Chapter Five

Kiss of the River

The pair had managed to travel through the jungle for another hour before a new obstacle presented itself. Spike and Celestia knew from the waterfall off in the distance that there would be rapids along some stretch of the river, but they had not expected it to be so close to the thorn wall.

To say it was a small river might have been an understatement. It was not terribly wide, maybe no more than forty feet across, but the water rushing through it looked strong enough to crush anything that entered into its fold. The turbulent water that lay before them was somewhat colored like chocolate, with the occasional boulder sticking out along the waterway. Moss grew on the boulders and smaller rocks lining the banks, and nearly every tree along the banks had dead branches so long that the sparse canopy overhead was like a woven basket. Foam frothed in the small whirlpools and eddies that lay behind every large boulder, with more resting in the much calmer waters of a few sheltered banks. In short, it wasn’t a good river to try and cross, especially with the rains from the day before having given it an extra surge in might.

“Well, how do we cross?” Spike asked, walking up and down the surprisingly brush-clear bank. A good five foot-wide swath followed the stretch of the river, clear of all brush like somepony had come through with a giant brush cutter. “We can’t swim, obviously.”

“Indeed, and we cannot hope to jump from rock to rock,” Celestia said as she walked with Spike. “They are far too slippery; the water has worn them down to a smoothness resembling a tile floor.”

“What about climbing through the branches?” Spike asked, glancing up at all the dead branches like they were the thorn wall all over again. “Some of those bigger ones look sturdy.”

One such branch snapped off at the base the minute a butterfly landed on its outermost tip, sending the wooden debris tumbling end over end into the raging waters below. The butterfly flew off in a perceivable panic while Celestia simply shook her head.

“None of them will support our weight,” she said, watching as the branch was broken apart on the rocks. Little slivers and pieces of it floated down stream like tiny boats, only to be swallowed up by a whirlpool behind three large boulders. “And even if they could, it would be very dangerous to us both. If either of us fell in that water, I doubt the other would be able to reach them in time.”

“Yeah,” Spike muttered as he strolled along the bank, looking for a way, any way, to get across. The jungle eventually gave way to the grass hills, and then the old lava flows, and from there they still had to scale the mountain to wherever Celestia had hidden... whatever it was she had. But the real trouble was the here and now, not the possibilities of the future part of the journey.

Walking up and leaning against a dead-looking tree, Spike gently tapped his tail against the base as he further descended into thought. Celestia, wrapped in her own musings, leaned on the same tree right alongside him. Her own thoughts mirrored his own, a nice change of pace from the confusing and oddly comforting thoughts about each other.

Celestia, as it so happened, glanced up at the tree they were leaning against, a possible idea forming in her head. Could they build a boat from the trunk of a tree? “Not likely; none of these trunks are thick enough for a makeshift canoe, and we don’t have any strong vines or equivalent rope-like material to lash a raft together,” she thought to herself, absentmindedly running her hand over the trunk. It was sturdy, yes, but they could not hope to simply build a bridge with it. They would need a whole bunch of ropes to hold the beams together, and-

“Ah!” Celestia said, her cry of victory startling Spike out of his thoughts. In fact, it startled him so much, he slipped off the tree trunk off to his side and landed flat on his ass. “Oh, sorry Spike.”

“Ugh, I’m fine,” the dragon mumbled, rising to his feet as he rubbed his sore buttocks. Those big rocks he had landed on had quite possibly the worst texture to feel on one’s ass: jagged but flat, so everything ballooned around the piece. “So, you got an idea, I suppose?”

“Yes! Yes, I have an idea,” Celestia said, suppressing the urge to giggle. Finally, it was her turn to contribute! For the last day she had done nothing but get in the way, or get hurt, or be a burden, but not this time! “Can you cut down this tree with your talons?” She patted the tree she was leaning against for good measure, in case he didn’t know.

