Spike rolled over in the lazy Saturday morning sun. He grasped around the bed trying to find his poofy pink pillow. It was strange that he couldn’t find it. His pillow didn’t have to open the bakery today. His pink pillow had an apprentice cushion to handle that this morning. His pillow wasn’t there, and that made him grumble.

As he slowly opened his eyes, he watched his pillow launch herself onto the bed singing. “♪Happy twomonthiversary to you and me today. I can't believe we’ve been dating a for so long already time sure flies doesn't it well it seems like only yesterday you asked me out. But now it’s a two months today, hey!♫”

“Pillows don’t sing!” Spike grumbled, pulling her into a hug against his chest. “Pillows are for cuddles.”

Pinkie Pie giggled while she tried to squirm out of his grip in vain. “Spikey, I made your favorite, banana and candy waffles in chocolate syrup.”

“Shh, shh,” Spike cooed as he stroked her mane. “No, no crazy Pinkie recipes. Just sleep.”

As he began to snore again, Pinkie blew raspberries on his stomach. One thing she had learned in their two months of dating was that while dragons had extremely thick skin, their underbellies were exceptionally ticklish.

“No, no!” Spike squirmed to get away. “No, Pinkie. Stop. Please?!”

“Nope!” Pinkie pause from her torture. “Not unless you Pinkie Pie promise to get up. Everypony’s supposed to go see the new foals.” Pinkie continued assaulting the uncooperative dragon.

“Okay… I Pinkie Pie promise…” he yelled between bursts of laughter. “Cross my heart… and hope to fly… stick a cupcake in my e–oww!” Spike sat up, rubbing the eye he had just poked with a claw while Pinkie Pie rolled off the bed laughing.

“♪That still counts!♫” she sang, as she bounced towards the stairs. He climbed out of bed and made his way to the bathroom, determined to wash his face at least.

Spike groaned as Pinkie dragged him to the Ponyville hospital. She got a little foal-crazy, and had badgered Fluttershy and Big Mac to let her come and visit as soon as possible.

“Howdy thar, Spike,” Applejack laughed as she greeted him. “Y’all seem to have something stuck on yer tail.”

Caramel and Ginger laughed as Pinkie Pie dropped Spike’s tail from her mouth and stopped to talk. “Hi AJ! Hi Caramel! Hi Ginger!”

“Oh! Howdy Pinkie Pie, didn’t see you there.” Applejack gave her friend a hug.

“Auntie Pinkie! Auntie Pinkie!” Ginger Gold skipped towards the pink mare, and wrapped her in a hug. “When are you going to come and make cupcakes for us again?”

Spike turned to Applejack as Pinkie pulled a cupcake from her mane. He was certain that wasn’t there last night. “Where’s Granny Smith and Apple Bloom? They already there?”

“Nope,” Applejack winced. “Apple Bloom has been working on a wheelchair for Granny. They’ll be here soo–” Applejack reached up and held onto her stetson as a blur sped past them.

The only thing they could hear from the object rapidly receding into the distance was the screams of an old mare. “Aaaaaaaapplllleee Bloooooooooom slooooooow thisssss craaaaazy thiiiing doooownnnn.”

“Awww!” Ginger Gold whined. “I want to ride on Granny’s new chair!”

Spike draped a wing to the ground, and turned to Ginger. “How about a dragon ride to the hospital? Nearly as cool, but I won’t shoot flames like Granny’s chair. The mayor might tell me off again.”

“Yeah!” Ginger clambered up onto Spikes back, hooking his hooves around the base of Spikes wing.

They continued walking towards the hospital, when Ginger started hissing for Spike’s attention. “Spike… psst Spike!”

Spike craned his neck around. “What’s up Ginger? Want to get down?”

Ginger shook his head. “See that pink filly over there? That’s the girl I told you about.” – he pointed in the direction they were walking – “Could we make a detour? And be cool, okay?”

“I’ll be cooler than Rainbow Dash!” Spike chuckled, and excused himself from the group. He put on what he assumed was his coolest expression as they approached the filly unicorn. Spike smiled, recognising the stallion accompanying her.

“Ginger?" the little pink unicorn giggled while blushing. "Oh my Celestia! What are you doing?”

