Erza woke staring at a ceiling. The throbbing pain she had felt where the changelings scratched and bit her was gone. Erza lifted a hoof and saw that her wounds had been treated and bound. Slowly Erza pushed herself upright, fighting back the feeling of dizziness that assailed her.

"You shouldn't be moving yet." A voice came from the other side of the room.

Erza turned to the speaker and for the first time got a good look at her surroundings. The room was relatively large with pure white walls and dominated by four beds. Erza herself had been tucked into one bed. In the remaining three was Natsu, Grey and Gajeel, all similarly treated and tucked in. Across from Grey stood a white pony with a pink mane wearing a nurse cap.

"You still need your rest." The pony nurse said. "You used quite a lot of magic energy."

"I'll be fine." Erza said bluntly as she began to pull herself out of bed. "I just need to walk it off."

The nurse pursed her lips and in a few quick strides was in front of her. Before she knew what was happening, Erza found herself pinned down on the bed by the nurse.

"You lost a lot of magic and you need some more rest." She said firmly. "Please lie down and rest some more."

For a minute Erza stared at the nurse, who stared back at her with firm blue eyes. For a moment she considered pushing the nurse off and rushing out of the room to find Lucy, Levy and Wendy. But as she gazed into the nurse's eyes, something told her that wouldn't be a good idea.

"Fine." She grumbled grudgingly.

The pony smiled and got off of her. "In case your wondering," She said as she pulled Erza's blankets to cover her, despite the unicorn protests. "Your friends will be okay. We patched up your three friends over there. Nothing more then some scratches and bites. They'll be fine. As for your other three friends, their safe and sound and resting in another room."

Erza sighed with relief. As she looked at the ceiling, she thought of the previous night's events. They had been attacked and as they were evacuating the towns ponies, they'd run into trouble and tried to fight using their magic. However they were unable to use their magic. Erza remembered how she'd tried to use her magic like usual. She could feel the magic energy there, but it'd felt like there was a wall that prevented her from using it. Then, later when she'd reached deep within herself, something clicked. Before she knew it, she'd summoned one of her swords and without thinking, had swung it at the changelings.

'I was almost a goner.' Erza thought as she remembered her sudden energy drain and the second changeling attack. The she remembered the strange pony who had rescued them and how the changelings seemed to fear her.

Erza sat bolt upright, causing her head to spin and the nurse to take a step forward in case she tried to get out of bed again. Once she felt herself steady, Erza then turned to the nurse.

"Excuse me miss." She said politely. "But might I inquire as to who saved us?"

The nurse nodded. "You may." She answered. "You and your companions were saved by Princess Twilight Sparkle, ruler of Equestria. And in case you were wondering, you and your companions are currently in Canterlot Castle located in the royal capital of Canterlot. Not a lot of ponies can claim such an amazing honor. When she saved you, her royal highness requested that you and your companions be brought here. Tell me, how do you know the princess?"

"I can completely and honestly say that I don't know." Erza said. Her head was starting to spin, making it impossible for her to ponder on why such an important pony would bother with somepony she'd never met. Before she knew it, she'd blacked out.

/

The important pony in question hadn't slept all night. Earlier that day she'd felt the use of a powerful transportation spell not to far from the line. She had wanted to investigate imediantly, but another fit had hampered her. That was part of being an alicorn. It was like the land of Equestria was a part of her very being. In basic she could feel the imbalance and pain of the land as if it was her own. And with how the war was going, she often succumbed to fits of agonizing pain.

By the time the fit had ended, it was late and Twilight felt the changelings presence in a small town near the border. Against the advice of the royal coucilers she went to the town personally. When they arrived, Twilight had the honor of witnessing the most amazing thing ever. She saw a group strange ponies not only take on a swarm of changelings, but also evacuate as many towns ponies as possible. The very least she could do was help out the ones who had stayed behind to fight. The rest of the night had then been spent tending to the wounded(of which there was few) and evacuating every pony to Canterlot. As the strangers were brought to Canterlot Castle, she pondered on the mark the all wore. She knew its meaning and where it was from.

