Chapter 10.1, mini chapter: the train of everlasting memory

"Doesn't that sound great, you'd get to stay at the castle, all perks included and still stay with me!" twilight said in a excited rush, looking at an indifferent spike in bed. "I don't know twi…." spike was about to say until twilight cut him off. "You don't have to stay, come be a….."

"Spike, spike!" trixie jolted spike out of his half sleep dream, revealing him sitting side by side with trixie in a train seat. "Did we get there yet?" spike asked, trixie nodded and replied "no, it's only been two minutes and you're already trying to sleep". "Why do you care?" spike asked pessimistically. Trixie sighed, seeing that his attitude hasn't changed ever since they woke up this morning. She's been trying to talk to him all morning while they were packing for the ride to canterlot. "I wonder what's going on with him?" trixie thought to herself, becoming concerned with the drake. "Hey, um…. I'm sorry about my tone, i didn't mean it…" spike said in a much more downtrodden and softer tone. Trixie only nodded, not really sure whether to pry about his situation or not. "The train is nice" trixie commented, hoping to push spike to talk a little more. "I mean, this is what traveling with an official invitation from one of the princesses looks like, i mean, did you even look around you?" spike replied sincerely, trixie took a quick look around and realized an important detail. Almost all of the passengers on this train were official guard of the princesses, all wearing their trademark armor. "Ms. lulamoon, good morning" one of the guards addressed her, trixie soon realized it looked as if she was staring. "The same to you sir" trixie replied, getting a nod from the guard who addressed her, who immediately turned his head away from her. Trixie turned back around to see spike looking out the window with a feel of melancholy on his face. Trixie looked out the window and saw the small town of ponyville heading out of view. "Oh, you really like this place, huh?" trixie asked, spike said nothing on the matter. Trixie sighed once more, not tired but bored beyond belief. She looked out the window just like the disillusioned drake but even the seeing the perfect blue sky was disinteresting. "I guess this is gonna be the next 5 hours huh?" trixie asked. "Add an extra 2 and your right on the money" spike commented, trixie sighed once again but this time spike replied "and sighing isn't gonna make the train faster". "So now you talk" trixie quickly snapped back with an attitude. Spike looked back out at the window but then decided to say something "look….. I'm, well, not stoked to go" spike said, trixie confused at him restating this obvious fact. "Then why did you go?" trixie asked, spike then replied "i….. I don't know, maybe i'm morbidly curious". Trixie then asked "i hope you would be, how long has it been since you seen twilight?".

"Oh….. um, about 3 years" spike said passively. "time really has passed huh" trixie thought to herself. "I thought you two were like tight, what happened?" trixie asked, now is when she started feeling like she's pushing too much. Spike was quiet for a minute but he looked around realizing that there will be nothing changing for awhile so he might as well talk. "Well, it's not that we aren't close, we didn't even have a falling out, i chose one path and she had to choose another" spike said, trixie nodded but something didn't really add up about his story. "If that's the case, then why haven't you tried to visit or something?" trixie asked, spike had a readymade answer for this question "she's a princess, it's almost like she's constantly swamped by work". "Understandable, but have you actually tried to speak to her, you know, write a letter?" trixie asked, trying to extend the conversation. "Um….. i don't know, we all kind of lost contact like that…." spike replied, being given something to genuinely think about. "Really now, i would think at least applejack would still live in ponyville?" trixie asked. Spike shrugged his shoulders and replied "she's been m.i.a ever since the very last time all of us were in the same room". Trixie was intrigued by this fact and pressed on for more information. "And when was that?" trixie asked him, leading spike to answer. "We had a giant party at the treehouse before everyone went their separate ways, it was the last time we were able to make time each other" spike said this in more a whistleful way, almost baked in firm nostalgia. Trixie wasn't shocked by this tone he took but then spike shocked her by saying "funny thing, deciding to stay in ponyville was one of the most heat of the moment decisions i've ever made….." spike said this passively, almost as if he wasn't talking to her at all. "Sp….." trixie tried to gain his attention but that didn't stop him from talking. "It's the most vivid thing in my mind, i was sleeping in my little dragon bed upstairs, tired out from the party the night before…." trixie then gave up, deciding to listen to what he was about to say. "I was waking up but something was different, very different that day, instead of me cooking breakfast, the smell of burnt bacon hit my nose" this made both of them chuckle. "Twilight was a terrible cook but it didn't matter to me, it warmed my heart that she tried at all…." spike started choking up signified a certain part of the story coming up. "And then, i heard her hooves coming up the steps and the infamous offer came…."