“Uh, yeah, sure, I guess,” Spike said, walking up to it. “Which way do you want it to fall? I’m no lumberpony- er, I mean, I’ve never cut down trees before, but I think I can get it to fall a certain way. No promises, though.”

“See if you can cut it so that it will fall across the river,” the princess said, pointing to the other side. “We need to cross, and I do not see any nearby bridges. So, we will have to make our own makeshift one!”

“Wow, and here I was thinking of building a dam to block the stream for a few short moments,” the dragon muttered with a slightly sheepish grin. “Guess thinking like a beaver isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.”

“Why would thinking like a beaver not have benefits?” Celestia asked. “I mean, they are hardworking creatures, they work well in family groups, care for one another, and-“

“It’s just a saying of Fluttershy’s,” Spike said. “It’s along those lines, yeah, but... in this case, I think I took it a bit too literally.”

The princess chuckled slightly at that, walking away from the tree as she did so. “Well, best get going Spike. I’m sorry I can’t magically make a two-pony hacksaw for us or anything. At least then I’d be able to help.”

“Hey, you’re the princess! I should be honored to be able to assist you in anything you desire,” Spike said, with a mock-serious bow before he got to work. His talons flashing, he began to carve through the old trunk as close to the base as he could, making sure to keep the cuts facing the river.

“Anything I desire, huh?” Celestia asked, an unfamiliar blooming sensation flittering through her brain. It felt like a combination of euphoria and the feeling of satisfaction somepony would feel after accomplishing a hard day’s work. “What do you think I would desire, Spike?”

Spike almost flinched at this, the question getting a bit too close to his thoughts on her when he was trailblazing just a short time ago. “Celestia, I’m not so sure this is the right kind of question to ask me. I don’t really... know you all that much. I-“

“Nonsense Spike, it is perfectly reasonable for me to ask you such a question,” Celestia said, that same blooming feeling coursing through her veins. Perhaps those berries she had eaten acted as a stimulant? “It still stands, you know: what do you think I desire?”

“Well, I, uh...” Spike began, almost missing the trunk with a few swings of his talons. “Peace, I guess? Maybe Freedom?”

“Peace, I can understand. Though quite a few years ago, in the eyes of you and your friends, the invasion of Canterlot by Chrysalis and her hordes did show my subjects we are not immune to the goings-on in the world around us,” the princess said, gently seating herself on a peculiarly square-shaped rock. “An easy enough assumption, and a correct one as well, I might add, but I’m curious. Why did you say freedom?”

“I’m not really sure,” the dragon said slowly, trying to focus his body on the task at hand while still freeing up enough of his brain to process what Celestia was saying. If he didn’t he’d likely miss a couple of swings and look like an idiot, swinging away at nothing.

“Did you perhaps mean freedom for my ponies?” Celestia asked, her voice sounding a tad off, even to herself. Maybe those leaves acted as an emotional enhancer? “Am I not a good princess? Do I not serve my subjects with the grace, dignity and care they deserve?”

“No, I mean yes, I mean- uh!” Spike shouted, stopping for a second to bury his face into his hands. “You are a great ruler, Celestia,” he mumbled through his fingers before uncovering his face and getting back to his work. “Greater than you think,” he added softly.

“In what way?” Celestia asked, her voice not a demanding tone, but pretty close to it. She wanted to know, and although it was unlike her to think like this, she would pester him until he told her. “Tell me, I can take criticism: it comes with the duty I have taken upon myself as co-ruler of Equestria.”

“You are nothing like the other royalty I have heard about around the world,” the dragon said softly as he stopped to measure his way through the tree. Almost a full third of the way through, but with a trunk this strong, there was no telling how much more he’d have to go through to make it fall. “You’re kind, compassionate and gentle, with a good conscience and a drive to see the ponies you rule live good and happy lives. Your agendas, if you even have any, are always for the good of your subjects, and you’ve repeatedly shown you are highly willing to delegate power if it means happiness for us all.”