A pulsing thump pushed itself through her chest, leaving an agonizingly stinging sensation in its wake, breaking her from her train of thoughts. Twilight clutched her chest as she took deep breaths.

"Are you okay?" A concerned voice asked.

Twilight turned to the speaker, a tanish yellow pegasus with a blue mane dressed in the familiar royal guard armor.

She nodded to the stallion. "Don't worry about me Flash." She said. "I'm fine."

Flash narrowed his eyes at the princess. She was obviously NOT fine. But he couldn't argue with her since A. She was the princess and B. Twilight was the most stubborn mare he'd ever known. At times it was what he liked, and even admired, about her. Other times, like now, it just frustrated him to no end. Many members of the court and the Guard, including him and her friends, knew that she was suffering because of this war. But she'd refused to admit it, insisting on helping anyway she could. Even charging into battle.

Flash stared into his ruler's tired eyes for a full minute before sighing with defeat.

"As you say your highness." He said. "But please let me know if you need me."

Twilight grinned and threw her forelegs around his neck.

"That's why I love you." She said. "Your always looking out for me."

Flash smiled. After the princesses' journey through that magic mirror, they had gotten to know each other. And over time, came to love each other. Twilight had come to know the guard. He was different then the 'other Flash' she knew, but that wasn't nessicarily a bad thing. In fact it made him better. He was still kind and loving. But he was also brave, loyal and determined. All qualities Twilight loved about the stallion.

"Its good to know that I can provide such a valued service for you, your highness." Flash said as Twilight released her grip.

"Oh stop it with the 'highness' stuff." Twilight said, her cheeks turning red. "You know how I feel about that whole thing."

Flash blinked. "Sorry, Twilight."

Twilight smiled. "That's better." She said. "I hate it when everypony is so formal. Come on let's go check on our guests."

Twilight then started down the hall. Flash stood there for a minute, gazing at Twilight. Despite her cheerful attitude, Flash could see how her hooves trembled ever so slightly. As the war had progressed, she had gotten worse and worse. Some days she couldn't even leave her room. And whenever she did, the evidence of the pain she suffered was obvious, no matter what she said. There was always a pained look in her eyes. She always hid the fact that she had a hard time doing some things. Even her smiles were half hearted and pained. And her fits were the worst.

Flash almost growled in frustration. Twilight always seemed to be helping every pony, even though she herself hurt worse then anything. And there was nothing Flash could do to ease her pain. He was useless, and it frustrated him.

"Are you coming?" Twilight's voice broke him out of his thoughts. She had stopped halfway down the hall and gazed at him questioningly.

He smiled and trotted after her. "Sorry." He apologized. "I was lost in thought."

Twilight looked at him for a minute then shrugged. "All right." Was all she said. "Come on. I wanna see how their doing."

With that she rushed down the hall with Flash at her heels.

/⭐⭐⭐⭐

For the past few minutes the friends had been enjoying each others company. Lucy, Levy and Wendy had expressed their worry for their friends in various ways. Their friends in turn tried to reassure them.

Once every pony had calmed down, Erza told them what had happened to her after the boys passed out. She then told them what the nurse had told her earlier. A moment of silence ensued when she told them their rescuer's name and social rank.

"So let me get this straight." Lucy said. "We were rescued by THE ruler of this land and right now we're in one of the rooms in the castle?"

Erza nodded. "That's the basic truth."

Another moment of silence.

"That is so cool!" Lucy exclaimed.

Wendy nodded. "I've never been in a castle before." She said. "Its actually pretty nice."

"Yeah." Natsu agreed. "I wonder if we can explore."

"Castle and Princess a side there are certain questions that need answering." Erza said.

Another moment of silence as the others recalled the night's events.

"She's right." Gajeel said. "Like why our magic didn't work. Its not like that time in Edolas when there wasn't any magic. On the contrary, it actually feels like there's more magic here then at home. Not to mention it feels like my magic is still here. It just feels like I can't access it. So what went wrong?"