3 years ago, minutes before twilight sparkle was leaving to canterlot

Spike heard the knocking on his door, knowing what about to come next. "Ok, your stomach is stronger then anypony, a twilight breakfast shouldn't be that bad" spike thought to himself before the door opened revealing an excited twilight. Twilight looked at spike's face, already knowing he had a whiff of the burned breakfast downstairs. "I know but i was in such a rush….. I wanted to do something special" twilight said, looking halfway frazzled already. This was signified by her unkempt and frizzy bedhead. "I got it, so, besides breakfast, is there anything you wanted to tell me?" spike asked, already knowing what she came up to say but scared beyond all belief. "I've asked the princesses and there seems to a vacant spot for a brand new right hand dragon…." twilight said, even with the amount of disarray her plans are in, this gave her the most excitement. Spike admired this but he already knew the answer he was about to give to her. "I'm sorry but no, i don't think i want that…" spike replied. Spike was fearful of the reaction that twilight would have after this answer. "What do you mean?" twilight asked, based on her tone, spike wasn't sure if this was denial or confusion. "I don't really want a position in the castle" spike clarified, solidifying what he wanted for himself. Twilight then sighed, spike thinking she finally realized where he stood. "Spike, think about it, you'd be part of royalty, we'd be standing side by side, taking on the world together…." twilight started making a rousing speech, it's almost as if her limited time was irrelevant to her. "Together….. Wait a minute…." spike's thought slipped out of his mouth. Twilight heard this and that excitement turned to concern. "Am i going to be….." before spike could finish his question, twilight returned to her mode of excitement. "Doesn't that sound great, you'd get to stay at the castle, all perks included and still stay with me!" twilight said in a excited rush, looking at an indifferent spike in bed. "I don't know twi…." spike was about to say until twilight cut him off. "You don't have to stay, come be a princess's assistant" twilight finally finished. This request was fresh from being asked to be rarity's assistant in manehatten, this became the final straw for spike. "I…. i can't twilight…" spike said, his voice was shaky and unsure at first. "Spike….. Are you sure?" twilight asked for the last time. The excitement in her voice was completely drained but she didn't seem sad about this answer. "Yeah, i'm sure" spike answered, finally in solidarity. Twilight nodded and walked out of the room. Spike solidarity was chipping away from him, his guilt rose but something didn't change. "Shit….." spike said to himself, the first time he's ever cursed and it's directed at no one but himself. Spike quickly removed the covers and almost lept out of his bed to chase after her.

He was steps away from leaving the room until he saw twilight heading back up the stairs, holding something with her magic. Spike decided to just wait for her return to the room. The closer and closer twilight came to him, the more he realized exactly what she was holding. Twilight finally reached him, inches away from the dragon at this point. "Spike…." twilight sniffled in the middle of her sentence. She then took a deep breath, not wanting to start waterworks before she left. "I'm giving you the treehouse….." twilight said, the weight of what she just said hit spike. "I…. i don't know what to say…." spike replied, surprised by the sheer amount of trust she has for him. "Take care of yourself, please?" twilight asked, sounding like a doting mother. Spike nodded, still in shock with her reaction to his answer. Spike and twilight embraced, spike could hear her taking a small breath of relief while he was holding onto her. "Good luck spike" these were the last words spoken by twilight before she walked downstairs and spike heard the shutting of the front door.

Present day

"Hmmm…." trixie said, sounding almost disappointed in the little story the drake told. "What?" spike asked, not sure why this was the reaction she was giving him. "Well i expected a bit more honestly…." trixie said, adding a shrug with the finishing of that sentence. "Didn't i say no type of fallout happened between us, i'm pretty sure i did?" spike asked, clarifying his past statement. "You did….. But what's bothering you about it?" trixie asked, not letting spike get out of their conversation easy. "Well, i guess…. Maybe i wanted more, i wanted her to be devastated, make me feel wanted…" before spike could finish, he felt a hoof smack hit the back of his head. "Owww!" spike reacted. Trixie sighed and said "twilight, not like you, that almost makes me wanna laugh". Spike took a second to reflect and realized how idiotic that actually sounded. "She adored you, you were family to her, and that's just from an outsider's perspective" trixie said, one detail managed to catch him off guard. "How would you know?" spike asked, this made trixie slightly uncomfortable. "Well, um…. I…." trixie was stuttering, spike actually started laughing before responding. "Please don't tell me, you were spying on all of us, weren't you?" spike asked. "Actually the truth is way more embarrassing…" trixie thought to herself before letting spike's assumption be the truth. "For a short minute, before i decided to cut town for good, i was plotting revenge" trixie replied. "So that's what pinkie meant…." spike said, trixie immediately turned to a shocked expression. "That pink fluff knows almost everything" trixie said, not intended as a joke. "Ha, pink fluff…." spike chuckled, finding what she said surprisingly funny. "Dear celestia, who knew you were so easy to impress…." trixie said. Spike shrugged, not really jumping out to deny this. Then trixie slipped out her most genuine smile, something that has been resurfacing with her newfound time in ponyville. Spike looked at her, almost like he saw this smile for the first time. Seeing this made him realize something very quickly "jeez, i'm gonna have to explain a who lot to twilight…." spike said passively. Trixie nodded, not really having anything to add with that comment. Spike then yawned, giving the sign that he finally was starting to get tired. "I think i'm gonna take a nap" spike said, the time started really dragging on him. "Alright, i'll hop in an empty seat then….." trixie replied, looking around for said seat. Spike didn't know the result of said search because he slowly drifted to the rest that he wanted.

