."

Rarity went into the back of her shop, returning with the spools of fabric.

"Here you go, Darling. May I ask; what are you using them for?"

Rarity tilted her head up, and Spike caught a glimpse of the white fur under her chin. Usually Spike would feel a flood of happiness whenever he saw the underside of her chin, but now Spike felt afraid. He felt as if Rarity was about to attack him. About to crush the fragile egg that sat in his crop. He shook his head. Rarity would never do that. Even if she would do something like that, the young dragon was much stronger than her. Yet, the fear did not leave him.

"Spike? Spikey-Wikey? Are you okay?"

Spike swallowed and quickly paid, leaving behind a bewildered unicorn. Reaching the library, he grabbed the feathers and fabric, heading in. Twilight looked up from where she was organizing some books.

"Hey Spike! Uh. . . are you okay?"

Spike must have looked as scared as he felt. He smoothed out the expression on his face before turning to his sister.

"Yeah, I'm good.

Twilight frowned.

"What's with the feathers and fabric?"

Spike gave her a genuine smile at that.

"You'll see!"

Spike pranced out, only to quickly return with a load of gems in his mouth. Two more trips to get the gems, and Spike placed them down next to his bed. Twilight stepped up next to him.

"You're not planning to eat all those, are you?"

Spike snorted.

"Nah. This is for the hatchling, once he or she hatches."

Spike started to sort the gems by color and size.

"Need any help?"

He waved away his sister, shaking his head. Once the gems were sorted, he unraveled both fabrics. Taking his claws, he started to rip them into long thin strips. Twilight was confused. What was Spike doing? Maybe that book had something in it about. . . whatever Spike was doing. Twilight grabbed the book and settled down on her bed in the next room over. She opened it to the chapter she suspected she needed.


Nest Building


A nest is a vary important item part that all male dragons must construct. Male dragons will start to build a nest almost immediately after receiving the eggs. The nests are very similar to that of a birds. It is in the shape of a bowl, built out of what the male deans necessary. Usual materials include:
Gems
Stones
sand/dirt
clothes(stolen from ponies)
hay
sticks
feathers
leaves
scales(from male's own hide.)

It is also very important what the colors are. Most eggs are a different combination between the male and female colors. The nest will also be a mix of the male and female colors. This is usually four different colors that makes the nest

Twilight leaned to look across the hall at Spike's own bed. Sitting next to it was the beginnings of a nest. The fabric was woven together with the feathers. A few sticks she hadn't noticed made it very sturdy. The gems had yet to be put into the nest. It was then that she noticed the colors. Purple, green, red, and black. Purple and green were Spike's colors, and if she remembered correctly, the egg was red and black. Spike looked the half built nest over before he turned his head to his side. He sniffed at his scales before nipping at them. When he pulled back, a purple scale was clamped in his jaws. Twilight raised an eyebrow, but did not worry. She'd seen him do this before to remove loose or tight scales. However, he dropped the scale and looked surprised. He looked over at her from across the hall. He opened his mouth and blew a small stream of fire out. A scroll formed out of the smoke. 

On the ribbon was Princess Celestia's crest.
> Chapter 4
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight,
I'll be there shortly. Gather the other Elements of Harmony.
Celestia

Twilight looked at the letter before turning it over. Was there more on the back? Spike looked at her expectantly.

"Well? What'd she say?"

"She. . . said to get the girls together and that she'd be here shortly."

Spike raised a scaled eyebrow.

"That's it?"

"Yeah. That's. . . it. Nothing else. It's written very nonformally, almost as if she was in a rush."

Spike peered over her shoulder at the letter.

"Want to send something back?"

Twilight shook her head.

"No. . . no, I'll go get the girls. Would you straighten up the place a little?"

"Sure"

Twilight nodded in thanks and galloped out the door. Spike started to clean downstairs, putting away left out books and dusting the shelves. The young dragon felt a slight rolling feeling in his crop, but he didn't worry. It was his body subconsciously rotating the egg. Spike gave a slight huff as he stirred his fire pouch. Smoke escaped his nostrils as the inside of his body became a little warmer.

His concentration on the egg broke as he heard hoof steps approaching. Spike smiled. It had been only ten minutes since Twilight had left, but he wasn't surprised that she had been able to gather them all so quickly. Walking over to the door, he pulled it open. The slight smirk on his face dropped at the sight of Princess Celestia.

"P-Princess! Please, come in!"

Spike stepped out of the doorway, bowing his head as the sun demi-goddess walked in.

"Rise, my little dragon. There is no need for such formality among friends."

Spike looked up at Celestia's gentle smile. Spike smiled back and stood up onto all fours.

"Please come in."

Spike led Celestia into the main section of the library. Both of them sat down. However, Celestia's two guards stayed outside the front door.

"Um. . . are they going to come in?"