"That's easy. Magic here works differently then magic there." A voice piped up.

Startled, everypony turned to the source. Standing in the door were two ponies. The first was taller then all the ponies present. With a violet body and a purple mane with a pink streak and darker purple streak. Her deep violet eyes shone brightly and protruding from her head was a long purple horn and neatly folded across her back were a pair of wings.

The second pony was a slightly shorter stallion with a tanish yellow coat and blue mane, dressed in beautiful golden armor though without his helmet.

Though she didn't have her armor or crown, Erza immediately recognized the taller pony and immediantly straightened.

"Princess Twilight." She said.

For a moment every pony gawked at who Erza had identified as royalty. In that time said royalty blushed and grinned.

"No need to be so formal." She said, snapping every pony out of their stupor. "You can just call me Twilight or, if you want, Twi. A lot of my friends call me that."

More surprised expressions.

"Sorry for inturupting." The Princess apologized. "I was just wondering how you were doing and I thought I might answer your question."

This pony was different then they had expected. At some point in their lives, everypony had met somebody of lower rank then her who thought they were 'god' or something along those lines. This pony however was just so...casual. It baffled everypony.

For a minute there was silence. At that point, Twiligh realized that they weren't going to be saying anything for a good while.

'Of course they would react this way.' She thought to herself. 'It's a lot to take in. You can't just drop everything on them like this.'

"So would you like to join us for dinner?" She asked. "The doctor says that you will have recovered by this evening so why not enjoy a meal. It'll just be me and a few of my closest friends. I think you might like them. And don't worry about clothes. It'll be nothing fancy just come to the dining hall and enjoy yourself."

She stood there a minute more as awkward silence filled the air. Eventually she couldn't take the awkwardness and she had begun to feel a spike of pain rise in her chest. Not wanting to concern her guests, she left the room to tell her friends and lie down so she'd be ready for tonight.

Meanwhile back in the room, once the ruler had left, Levy seemed to get over her shock enough to speak.

"Guys, did we just get invited to have dinner with royalty?"

That evening, after some searching, the group found the dining hall she spoke of. It wasn't that big of a room. In fact, in comparison to other rooms they'd seen that day, it was quite small. It was beautifully decorated and quite cozy. Nothing about the room made them feel like they were small. The center of the room was dominated by a rather table that was surrounded by chairs, many of which were occupied.

As the group entered the room, all eyes turned to them. For a minute, they all felt the intense curious stare of several pairs of eyes and in that minute the group felt a feeling of awkwardness.

"There you are!" A somewhat familiar voice piped up. Across the table, the Princess rose from her seat and approached the group. Still not used to the idea that this pony was royalty, they stood there staring at the mare who just smiled brightly at them.

"Come and have a seat." She offered, gesturing to the table. The ponies obeyed, mingling with the the already present ponies.

"Why don't I introduce you to my friends!" Twilight said brightly as she sat back down. She gestured to a white unicorn with a fancy dress and her purple mane done up in an elaborate hair do.

"This is Rarity." She introduced the pony. "She's a fashion designer her in Canterlot. She's also a good friend of mine, my fashion advisor and a bearer of the Element of Generosity."

The unicorn smiled warmly and put her hoof out. "A pleasure to meet you all." She said as Erza shook her hoof. The other pony next to her, and orange pony with a blonde mane wearing a Stetson leaned towards Erza.

"Don't let let her frou frou look fool ya." She whispered. "She can be tough as nails when she wants ta. Jus, don't cross her."

Erza nodded, making a mental note of that. Princess Twilight smiled and gestured to the orange pony. "This Applejack." She said. "She's my head grounds keeper and an amazing apple farmer."

Applejack blushed. "Aw shucks. T'aint nothing." She said as she pulled her Stetson forward to shield her face. "Any earthpony could do it."

"Nonsense." Twilight said. "She's also a good friend, my agricultural advisor and a bearer of the Element of Honesty." Applejack's blush deepened.