Celestia was silent for a moment, as if taken aback by shock. Spike’s words were honest, but she had had no idea he had felt that way or even that many of her subjects felt that way, if his answer was anything to go by. She had just thought she was well-liked because she was a kind ruler. The strange feeling in her body continued, surging as his praises hit home for her. “Well, Spike, that is a very... gallant thing to say, and I must say I am honored to be held in such high esteem. But getting back to my earlier question, why do you think I of all ponies desire freedom?”

“I... I think it has to do with your title,” Spike mumbled as he made another slash into the tree. “You’re a princess, one of the two most powerful figures in Equestria, and indeed the world. You raise and lower the sun at will, with or without anypony asking you to do so. You are always on time with it as well; never late, never early, always on time. You speak with countless dignitaries on the behalf of Equestria’s citizens, you foster treaties that are more than fair to both parties, and you constantly lend power to those most suited for using it wisely.”

He sighed. “Maybe I’m just crazy, but you need a break from all of that. At least, I think you do.”

“A break?” Celestia asked, arching her eyebrows as the river continued to rush past them. “A break from my duties? This... excursion of ours is to save the world, and it is likely the first time I have had so little to actually do that involved something other than my daily duties. Why would I need a break?”

“Like I said, I’m not sure, but...” Spike began, his voice lowering slightly, “you do so much, all the time, with so little to show for it. You’re our beloved princess of the sun, the shining beacon in our daily lives, but what time do you have to yourself? What sacrifices have you made over the countless years to make our lives better at the cost of your own satisfaction and happiness? You are by far the least likely pony to be jealous, but don’t you ever wonder what it would be like to be... free of those duties, of those burdens, for even a day?”

Celestia paused for a few moments, letting his words sink in. “I... have given them some thought, Spike; many, many times, in fact. It’s just...” She let the words hang in the air, her voice trailing off.

“Just what?” Spike asked as the tree swayed slightly in a light breeze, more so than it normally would have. Spike was getting closer: in fact, he was now halfway through.

“It’s just... Spike, I am a co-ruler of Equestria! Other than some very important diplomatic visit, or some world-saving mission like now, I can’t just... take a day off! I have far too many responsibilities and duties to take care of on a daily business, and I have gotten used to such a life. In my many, many centuries of life, I have learned to be very proficient at managing my time wisely.” She smiled slightly at that: sure, the statement was a bit prideful, but it was true.

“But, still... haven’t you ever wanted something a bit less... I don’t know, monotonous?” Spike asked as he stopped swiping at the tree and went around to the back side. “It must get boring to do all that day in and day out.”

“Occasionally the overall feeling of accomplishment does not eclipse the stress of the day, but it is a burden I must bear,” the princess said softly as she watched the dragon push against the tree with his shoulder. “May I ask what you are doing?”

“This,” Spike said, and with a grunt, pushed with all his might. A noise emanated from the base of the trunk: a squeak, then a groan, and finally a rather long-lasting tearing sound as the old plant tissue inside of the tree gave way. The tree fell slowly at first, but as with all things that fall, it rapidly gained speed until it crashed through all undergrowth in its way. With a mighty crash, one so great it made Celestia bounce off of her seat and onto the ground, the tree slammed onto the ground. Some of the lower branches snapped off from the sheer forces exerted upon the tree’s sudden stop, plunging into the river with might splashes.

Spike, who had been knocked back by the jolt, slowly stood back up. He shook his head and peered through the falling leaves of the upper branches, the area now somewhat brighter with the removal of a sun-blocking canopy. Granted, there had been almost no leaves on the tree, but the sunlight filtering through the freshly-made gap was a pleasant thing to see.
“Did it make it to the other side?” Celestia asked, gently rubbing her bottom as she rose to her hooves. There was a small tear along the lower back of her gown from where she had grazed her seat, making the already-beaten material even more flimsy. A few more inopportune slices here and there, and the whole thing would just fall apart.