Celestia hid her smile behind her hoof.

"I don't think so. I fear Regal Mask and Thunder Twine take their jobs a little to seriously. They've been my personal guards for five years, and I have still not been able to make them take a vacation. . . or a simple evening off."

Spike looked at the two guards, who stood at the door. It was obvious that they could hear them, but were ignoring the conversation.

"You've got to give them props for loyalty."

Celestia looked at her two guard out of the corner of her eye.

"Oh, yes. They are by far the best guards I've ever seen."

Spike and Celestia shared a smile as the two royal guards stuck out the chest a little more, preening at the praise. The sun princess shook her head before turning her attention back to the young dragon in front of her.

"If I may ask, where is Twilight?"

"Oh, she's gathering all the-"

"Spike! The Princess's carriage is here! Is she-"

Twilight burst in through the front door, but didn't make it any further. Regal Mask and Thunder Twine had intercepted Twilight. Regal Mask had put up a shield of magic while Thunder Twine held Twilight down, his wings flared.

"Hey! Get off her!"

Thunder Twine was knocked off of Twilight by a cyan rainbow blur. Thunder Twine and Rainbow Dash tumbled before crashing into a bookcase. Thunder Twine had Rainbow Dash pinned. A quick scuffle ensured between the two royal guards and six mares, the guards coming out on top.

Rarity was being dramatic and screeching.

"My mane! Oh, you're ruining my mane!"

Poor Fluttershy had fainted. Spike stood up to help his friends, but Princess Celestia beat him to it.

"Stop!"

Spike had never heard Celestia use the Royal Canterlot Voice, but he was sure that was it.

"Regal, Twine, would you please release the Elements of Harmony?"

The two stallions looked over the mares before releasing them. Both bowed.

"Forgive us, Princess."

Celestia rolled her eyes.

"You two are wonderful guards, but you two are a little too overprotective."

Regal Mask and Thunder Twine didn't rise from their bow.

"Please wait outside, we will discuss this later."

The royal guards left, looking just like they had when arriving. Except poor Thunder Twine's wings drooped a little. Pinkie Pie looked over at the princess.

"You're not really going to punish them, are you?"

Celestia shook her head.

"Oh, no. They we're just doing their jobs. I only wish they wouldn't attack anything that moves too fast. I'll let them sulk a little before we apologies to each other. This is not the first time this has happened, but I do love them like family."

The six mares each took a seat, once Rainbow Dash had woken up Fluttershy. Twilight turned to her teacher.

"Princess, it's so good to see you. . . but. . . is there something wrong?"

Celestia sighed.

"I'm afraid my little ones, that I have not been completely honest with you."

Twilight looked nervously around the room.

"About. . . about what?"

"About your entrance exam to Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns. About Spike's egg and where he came from. About Spike's father."
> Chapter 5
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Celestia shuffled her hooves awkwardly.

"It all began about 300 years ago. I was exploring the mountains close to the Scorched Lands. . . "




Celestia stepped carefully over the rocky terrain as she walked up the mountain. She was here exploring the land that was adjacent to land of the dragons. Nopony ever came this close unless they were studying the dragons. This did not deter the Princess. She wished to know the entire land of Equestria and the territories that lay within it. Celestia had come across several signs that dragons had been here. Burns marks on the stones, old trees with claw marks in them. Even with these clues, they were old, and no dragon seemed to be around. Celestia spent hours wondering into caves, mapping out the area in her mind. Occasionally she came across the bones of long dead animals. 

A couple goats, a few deer, even the unlucky pony. The sun princess bowed respectively to every bleached white carcass she found. Hour later, she stopped to lower the sun and raise the moon. Once her sister's beautiful moon and stars filled the sky, Celestia set up a small camp. As she lay out her sleeping mat, a loud screech filled her ears. The alicorn jumped to her hooves, eyes wide in fear. Her ear twitch and swiveled, trying to locate the sound. Celestia heard a growl far away. Far enough for her not to worry. Celestia settled back down onto her mat, only to be startled again by a loud roar. She pinned her ears as she forced herself to sit back down. Another loud cry sent shivers up her spine that made her wing muscles spasm. Celestia may be a demi-goddess, but old equine instincts were prying into her mind. However, she cast them aside and forced her body and mind to remain calm. For the next 10 hours, Celestia was unable to sleep, listening to the anger, fear, and pain filled cries of some creature.

Morning came around as she bid farewell to the moon for the day. In the distance, Celestia could see rain clouds moving in. No pegasi were moving them, for these clouds were very much like the ones found in the Everfree forest. Another loud cry from the animal broke her musing. Celestia jumped slightly. Whatever creature that was, it was obviously getting weaker. Almost as if it was dying.

Dying.

