Ch.14: Healed Heart, New Friends

"…ink he's…king up…"

"…o worried…"

"…rble…ou hear me?"

Garble pried his eyes opened slowly as he then tried to focus his vision. When he did, he saw that he's in a bed in a hospital room. Surrounding him was everyone else: Princess Celestia and the Mane Six; the six Ponies' boyfriends; and the five members of his gang. Wait, someone's missing…

"Spike, where are—OWW!" He shot up quickly and lied back down again as pain shot through his left arm. He then saw that it's in a cast and sling, and his left wing is in a splint. There's also a bruise on his chest from the blast he took from Discord.

"It's okay, Garble," Spike said, going up to him. "I'm alright, but you should take it easy; you took quite a beating."

"Is he gonna okay, Doc?" Smokes asked the Unicorn doctor looking at a couple of x-rays.

"Well, he has a broken arm and wing," he answered, "and a bruise on his chest that will heal in a day or so. But other than that, he's going to be just fine. You were quite fortunate that Princess Celestia got him here quickly."

"Well, I'm glad that my bruise will heal up," Garble replied, resting his head into the pillow, "but how long do I have to stay here?"

"Well, it's hard to say since I'm not an expert on dragon anomaly," he answered. "However, I might give your wing and arm a week tops just to be on the safe side." The injured dragon groaned in reply.

"So I'm stuck here for a week?! Aww, man…" Twilight then turned to Garble's gang.

"If you like," she said to them, "you're welcome to stay here so that Garble won't be alone while he's healing up." They all turned to her and the Ponies in reply.

"You…really don't mind?" asked Haze.

"It's the least we can do," Pinkie Pie answered.

"Yeah, you helped us get Spike back," Rainbow Dash stated. "Sure, you wanted him back in your gang again, but you risked it all to save him from the Dragonheart Broken."

"Truth be told, we had no idea that y'all can take love that seriously," Applejack stated.

"Nope," Big Mac said with a shake of his head alongside Peter.

"Yeah," Bulldoze stated, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "That's why we stayed away from the other females until we're thirteen…"

"That, and the cooties, mate," Dai added. The others laughed in reply before leaning over to Garble's head.

"Also, we think this should be the chance we need to get to know one another better," she stated, "since we know so little about dragons."

Garble nodded in reply. He had a feeling that these Ponies don't know much about their kind out of fear of getting eaten, so getting to know these Ponies better might be a great idea like his father stated. Who knows? Each of them might share a common interest with one of the Ponies.

"Thanks," he replied with a smile.

Rarity turned to Spike when he tapped her shoulder and nodded to the door. She understood and followed him outside into the hall. The others didn't follow; they know this to be a private matter. Once in the hallway and at the side of the door, they turned to face each other.

"Rarity," Spike began, "I'm really, really sorry for running away like that yesterday."

"Spike, you shouldn't—"

"Please, just let me explain," he asked quickly, holding up his hand to stop her before he lowered it again. "I ran away because…Discord told me that I don't have a chance with you, just like Twilight said. He then showed me a mirror that he said would show me the 'true' feelings of the one I wish to see. It then showed me you, and you looked as though you were gonna cry. I then heard your thoughts…you said you couldn't love me 'cuz…I was too young for you…" He then started to tear up as he went on:

"You then decided…to tell me that…you don't me. I then felt as though…I could never find love in Ponyville…so I left…without saying goodbye…I'm really sorry." He then wrapped his arms around Rarity in a strong but loving hug, followed by his new wings.

"Shhh…it's alright, Spike," she said to her soothingly. "He tricked you is all. But it was also my fault. I should have told you how I felt after that growth spurt incident of yours."

"I just thought that…your calling your hero and the kiss on the cheek was all the evidence I needed to know about that," he stated with a sniff as he into her eyes. She smiled in reply as she gently wiped his tear away.

"That," she said, "and I was feeling shy. But no matter what happens now…you will always be my Spikey-Wikey." Spike smiled in reply before pulling her into a kiss on the lips, which she gladly returned with a smile.

Behind them, Princess Celestia watched them with a smile before bringing out her red book. Opening it and finding a blank page, she placed a horn on it and concentrated on a picture. When she was done, a picture of Spike and Rarity kissing in each other's arms and Spike's wings was on there. She then took out a quill and wrote down the title: Rarity's Jewel of Jewels.