Spike stepped onto the trunk and balanced himself while he peered at the other side of the river. The larger top branches were caught up with the lower ones of the opposite bank’s tree, and a few had managed to worm their way onto the ground as well. From here, all the plants along the bank had been completely flattened under the tree’s mighty weight.

“Yeah,” he said, taking a step forward before looking back at the sun princess: she hadn’t moved. “Well, we don’t have all day, you know.” Spike couldn’t resist the urge to grin, as he had just made a bridge out of a tree in less time than he had thought it would take. Talk about progress! By the time they needed to bed down for the night, they hopefully would be all the way to the grassy hills.

“Of course, of course,” Celestia said in a hurried manner, hiking up her dress slightly to give her legs a bit more room to maneuver. In a few leaps and bounds she was at the trunk, and with a helping hand from Spike, found herself astride the fallen piece of timber.

“Okay, now all we need to do is get across,” Spike said, slowly walking forward. However, a hand upon his shoulder stopped him dead in his tracks.

“Spike, I’m... I’m not so sure of this,” Celestia said, looking past Spike and into the turbulent water. The way it frothed and splashed looked far more dangerous from above than it had from alongside it.

“Come on, princess, it won’t be that hard,” Spike said. “I mean, Celestia,” he added, noting the slightly exasperated expression that flickered across her features. He really needed to remember to call her by her name. “It’s only about... forty feet or so, and the trunk is nice and wide for us to walk on.”

“Yes, but... I’m not so sure my balance will hold up as well as yours,” she replied, forcing herself to look away from the water and into Spike’s eyes. “Your feet are far more suited for gripping than my hooves. All it will take is one little slip, and-,”

“Then hold onto my tail for balance,” Spike said, swinging his large appendage out for the princess to grab onto. “If you fall, I’ll catch you: just like on the thorn wall, remember?”

Celestia looked at the large scaly thing in front of her, her usual decisiveness giving way to self-doubt. Would she be able to balance well enough where she wouldn’t stumble and possibly push Spike off? Her hooves could not grip anything, and she had never before needed to balance herself on something like this tree trunk. Plus, how would she hold onto his tail? Put her hands under the groove of the spade near the base, or perhaps onto the spines along the back?

Spike looked from Celestia to the other side of the river and back. “We’ll take it slow, Celestia,” he said. “Come on now, my tail won’t bite.”

Celestia incited her courage to make her do what needed to be done, and with a firm resolve she gripped Spike by the tail, right below where his spade fanned out from the main stem. Feeling the muscles flex underneath the scales, she quietly nodded in his direction. “Go on, Spike. Lead the way.”

Spike nodded and looked to where his feet would go, taking a gentle step forward. “So far, so good,” he thought, slowly walking across the log. He could feel Celestia’s soft hands digging into his scales, but she was doing great so far. Another step, and then another: a repeating pattern that would take them all the way across the log.

“Spike, I know now is not the best time, but... do you think something was in those berries?” Celestia asked, making sure to firmly plant each step with her hooves so as to not slip. The tree trunk wasn’t slippery, but it was round, and round objects are easy to fall off of.

“What? Spike asked, almost stopping to turn and look at her in confusion. “Are you feeling sick or something?”

“Well, not sick,” Celestia said slowly as she light stepped over the remains of an old branch. “I feel... rather odd is all.” That was true enough, as she felt a heat come to her cheeks without any input from her. It was like her body was reacting to those berries, but just what was this reaction?

“Well, you did say those leaves and berries were edible, since it was you that brought them to the island,” Spike said as a small bird flittered over his head. “Do you remember the exact species of plant they are? It wouldn’t do well for us to have just eaten some leaves that act as powerful laxatives or anything.”

“No, no, the leaves are fine,” Celestia said, shaking her head very slightly so as to not upset her center of gravity. “No, the berries though... I remember they were used in special herbal remedies in many backwater communities, but for the ever-long life of me, I can’t remember exactly what they do.”