Twilight then turned to the the next pony, a cyan colored pegasus with a rainbow colored mane. "This is Rainbow Dash." She introduced. "She's..."

"The best best flyer in all of Equestria." Rainbow Dash interrupted. It was obvious what kind of pony she was.

Twilight playfully rolled her eyes. "Yes Dash, we know." She said playfully. "She's also Captain of the Wonderbolts, strike leader for the best strike force and a bearer of the Element of Loyalty."

Rainbow Dash puffed her chest for a minute then turned to Natsu, jabbing him in the side with her 'elbow'.

"So I here you and your friends are pretty good at smashing changelings." She said in a suggestive tone. She then placed a hoof on her chest. "Well your looking at the changeling smash master."

Applejack nodded. "Currently she holds the record for the most changelings smashed."

Natsu's grin resembled Rainbow's. "Well then I'm going to have to break it." He he said.

Rainbow's grin broadened. "Bring it on." She replied. An audible groan rang across the table as both parties knew what this meant. Those two were so similar, it was almost scary.

Twilight chuckled good humoredly and turned to the next pony, a butter yellow pegasus with a soft pink mane who half hid beneath the table.

"This is Fluttershy." She said gesturing to the trembling pegasus. "She's our animal caretaker, a good friend and a bearer of the Element of Kindness."

Fluttershy averted her eyes and blushed. "Um hello." She said so quietly that they barely heard her.

'She's gotten braver.' Twilight noted. 'Usually she would just hide under the table. But then again we've all had to pluck up our courage these past few years.' As she thought this, another sting of pain coursed through her and she stiffened for a split second.

During this split second of silence a bright pink pony bounced forward and introduced herself.

"Hi I'm Pinkie Pie!" She declared in a loud voice as she suddenly bounced in front of Gajeel's face, causing him to stumble back in shock. "You guys are new here right? Twilights told us a lot about you. She says that you guys great friends who stick out for each other. That's great you know. It really awesome how you stick out for each other and all that great stuff. It's great to know some pony's got your back isn't it. I know we stick out for each other. Especially Twilight, since mmmph..."

At that point Applejack had stuck her hoof in Pinkie's mouth, cutting off her rapid fire 'conversation'. She briefly shot the pink pony a death glare. "That is not something we talk about at the dinner table." She said softly. Out loud she said. "It's 'bout time for dinner isn't? Why don't you sit back down."

Pinkie nodded as Applejack removed her hoof. "Sorry 'bout that." She said as Pinkie reassumed her seat. "She gets really excited when she meets new ponies. Sometimes she doesn't make any sense, but we find it best to just roll with it."

Gajeel just nodded, still surprised by the pony's sudden excitement.

Twilight nodded. "And finally you've already met Flash Sentry, head of my personal guard." She said, gesturing to the pegasus next to her. Immediantly they recognized the pony sitting next to her as the one who had been with her earlier that day.

The pegasus nodded. "Pleased to meet you." He said.

"Well now that we're all introduced, let's eat!" As soon as Twilight's sentence ended, a door opened and a group of unicorns trotted in, levitating platters of food. The meal was a simple but hearty meal. The ponies enjoyed delicious foods such as salad, hay soup, sandwiches and at they end for dessert, some of Applejack's famous Apple Family apple pie. Over the course of the meal, every pony enjoyed each other's company, engaging in delightful conversation.

The guests learned that many of these ponies (with the exception of Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Flash and Twilight) had spent their entire life in Ponyville. Applejack talked of the Apple farm she'd grown up on.

"Every pony used ta say that the best apple in all of Equestria was grown at our very own Sweet Apple Acers." Applejack said proudly. "And when cider season rolled around or during the zap apple harvest, ponies would come from miles around to have a taste."

All could tell that she was a hard working pony who took pride in her work.

Rarity lived in Ponyville all her life and used to have a boutique called Carousel Boutique there.