Celestia jumped to her hooves, eyes wide. All creatures were the children of Lauren Faust, and she'd be damned not to help. Her ears swiveled, trying to locate this animal. It screeched again, and Celestia galloped forward. Fear raced through her veins, but her need to help was stronger. She jumped over a long dead fallen tree, and took a sharp turn around a rocky outcrop. She slid to a halt and stared.

Two dragons were facing off. One was looming over the other while it cowered. The tall standing dragon was a pale blue with pale green spines and underbelly. Except for the throat. The throat was completely white. The cowering dragon was a deep purple with gray spines and underbelly. Both dragons were injured, red blood splattered across the rocky slope. The purple dragon was bleeding heavily and it hissed up at the one above it. The blue dragon swiped at the other dragon, aiming for the upper chest. The dragon blocked with it's arm, but not without damage. It's foreleg was ripped open, down to the bone. The great beast fell to the ground. It growled up at the one above it, but did not get up.

A wave of fury washed over Celestia, and she gathered her magic at the tip of her horn. Without a single warning, it shot out and hit the blue dragon in the snout. It turned and hissed at Celestia, but drew back. It knew when to leave a fight to live another day. The dragon spread it's wings and took to the sky, circling once before leaving. Celestia snorted once and stomped her hoof.

A whine made her turn her head to the injured dragon. She approached slowly until she stood right next to it. The dragon dragged it's head across the sharp rocks, leaving a trail of blood. It looked at her before opening it's mouth.

"Thank you."

The dragon's voice was soft and weak, but obviously male.

"Do not thank me, for I can see now that you will not live. There is nothing I can do to stop the Queen from taking you."

The dragon smiled slightly.

"Yes, I know. I can feel Queen Faust now. I have to leave soon."

The dragon struggled to lift his head. Celestia stepped forward.

"Do not move. Do not waste your energy."

"It will do no good either way for me, but I beg of you. . . take my eggs."

Celestia's eyes widened as the dragon heaved twice before gently laying down what he had spit up. A pile of broken egg shells covered the dead bodies of full term baby dragons. It seems that they were almost old enough to hatch, but had been crushed and killed when the eggs had become broken. All of them were covered in a clear fluid or blood. Then she saw it. A dark purple egg with light green spots on it. The dragon looked over his dead children, and tears leaked from his eyes.

"Oh my little ones, I have failed you."

One of the hatchlings lifted it's head and cried out. Celestia's heart jumped. Maybe this one along with the egg could survive! Then she got a good look at it. It's lower body was crushed, both legs missing. It wouldn't even make it five minutes. For it to still be alive and feeling this was cruel. The adult dragon thought so as well. He lowered his head and nuzzled the baby before he quickly snapped it's neck with his claws.

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"

The dragon was now sobbing, and Celestia noticed blood seeping from his lips. The demi-goddess lifted the uninjured egg in her magic and brought it close to it's father. He looked at the egg and then to Celestia.

"P-Please take care o-of my hatchling."

Celestia nodded, tears of her own blurring her sight. The dying dragon pressed his cheek against the egg before laying down fully.

"I love you, my little hatchling."

His voice faded out and his body shuttered as Faust took his soul to heaven, to be with his children.




> Chapter 6
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Everypony sat there, stunned into silence. Spike was breathing heavily, at the edge of a panic attack.

"He. . . he just died? Just like that?!"

Spike jumped to his paws, eyes glossy with tears. Celestia hung her head.

"I am sorry, Spike. There was nothing I could do at that point. Maybe if I had reacted to the sound of fighting earlier, he would have lived. . . but I did not, and for that I am truly sorry."

Spike sat down heavily on his haunches. His mind was racing. His father had died. His nest mates crushed. Except for him. Why?

"Why? Why was I the only egg not crushed?"

Twilight ran her hoof down Spike's back spines, trying to comfort him. Celestia looked at him with tired, sad eyes.

"I do not know. Maybe you egg shell was harder. Maybe you were just in the perfect spot in the crop. Even I do not know why."

Spike started to cry, the boiling tears rolled off his cheeks and evaporated before they could hit the ground.

"Why?! Why did that dragon take everything from me?! My father, my siblings?!"

Everypony watched fearfully as Spike started to loose it. He was beginning down a steep, slippery slope. He mourned for the family he had lost before he was born. Spike turned and fled from the library, knocking over one of the guards by the door. He could hear as the girls called to him, tried to follow him. He slipped between houses and snuck through alleyways. Spike made a break for the Everfree, using his long legs to push himself faster.





Pinkie Pie followed her itchy hoof into the Everfree. Her Pinkie Sense led her to a clearing, Spike in the center. This was where they had rescued the egg. Spike was hunched over by the scorched earth, the dragon ashes having blown away. His shoulders shook as he sobbed. Pinkie's hair deflated slightly as she came up and sat beside him. Spike looked over at her before turning his head away. They sat quietly as Spike tried to stop his tears from falling.