Spike gingerly stepped over another large dead branch. “Well, let’s go through our options,” he said as he felt Celestia take another step after him. “Whatever you’re feeling, it’s not affecting me in the slightest, and you ate a bit more than I did, so that could be the reason why you’re feeling it and I’m not. Other than that, you said you’re just feeling a bit... odd?”

“Yes,” the princess said as she gingerly stepped over the same dead lower branch Spike had. “Like my body is pushing me towards a feeling I cannot describe. I feel compelled to... do something, though I know not what that something is.”

“Are the berries making you sleepy?” Spike asked. “They could be like those sleeping berries Zecora uses to help parents put restless foals to bed.”

“No, no, I’m wide awake,” Celestia said as her eyes trailed down his back and onto the portion of his tail where her hands were currently gripping. Looking there caused her to slightly shift her focus to the raging waters below once more, so she shut her eyes tightly for a second, reopening them when she was sure she wasn’t going to be looking at the water again. It worked; her eyes were now fixed on the back of Spike’s head.

“Well, are you seeing things that aren’t there?” Spike asked as he slowly took another step; they were almost half-way there. “Hallucinogenic ones like the kind Pinkie accidentally put in Twilight’s birthday cake last year?” Wow, that had been hilarious indeed. Spike had come home to find Twilight trying to eat a book, which she at the time claimed was a giant dandelion sandwich. That poor book still had the teeth marks in it, and to this day Twilight refused to believe anypony who said it looked like somepony had chewed on it.

Never mind what the others had been doing upon his return. Pinkie had been practicing kung-fu on her shadow with marginal success, Fluttershy was somehow hovering without flapping her wings, Rainbow Dash and Applejack had been locked in a wrestling match with an old blanket, and Rarity... oh, poor Opal. That poor cat would never forgive her owner for dying the cat’s entire body lime green, all the while spouting “how fabulous you look, Mr. Croco-Dill Pickle”.

“No, I’m not seeing anything unusual, though it is becoming rather... focused,” Celestia said as she continued to tip-hoof behind Spike. “I feel anxious, even more now than before, and I can’t seem to just... say what it is. It’s like one of those feelings you just can’t describe, you know?”

“All too well, Celestia,” the dragon said as he lowered his foot onto the trunk again. “I-AHH!”

There was a loud cracking sound, and Spike’s foot shot clear through the trunk of the tree as he stepped down, rotten splinters flying everywhere. This tumble sent Celestia forward, flying over his tail and landing right on his back.

“Spike!” she cried as another loud crack was heard, her hands curling around his neck in surprise and fright. From where Spike had crunched through, a crack spread around the outside of the trunk like a winding snake, the rupture quickly encircling the trunk.

“Hold on!” Spike shouted as another groan, like the one from when the tree fell over, emanated from where they were stuck.

“Wha-,” was all Celestia could say before the tree snapped in half, both middle ends falling away from the alicorn and dragon. For an instant, the pair of them was suspended in mid-air, and Celestia, against her will, beat her wings to keep them that way. Sadly, her wings were still hurt, and she clutched them to her sides as they fell, a sharp pain shooting through where they connected to her back.

“SONUFAB-,” was Spike managed to say before the both of them plunged into the water, the surprisingly colder liquid pushing them the instant they were submerged. Tumbling under the somewhat murky surface, Spike managed to push up off the bottom with his tail, propelling Celestia and himself up to the water’s surface.

As their faces rose above the water, the now-panicking duo breathed in huge gulps of air. Spike, the first to have his eyes clear, twisted Celestia around so she was behind him as they flew downstream with the current. Celestia was able to see why he did that a split second before the impact.