1 hour later

Both spike and trixie didn't receive a visit from the princess of dreams. This wasn't a surprise for the both of them. Surprisingly, trixie's first waking thought was not the surprise of this fact but the disappointment. "I really wanted to see her again…." trixie thought to herself, eyes still fluttering awake. Lucky she remembered that the whole purpose of this trip was to see her. If she were to be the most honest about things, royalty was never that much of an interest to her. The most intrigued she became with royal politics is the nightmare moon situation. Her returning in the way that she did, almost a full reformation, intrigued her. However, she hasn't really kept tabs on whatever else has happened. "Well, that's a lie, my once mortal enemy is an alicorn….. So maybe some tabs became of interest" trixie thought to herself. Her mind was already full without even fully opening her eyes. "This seat is a little rougher then usual, wait a minute, who's snoring so loudly" trixie was thinking, getting her to start actually waking up. Then, she turned to make an embarrassing discovery. She was resting on the drake's shoulder. "Ahhh!" she mentally screamed. "I thought i went to find an empty seat….., that doesn't matter now!" trixe thought to herself, now just focused on finding her way off him. "Good, he's still snoring…." trixie now whispered, slowly lifting herself off him. Trixie then sighed, blushing like crazy at the idea of her ending up there. "What in the world….." trixie thought, wanting absolutely nothing to do with the feeling she's having right now. She heard spike shift in his seat and then a large yawn from him. "Oh, you're up…." spike commented, stretching his arms. "Who wouldn't with how loud you snore" trixie replied, returning things to a more casual state. "Sorry…. It's a dragon thing, if there is one thing i need ask twi about, it's this brew that she used to give me…." spike said earnestly. "Anyways, what got you in luna's good graces, enough where she wants to meet you?" spike asked. Trixie gave the equivalent of a shrug with her answer "i don't know, we kinda just talked about stuff, deep stuff actually…" trixie replied, vividly remembering their conversation. "What about?" spike asked, trixie was ready to fully tell him their conversation but she remembered another part of their conversation. "I… i can't, i promised not to tell, sorry" trixie said, feeling a sense of loyalty to the princess. "Hmm…." spike was thinking about something but that immediately turned the wrong way. You heard the hardest swallow in the world from spike. "Wait, what are you thinking?" trixie asked, curious as to where his mind is at. "Are you and her, do you like, i don't know….." spike then became extremely nervous. "Oh…." trixie replied, knowing where his mind was at. "Well…. Wait, why am i even entertaining that?!" trixie quickly redirected.

"Maybe you don't know yet, awakenings sometimes happen sooner then…." spike was about to say but he then felt a heavy hoof hit him once again. "Ugh, what are you, a boxer" spike commented, rubbing his arm. "Seriously though, we just talked, nothing more…" trixie replied, still slightly frustrated at his assumption. "Well you better be ready for it, it takes a lot to get the attention of the princesses" spike said. "I don't know, luna doesn't seem like she'd have a nose up at the common ponies" trixie replied, spike then shook his head in disagreement. "That's not what i meant, they are just very busy mares" spike replied, getting a nod in reply from trixie. "Well from my talk with her, luna is more down to earth then any of the earth ponies in ponyville" trixie said, intriguing spike just a little. "Twilight should be the same, i mean a title shouldn't change twilight sparkle, right?" spike was asking himself more then he was asking trixie. "Of course, i mean, she might just be busier then usual" trixie replied. Spike nodded, ready for this trip to just conclude at this point. Whatever happens, both of them were going to have to be inevitable be ready for it.

Canterlot, the quarters of princess luna

Her room was big, larger then than it actually needed to be. Her bed was actually the smallest part of this room. The large stained glass window with her crudely drawn character on it was a couple feet away from this bed. Giving her a bird's eye view of the entire city of canterlot, of course this is where she spends most of her mornings. Without this window, her room would be the most empty in the castle. Her closet was the smallest, only a small standing drawer with a couple of dresses and casual outfits for when she goes out. The mare was looking out of the window, viewing the guards and staff on a normal day. She was smiling, she so desperately wanted to be more connected with the ponies she ruled. As she was looking out this window, she heard a knock on her door. She quickly rushed to grab her royal necklace that was laying on her bed, reaching the door to open it. "Sister, i have some news for you, your visitors are arriving soon" celestia was looking at her sister with that same bright smile. "They plan on getting here in an hour or two knowing the trains in equestria" celestia said, getting her sister to chuckle. "Thank you, i shall be ready by then!" luna said with excitement, looking forward to her guests. "Could you also tell twilight about her incoming guest, i'm sure she will have the same amount of excitement as i do?" luna asked, her sister nodding in reply. "Ok, let me get ready sister" luna said as she quickly shut the door. Celestia chuckled at her sister's almost foal like excitement. "I wonder what's so special about her?" celestia thought before returning to her duties in the castle.

An: this time i'm early, kinda. Yeah, this is more of a small side story chapter. That's why it's so short but i hope it's a fun one. I thought i would release something before telling all of you that the canterlot chapters are getting a slight delay. A month exactly, i want these chapters to be really quality ones. So thank you for the support and see ya soon :)