"It was my very first business." She said with a smile. "Built out of nothing and every design was a labor of love and extremely unique. Why, even when I was a filly, I had a love of fashion and a passion for the fabulous. Sometimes I would make one of a kind designs just for my friends. Remember the Grand Galloping Gala dresses. Why the Gala didn't turn out as we hoped, I like to look on the bright side. I stopped falling over the disgusting excuse for a prince and I took my first step towards being a top designer. Some ponies still talk about those designs."

Rarity was a bit of a diva, but it was like Applejack said. She wasn't afraid to get her hooves dirty if she needed to.

Rainbow Dash originally lived in Cloudsdale till she got her cutiemark, a cloud with a rainbow colored lightning bolt, and then she moved to Ponyville where she was head weather pony till she joined the Wonderbolts.

"Even though it was quiet most of the time, things were still pretty exciting in Ponyville." She said. "Things could get pretty exciting sometimes. There was whole Nightmare Moon thing, and then there was the ursa minor and who could EVER forget the parasprites. Cute as they are, they reproduce like nuts and eat a LOT. When we had to deal with them, we almost lost half the town."

Rainbow was brash and cocky, but one couldn't deny that she was feircly loyal to her friends.

'Not unlike Natsu.' Lucy thought as she watched the two hoof bump.

Fluttershy also used to live in Cloudsdale before she came to Ponyville. However unlike Rainbow Dash, she was quiet and shy.

"Back in Ponyville I used to take care of animals." She said quietly. "I lived in a little cottage outside of Ponyville. I would take good care of the animals."

Fluttershy was quiet, but she seemed very kind.

Pinky Pie had grown up on a rock farm outside of Ponyville. After she discovered her cutiemark she moved to Ponyville where she spent her days making every pony smile.

"Back in Ponyville I knew every pony." She said bubbly. "If I didn't know you then that meant that you were new in town. And if you were new in town then that mean that you had no friends. And if you had no friends then that mean that you were lonely and so I would this a big party and invite every pony. Actually, I should throw a party! In honor of our guests!"

Pinkie Pie was energetic to be sure. But they could tell that she gueniuenly cared about her friends.

By the the time dessert came around, every pony had gotten to know each other. By the end of the meal, it was like old times with new friends. Twilight smiled as she watched her friends interact with the newcomers. Rainbow and Natsu were bragging about their accomplishments. Gajeel and Grey was sitting there with amazement as Pinkie pulled her party canon out and proceeded to shoot everything in sight. Fluttershy was coddleing Carla, Pantherlily and Happy. Levy, Lucy and Erza had been assaulted by Rarity, who'd declared that she would make outfits for them and promised Lucy that she would craft a belt for her keys. And Wendy listened in amazement as Applejack told her stories about Equestria, Ponyville and her family. And as Twilight watched the sene before her, for a moment her pain was forgotten.

Soon after the meal was finished, Twilight anounched that she was tired and left the room followed by Flash. Every pony else however moved else where, proceeding to give their new friends the tour of Canterlot Castle, talking along the way.

As they were led into the the grand hall, where large parties were often held, the group met a strange creature. It was slightly larger then a pony. With a long tail, clawed feet and a long neck with an elongated jaw. It was covered in purple scales with a ridge of green spikes running down its back. It's reptilian eyes were emerald and it wore a beautiful set of armor around its chest and on it's upper forelegs. As the creature walked up to them, upon getting closer, Natsu immediantly identified it.

"DRAGON!" He said excitedly rushing forward.

The dragon halted, a look of bewilderment and surprise plastered across his face as he looked at the pony that had suddenly found himself right next to him.

"Ummm yeah I'm a dragon." He said uncomfortably as he took a step back, his eyes darting to the side. "Why?"

At that point, the group reached the dragon. He turn to them and relaxed somewhat, still keeping some tenseness as he glanced at Natsu.

"Spike!" Rarity cried as she threw herself at the dragon. Spike caught her and for a moment the hugged before her put her down. Rarity looked him over and she began to straighten his armor.