“Oof!” they both cried as Spike slammed into a large boulder, his impact sending a few small chips of the rock flying away from where his talons met stone. He lashed out and tried to get a grip on the hard material, but to no avail. His claws skidded and slipped along the surface. Again they were underway, at the mercy of the river’s power. Bobbing like a pair of conjoined corks, the duo gasped for air, as every breath was a luxury they could ill-afford to miss.

Spike’s tail helped balance them as they went along, but his large appendage did little slow them down, no matter how much he tried to dig it into the river’s bottom. Spike spun Celestia away from another boulder as they rammed into it, the hard surface once again proving far too slippery for Spike’s talons to take hold onto. Spike, spluttering and wheezing from the bone-jarring impacts of the next two boulders, flung his arms up in frustration as Celestia shivered on his back, the chilly water seeming to seep into her very bones.

As luck would have it, Spike had managed to fling his arms up at an opportune moment. The river, it seemed, had claimed far more trees in its time than previously thought, and so when he did, his hands snagged on a tree laying over the river, the lower branches hovering mere inches above the water. Spike’s grip proved strong enough this time, as he managed to clamp onto the branches and hold them in place. All around them, the water churned and frothed as it rushed by them, little bubbles forming in the small wake swirling behind their bodies.

“How did... we not see.... this tree?” Celestia gasped, finally managing to hold her head above the water for more than a few seconds. Her mane trailed behind her, absolutely soaked once more, and her crown was askew. The only reason it was on was due to the fact she had placed a spell on it a few days ago so that only a living being (sentient, of course) could physically remove it from her head.

“We’re... a good distance... away from where... we started,” Spike gasped in return, his body aching from the number of times it had slammed into large, slippery boulders. “We... went around that... last bend, and... we wouldn’t have... seen it... anyway. The undergrowth here is... too thick.”

“Okay, we’re in a... better position... now,” the princess said, her wings feeling like they had absorbed a good fifty gallons of water. “Can you move... towards shore?”

“Yeah... yeah, I think I... can,” Spike wheezed, his breath returning. Slowly, he moved his hand to another branch, his arms swung out like those of a monkey. Swinging with the current, his hand latched onto the next branch, and then another. Their progress was slow and rather bone-chilling, but they were getting closer and closer to the opposite shore.

Celestia heard a large splash and a crashing noise behind them, and so naturally looked to see what the source of the commotion was. Her eyes grew as large as saucers as she saw what was barreling towards them. “Spike, you may want to go FASTER!” she cried out.

Spike turned as he swung to the next branch, and his eyes turned as comically large as Celestia’s had. The two halves of the tree he had broken through were barreling down the river like two massive crocodiles, the halves slamming into boulders and bouncing off with seemingly minor damage at all. From the speed at which they were moving, to be hit by one, if not both would be... deadly.

Spike grunted as he willed his body to go faster, swinging from branch to branch as fast as he could without letting himself be pulled fully into the water’s embrace. Celestia spurred him on with words like “Faster!” and “You can do this!” and the like. The water churned around them, the branch Spike let go of occasionally snapped off behind them, and the river’s temperature remained cold, but still he pressed on, his lungs burning as he struggled to breath.

Finally, Spike was at the last branch, and that was the good news. The bad news was that the next nearest hold, a still-jagged boulder, lay a good six feet away. The worse news was that the two halves of the tree were almost upon them, and if they hit the tree they were on, they might be crushed by it when it fell.

“Hold on!” Spike shouted, and using his tail as a springboard while pulling with all his might, he launched the pair of them at the rock, their bodies almost entirely leaving the water as he did so. The instant they were halfway there, the two pieces of the old tree trunk smashed into the overhanging tree, snapping it in half as the resulting collision sprayed chips of wood and old branches everywhere. The water churned even more so, frothing and bubbling as the two remains of the trees seemingly did battle amidst the current.