"Well? Aren't you going to say something?"

Spike was angry. He wished Pinkie would do something, either talk to him or leave. This silence from her was unnatural. Pinkie looked over at him and gave him a small, sad smile.

"What is there I could say?"

Spike growled and started to pace in front of the pink mare.

"I don't know! Maybe 'It's not your fault Spike!', or 'Be glad you survived Spike', Buck! Even 'It's for the best Spike!' I don't care! Just tell me something!"

"You have Twilight as a sister."

Spike paused and turned to look at Pinkie Pie. She stood there, not frowning, but not smiling either. Her words weren't an accusation, just a simple fact. The adolescent dragon had never thought of it that way. For most of his life, he had sought after his biological family. The thought that he could only have one of his two families never crossed his mind. Pinkie continued.

"I know it hurts, Spike, but it's life. I wish I could say that a good joke or long laugh could fix this, but it can't."

"Will- will it ever stop hurting?"

Pinkie looked down, hair almost completely flat.

"No. There will be some days where you feel like everything is hopeless. Days where getting out of bed is hard, but on days like that, there's always something that makes it all worthwhile."

"What?"

"Friendship. . . love. Ponies say you can't choose your family, but I disagree. You guys are my family. The Cakes are like parents to me, the girls like sisters. And you? You're my big, strong, brave little brother."

"I. . . you're right. I may have lost my first family. . . but I got this one instead."

Pinkie Pie leaned into Spike as he wrapped his tail around her. The sat in comfortable silence before Spike spoke quietly.

"Who did you loose?"

The mare looked up at the clear blue sky, watched as birds flew by.

"My little brother. He was my responsibility and. . . and I-"

"It's okay. You don't have to tell me now."

Pinkie leaned further into Spike's side, content to just sit quietly with him. That was how the others found them.

"Spike?"

Twilight was worried. She didn't want him to feel sad, she hated seeing him like that.

Spike smiled slightly at them as the mane six gathered around him.

"And as sad as I am about loosing my family, I'm happy I ended up here with you girls. You're my family now, and I wouldn't trade any of you for the world."

Spike was soon in the middle of a group hug, and he felt a spreading warmness in his chest that had nothing to do with his fire pouch. The Princess appeared to the side. Twilight looked over at Celestia and rubbed her chin.

"Princess, I meant to ask, but did you say you found Spike's egg 300 years ago?"

Celestia nodded.

"Perhaps we should continue this conversation back at the library."





Celestia sat on the couch opposite the girls plus Spike.

"I was not able to hatch Spike's egg, even I could not use magic to force him to hatch. So I put a time vortex spell on the egg, freezing him in time. And I placed him in the unicorn entrance exams as a test."

Twilight flicked her ears back before turning them forward again.

"But. . . why?"

"Hatching Spike's egg was not the actual test. If somepony made it to that stage to try and hatch him, then they were already accepted into the school. It was a test to see how young filly and colts reacted under stress. It is a no-win scenario."

Pinkie bounced to her hooves.

"Oh! A Kobayashi Maru"

Rainbow Dash looked at the pink mare questioningly.

"A what?"

Pinkie giggled

"Never mind!"

Celestia shook her head in bewilderment before continuing.

"But Spike's egg was not only there for that. For the only pony who could hatch a dragon was one of the Elements of Harmony."

Twilight's eyes widened.

"You. . . you knew?"

"Yes. The moment Spike's egg hatched, I knew what power you had."

Fluttershy swallowed and raised her hoof. Celestia turned to her, nodding. Fluttershy squeaked and tried to hide further behind her mane, but asked her question.

"Did you know that the elements would be needed to stop Nightmare Moon?"

"Yes. That is why I sent Twilight to Ponyville. I could sense that the other elements were here."

"Sense? How could you sense them?"

Celestia paused.

"I. . . used to be the bearer of half the elements."

Nopony spoke, letting that sink in.

"Wait. . . half?"

"Yes. My elements were Magic, Loyalty, and Generosity. Luna wielded Honesty, Kindness, and Laughter."

Twilight held up her hoof.

"Wait wait wait wait. If she also held half of the elements, then how did she become Nightmare Moon."

Celestia sighed and closed her eyes.

"She lost them. She became jealous and vengeful, and the elements would not respond to her. In a last ditch effort to not kill her, I was able to use all the elements to banish her to the moon. In doing so, I also lost the power to wield them."

The princess of the sun paused, but nopony spoke.

"With no bearers, each element split in two. Half of each element stayed in their physical forms, while the other half of each element wondered the lands as pure energy. When the time was right, the elemental energy entered into six unborn foals. The six of you."

Rainbow Dash looked confused.

"What the hay does that mean?"

"It means that you are not only the wielders of the Elements of Harmony, you are the Elements of Harmony."