"My my your a mess." She said as she rubbed some dirt off his armor with a handkerchief. "When did you you get back."

"Just now." He answered. "I figured I might drop in on my friends and make sure everything's okay. Plus I kinda missed you all."

Every pony saw him blush.

"So," He said quickly. "Who are these ponies? And what's with him?"

Spike pointed a claw at Natsu. Immediantly Natsu grabbed the claw and stared at him.

"Excuse me, but have you seen a red dragon named Igneel?" He asked.

Spike looked at him confused.

"I've met a lot of red dragons in my time." He said. "But never have I met a red dragon named Igneel."

Natsu's face fell and Spike looked apologetic.

"Sorry if I couldn't help you." He apologized. He then turned to the group. "You guys wouldn't happen to know where Twilight is would you?"

"She said she was tired and left with Flash." Applejack answered. "I reckon she's in her apartment."

Spike nodded and rushed out of the room.

"What was that all about?" Wendy asked as they continued on their tour.

"Oh well Spike and Twilight have been together for a long time." Fluttershy answered quietly.

Rarity nodded. "Indeed." She said. "Back when Twilight was a filly, as part of the exam to get into a school, Twilight had to hatch a dragon egg. Long story short she succeeded. Normally baby dragons are cared for for a few months at which point they leave of their own accord. Spike was different. Aside from his lack of wings normally seen on a dragon, Spike had attached himself to Twilight and since then she's been like a mom, big sister and friend rolled into one. Recently however, Spike has made certain discoveries."

"Yeah see," Applejack said. "Turns out the little fellar is what ya might call a rare magic dragon. They've been seen by other dragon as very powerful leader figures. Spike has capabilities dragons can only dream of. Longer story short, Spike basically became the dragon king. Even though he don' look like much. Usually he spends his time leadin his armies against the changelings along side our own armies. But let's not get into that. Why don't we show y'all the kitchen!"

Spike made his way across the castle to Twilights chambers. Standing outside her door, Spike saw the familiar figure of Flash. Flash was a decent pony. He was pretty much the only male outside her family he could trust to be in the company of his surrogate 'mom'. Ever since he was little, she had pretty much been his family. She raised, taught and when she needed to. She was pretty much his entire family, and Spike instinctively felt a little protective towards her. Especially since she started having fits.

Spike mentally cringed as her remembered the first time she'd had a fit.

'Seven years and that moment still disturbs me.' He thought to himself as he approached Flash.

"Hello Lord Spike." He greeted evenly. "I didn't know you were coming."

"I just got here." He answered. "And please stop being so formal. I told you to think of me as family. Especially with your relationship with Twilight."

Flash blushed. "O-of course, Spike."

Spike grinned. As much as he respected the guard, he could never resist poking fun at him. Then his smile faded as his expression turned from playful to dead serious.

"Anyways to the point." He said.

Flash's blush faded as his own expression sobered.

"I heard Twilight went to confront the changelings." Spike said, a questioning tone in his voice.

Flash nodded. "Yes the changelings attacked a town and Twilight went to confront them." He answered.

Spike sighed as he gazed at the massive doors that lead to her room. "She shouldn't push herself like this." He said. "She's weak enough as it is. She shouldn't be pushing herself."

"She is just doing what she feels is best." Flash defended. "We both know that she is determined to take her part in the war as Equestria's leader."

Spike turned go him. "I know. I know." He said. "I'm just concerned for her."

"As am I." Flash said quietly as he turned his gaze to the ground.

For a moment the stood there quietly, both of them feeling frustration at their own uselessness.

Finally Spike cleared his throat. "I'm going to go in and see her." He said, plain and simple.

Flash nodded as Spike pushed the double doors open and walked in. The room was large to say the least. To one side he saw a desk furnished with paper and writing utensils. Many of the walls were covered with bookshelves loaded with books and there was a chair for comfy reading. The roof above them was a skylight, displaying the night sky in all its glory. And to one side of the room was a set of doors that led to a balcony.