Spike’s talons managed to find a hold on the boulder as soon as he landed, but in the instant he tried to pull them up and out of the water, a large chunk of wood slammed into the side of his head. Crying out in pain, he let one hand go on instinct to clutch his hurt face. Suddenly, the weight of both of them on his remaining hand nearly made his lose his grip entirely, had it not been for the quick thinking of Celestia. As Spike clutched his face with one hand, Celesta’s own hands lashed out and gripped the rock with all her might, her weight somewhat being lifted from Spike’s own grip.

“Come on, we’re almost there!” she said to Spike as the trees behind them eventually swept past, the destroyed branches bumping into them as they floated away in the current. “You can do this, Spike!”

Grunting as his face-massaging hand went back to the boulder, Spike pulled the both of them up and out, Celestia’s own hands moving with his own to small handholds. The rock’s somewhat jagged surface scraped futilely against the dragon’s scales, a few of the longer shards breaking off against the much harder surface. Spike’s shirt, soaking wet, was ripped to shreds by the rock, the tatters falling off and washing away into the stream. His pants too were shredded as he managed to drag them completely out of the water, his arms aching as they both tumbled over the rock and onto the soft, grassy ground on the other side.

Celestia coughed and spluttered slightly from the impact, her body feeling like a block of lukewarm ice. Her wings weighed her down, her dress was soaked once more, there were tears across the clothing’s back that had not been there before, and her hooves felt like they had been split on the sharp rocks. But, she was alive, and so was Spike.

After a few minutes of rest, the pair of them sat up, Spike leaning against the rock for support as he gently rubbed the side of his face where the tree had caught him. Managing to get on all fours without collapsing from exhaustion, Celestia crawled over to Spike and kneeled next to him, her hand quickly removing some of her mane from her face.

“Spike, are you okay?” she asked gently, her bones feeling like they had liquefied in the river. Her dress, to her dismay, was beyond ruined now. She would have to find some large leaves or something suitable for a replacement set.

“Ugh, I don’t feel so good,” the dragon mumbled, his chest heaving slightly as he tried to regain some of his strength.

“Here, let me take a look,” the princess said, reaching up and gently prying Spike’s hand off of his face. Ow, did it look rather unpleasant. The right side of his face was slightly swollen, and there was some definite bruising along both his jawline and his eye. None of the scales were damaged, but the swelling around his eye might not go down for a few hours, rendering his normally rather sharp vision somewhat reduced.

“How bad is it?” the dragon asked, his mouth hurting. “Will I get a scar?” He cracked a smile at this, showing off a few thankfully not-broken teeth. Not the wittiest joke, but it helped break the severity of what their situation might have been had they not escaped the roaring river.

“No, I don’t think so. Your scales hold up remarkably well for a dragon as young as you,” Celestia said, her soft hands gently massaging his face. “Normally, the younger a dragon is, the less impervious to harm they are. But enough about your dragon biology; does this feel better?”

The heat in her body skyrocketed as she touched him, the smoothness of his scales surprisingly soft to her touch. Who would have thought a nigh-impenetrable material could instill in one the feeling of softness?

“Yeah, it does,” Spike groaned, his body aching as Celestia’s hands gently rubbed his bruised face. “It feels so good.”

“And this?” Celestia asked as she gently rubbed the bruised side of Spike’s jaw, her fingers gently kneading the fine scales and the muscles lying underneath it. She could feel something shift slightly under the light pressure she applied, as if something had become dislodged when Spike had slammed into one of those boulders.

“So much better,” the dragon said, whimpering slightly as his jaw popped back fully into place. It hadn’t popped completely out of its socket, but had brushed a small bundle of nerves upon going back in, hence the pain. He likely wouldn’t even be able to chew for a few hours, and then only soft foods.

Oh, the food! In his addled state, Spike could barely remember if Celestia’s makeshift bag still had the berries and leaves in them from the thorn wall. He tried to glance over, but either it had washed away with the river or was off somewhere in the grass. If it was behind her, he could not tell, as her body and large, dripping wings were in the way.