A feeling of nostalgia washed over him as he looked the the room over. He remembered living in this room with Twilight after her coronation.

'Such good memories.' He thought. He then turned his attention to the bed opposite him. It was a large canopy bed with purple curtains draped over it. As he made his way across the floor, his sharp eyes saw the shadow of a balled up figure and her sharp ears detected the small groans let out by the figure.

"You really shouldn't be so reckless." He said once he found himself next to the bed. The moans stopped abruptly as the figure shot up.

"Come to think of it, when did you get so reckless?" He continued. "I remember there was once a time when you would panic at the thought of being center stage with every pony depending on you."

"You here?!" Twilight asked surprised as she pushed the curtain open. "When did you get here?"

Spike smiled. "Just now." He answered. "I met your guests. They seem like interesting ponies."

Twilight grinned. "They are." She said. All of a sudden she doubled over as wave of agony swept over her. In an instant, Spike had wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into an embrace as if to protect her from the pain that racked her body. As he cradled her in his arms, he could feel her body pressed against his. Against his larger body, he could feel her smaller body tremble wildly. She felt so weak. So frail. Like he could accidentally crush her if he squeezed too hard.

Instinctavly her pulled her closer, wishing that he could stop her pain and suffering. It was at moments like these that he felt the most useless. Even the best doctors couldn't ease her pain. He could barely supress a growl of frustration.

As Spike thought these things, Twilights trembling stopped and she turned to the dragon, surprised to find herself in his grasp.

"Spike." She said, breaking him from his thoughts. "You can let go now."

Spike gave Twilight on last squeeze before releasing her. "I heard you went to fight against the changelings." He said, regaining his composure.

Twilight nodded. "I felt that they were attacking and I couldn't just sit by." She said. "Besides, 'nanny', I didn't even fight. All it took was a stun spell and the royal Canterlot voice and suddenly they were falling over themselves to get away."

Inwardly, Spike breathed a sigh of relief. "You still shouldn't have gone." He said. "What if something happened? What if you had one of your fits?"

"I can't sit around all day Spike." Twilight replied. "Equestria is my responsebilty. I can't just leave it to every pony else just because I'm sick. During times like this, a strong leader is needed. To inspire hope in the the hearts of those who need it. Besides, it doesn't hurt that bad."

Twilight was stubborn. And Spike had to conceded defeat. Even if he didn't want to. Instead he grasped her tight in a gentle hug. Twilight rested her head on his shoulder.

"I worry about you." He whispered. "If I lose you, then who else am I going to have?"

Twilight's eyes softened as fatigue began to weigh her down. "I'm sorry." She whispered back. "I'll try to be more careful next tim..."

Spike looked down and saw that Twilight had nodded off. He smiled as he lay her down on her pillow and tucked her blanket onto her.

'I remember when I was younger and Twilight would tuck me in just like this.' He thought as he pulled the curtains closed and left the room, closing the doors behind him gently. His thought of the days when he was younger. His infancy and egg life was a haze. The first thing he could remember was a powerful warm sensation as he hatch. The next thing he remembered was growing to several times his size as vast amounts of power surged through him suddenly. Then he returned to his normal size.

Throughout his infancy, he remembered a warm motherly feeling around him. It made him happy. In his later years things became clearer as he met the source of the glow and the one who had hatched him. Twilight Sparkle. Magic prodigy and mother figure. That's what she was to him. Over the years she taught him many things. How to walk first. Then how to speak. His first word had been Twily. He smiled fondly at the memory. He had learned that from Shining Armor and since he couldn't say her full name yet, he called her Twily for a while.

Once he had a grasp of words and grammer, along with the mechanics of body movement, Spike moved on to the next step. Twilight had then taught him reading, writing, spelling and math. Over the years he had became her faithful friend and assistant. And when they moved to Ponyville, he continued in helping her with her studies.

As he walked, he thought of all the adventures that they had in Ponyville. He rembered their first adventure when they'd turned Nightmare Moon back into Luna. He rembered with delight the time when they'd tried to rescue Rarity from the diamond dogs and the shock they'd had when the diamond dogs begged on paws and knees for them to take her back. He giggled when he remembered the time Twilight learned about Pinkie Sense and ultimately gave up trying to fight it.

These and many other fond memories were precious to Spike.

Lost in his thoughts and memories, Spike didn't notice the mare rounding the corner until he collided with her. Cursing himselfmare not paying attention, Spike got up and turned to the mare. There in front of him was a pale yellow pegasus with a long golden mane and a ring of strange keys for a cutiemark.

"Sorry." Spike apologized as he held his claw out to the mare. The mare took the claw and Spike pulled her to her hooves.

"Don't apologize." She answered. "I wasn't paying attention."

"Neither was I." Spike countered. At that point Spike noticed the group behind her.

As he released the mare's hoof, Applejack trotted forward. "You two okay?" She asked with concern in her voice.

"Just fine Applejack." Spike answered.

The mare nodded. "It was just a little surprise." She said.

Applejack grinned. "Okay then." She said. "Next time watch where yer goin'. Both of ya."

Laughter all round.

"By the way." Spike started. "I didn't catch your names. Care to introduce me?"

"Oh! Sorry." The pegasus mare apologized. "I'm Lucy."

"I'm Erza." Another pony said.

"Grey." Said a stallion.

"Gajeel."

"I'm Wendy."

"And I'm Levy."

"I'm Natsu."

"I'm Happy." Said a strange blue cat. "This is Pantherlily." He pointed to a black cat. ""And Carla." He pointed to a white female cat with a dress.

Spike nodded to the group. "Well, as we say, 'its always good to make new friends.' He said. "I hope you enjoy your stay here."

They nodded back. "We were just going to our rooms." Erza said. "Its late and we want an early start on the day."

"Then by all means." Spike said stepping aside. "Don't let me stop you. It was nice to meet you all. Sleep well and see you tomorrow."

"So you'll be staying?" Lucy asked.

Spike nodded as he proceeded down the hall they came from.

"How long do you plan on staying?" Natsu asked.

Spike shrugged as he pulled open the doors to his own room. "I guess I'll be around awhile."

"Cool." Natsu said with a grin. "See you tommorow."

"Likewise." He said as he pulled his doors shut, ending the conversation.

The group continued down the hall. As they walked, their new friends would point out various things.

As they continued down the hall, the group found Flash standing outside of a large set of double doors with winged unicorns (their friends had identified them as alicorns) carved onto the wood. The alicorns stood on their hind legs with forelegs pointing up. Above one was a golden sun. Above the other a silver moon. And in between the two was a large six pointed star. They assumed that this room was Twilight's.

As they passed the door, Erza stepped forward towards the door, causing the group to stop. Upon her approach, Flash stepped forward in front of her.

"May I help you?" He asked calmly.

"I never got the chance to formally thank Princess Twilight for her help." Erza answered, her voice even. "I know that if it weren't for her, I wouldn't be standing her right now. It would be criminal if I don't apologize formally."

Flash nodded. "Your sentiment is understandable." He said. "However, Twilight has already fallen asleep. Besides I'm sure she doesn't mind. You can give your thanks tomorrow."

Erza blinked and bowed. "Very well." She said. "I'm sure it can wait a bit longer of her highness doesn't mind."

Flash smiled. "I'm sure." He said. "Just don't call her 'highness'. She hates it when her friends use that title."

"I'll keep that in mind." Erza said as they walked away.

After having the room arrangements sorted, boys in one big room, girls in another, Erza had to admit to herself that what she'd said to Flash was only half the truth. While she did want to thank the monarch for saving them, she also wanted to ask her why she knew what she knew about them. When they first met her officially, the first thing that she'd said was that 'magic here works differently then magic there'. It was like she knew they were from a different world. But how could she know? And why did she have them brought to the castle?

Erza sighed as she pulled her blankets up. 'I'm just going to wait until tomorrow.' She thought. Soon after this thought, she fell asleep.