“And now?” Celestia asked as her hands gently moved up to around his eye, gingerly moving the scales and underlying flesh with the utmost care. These gentle actions erased the thoughts of what had happened to the food from the dragon’s mind.

“So... good,” Spike groaned once more, turning his face towards her slightly. Her pelt was matted down with water, her eyes looked like they had slight bags under them, and her dress looked even more shabby than before, but Spike didn’t think of that. He thought she looked like an angel, a heavenly figure sent to attend to his “heroically received” wounds.

“And... this?” Celestia whispered as she felt compelled to touch him with something softer than her fingers. Her graceful lips, puckered and redder than the most purebred rose, gently brushed against his bruised face, up and down all over his injuries.

“Y-y-yeah,” Spike sighed, his grin faltering as he slowly began to lose consciousness, many of his thoughts falling into nothingness as his brain demanded rest from his weary body. His head turned a bit more as the princess’s lips brushed near the corner of his mouth, and for the briefest of seconds and longest of eternities, their lips met. Celestia’s eyes widened in surprise, but she did not pull away immediately, as she felt as though Spike’s lips and her own were suddenly glued together. Spike’s lips were softer than anything she had ever experienced, and as his eyes closed, she could see within his gaze a small sense of confusion and... Happiness.

Gently pulling away after what could have been mere seconds or wondrous hours, Celestia looked around the clearing in the forest. A small cave, carved into the rock by seasonal flooding from the river, looked like a rather fine place to rest. It was partly concealed by large ferns and some hanging vines, but it was clear nothing was residing in it. She had, after all, overseen the transportation of each and every plant and animal to this island. Off in the distance, a loud rumble sounded again. Another storm was brewing, and they needed shelter that instant, or face the possibility of becoming even more waterlogged.

“Come on, Spike,” the tired princess aid, somehow managing to find the strength to not only stand up, but to start dragging the unconscious dragon with her. His tail’s spines left furrows in the ground as she hauled him away, her hands hooking together across his chest as she supported him under the armpits with her arms. “Let’s get in the cave; we can continue tomorrow.” Far away, the thunder rumbled again as the winds began to pick up slightly. The trees over the river started to sway to and fro with the winds, and soon enough, the sound of the river itself was drowned out by the approaching storm.

Perhaps a little late for it to make a difference, Celestia realized the bag of food was still slung around her back. However, when she took it off, she saw all of the berries and all but three of the leaves had washed away. Nearly the entirety of their thorn wall harvest was gone, and she was far too tired to try and go out looking for more. It was not even evening yet, but with the storm nearly upon them, it would be safer for her to go looking for more in the morning.

Celestia propped Spike up on a large bed of completely harmless mushrooms, the mat growing so thick one might have mistaken it for a mattress. Lying down beside him while propping herself up, Celestia looked out in time to see a light mist beginning to fall past the cave’s entrance: the rain was already starting to fall. A sharp flash of light off in the distance, distilled through the curtain of leaves, showed the storm had arrived in full strength.

“Sleep well Spike,” Celestia said, gently caressing the bruised side of his face once more. Leaning down, she captured his lips in another kiss, the feeling in her body jumping for joy at the feeling of contact. A tingle spread through her body as she did this, but sadly it went away as she withdrew her soft lips from his. Lying next to him and laying her still somewhat wet wings over them, Celestia closed her eyes and fell asleep; her body was exhausted from yet another near-death scenario. However, her mind was tinged with great happiness, as now not only had she accomplished something she had never done before, but she had helped save Spike’s life by holding onto that rock. Had she not, they both likely would have been swept away. The tingling of the kiss on her lips left a small smile on her face as she slept.

The warm air of the jungle and the cave would be far more comforting to them that night than the sound of ocean waves upon the sand.

Author's Notes:

I know what many of you are saying to yourselves: "FINALLY! Both an update and some interaction!" Well, don't worry: as this story progresses, things will get a lot more intimate, and eventually... who knows?

Oh wait, I do. <insert-trollface>