“Oh, hey Diamond Ring.” Ginger inspected a hoof, as if nothing was odd about the situation. Spike was impressed with the cool nonchalance Ginger displayed. “Just taking my dragon out for a ride, you know?”

Spike had to hold in the laugh, he wasn’t going to ruin Ginger’s image in front of his crush. He nodded towards the amber stallion, who was evidently out for the morning with his daughter. He stared open-mouthed at the young colt riding a dragon. “Saw–weeeeeeeeeet!”

“Well, we better get going, got lots to do today. See you on Monday, Diamond.” Ginger flashed her a smile. Pinching Spike with his legs, he yelled, “Hi ho Spikey, away!”

‘I’ll let him have this,’ Spike thought, stepping to the side and beating his powerful wings as they took to the air. Over his shoulder, he could hear the little filly talking to her father. “Do you think Granddaddy Rich would buy me a riding dragon?”

When they landed, rejoining the others, Ginger was grinning as he gloated. “Thanks Spike, you’re the best! Let’s see Lightning beat that!”

The group huddled into the hospital room, the eight of them crowding around the bed where Fluttershy lay with the twins. “Everypony, these are our daughters: Autumn Gold and Sweet Bailey. Say hello to everypony, girls,” Fluttershy cooed to her foals. Big Mac stood next to her, a look of pride across his face.

Caramel and Spike stepped back, allowing the direct family, plus one pink mare, access to the newborns.

“Two girls, eh?” Caramel let out a whistle. “Must be somethin’ wrong with Mac’s swimmers.” Caramel laughed, until Applejack came over and hit him on the head with her stetson.

“Ah think these girls’ll be out-buckin old Uncle Caramel in no time. Then you’ll have a son, a wife, a brother-in-law and two nieces all buckin’ tree’s better’n you!”

Spike didn’t worry too much about their bickering, he knew Caramel and Applejack loved teasing each other. He watched as Pinkie whispered ‘Happy Birthday’ to the two foals. He was about to stop her from blowing her party horn, but the small paper noise–maker blew completely silently. He couldn’t be sure if it was designed that way, or if perhaps it was Pinkies peculiar party potential shining through.

“Spikey! Come here,” Pinkie whispered as loud as she could. “Come and see the babies!”

Spike looked down at the two newborns, cuddling against their mothers chest. Autumn Gold was a strong looking earth pony, her red coat only slightly lighter than her father's. Sweet Bailey, on the other claw, had a deep malachite green coat, with tiny little pegasi wings.

Spike shook Big Mac’s hoof, then leaned forward and kissed Fluttershy on the forehead. “Congratulations, you two. They are beautiful.

“Twilight and Luna are sorry they couldn’t make it,” Spike offered, apologetically. “It seems they’re still dealing with the fallout from the impromptu sojourn Celestia sent those nobles on. Oh, and that reminds me: Larry and Jerome send their congratulations too.”

After saying hello to the foals, Spike went back to stand with Caramel and Applejack. Pinkie was sitting next to the bed, pulling funny faces at the foals. They had their eyes closed, but he remembered her being the same with Pound and Pumpkin.

Ginger had crawled back up onto Spikes back, bored with newborns already. Applejack told him off for trying to wrestle ‘uncle Spike’.

“It’s okay, AJ,” Spike sat on his hind quarters as Ginger Gold attempted to get him in a headlock. “He can get his dragon wrangling cutie mark, but he should know that the best dragon wranglers were quiet. They sneak up on their prey. Loud wranglers got eaten.” He demonstrated with a gentle nip in the foals direction.

“Yer great with kids, yah know?” Applejack admired. Ginger Gold had suddenly stopped yelling, and was quietly stalking around the floor, pretending to hunt Spike.

“Yeah, I reckon you’n Pinks will be the next, eh?” Caramel chuckled. He stopped chuckling, and started rubbing his shin. “What was that for, AJ?”

Applejack was biting her tongue, looking pass Spike. He could see she was angry about something, but Spike wasn’t sure of what.

“Oh, sorry Spike,” Caramel shuffled, looking down at his hooves. “Didn’t mean anything by it.”

Confused, Spike turned to look in the direction Applejack was looking. Pinkie was still rocking Sweet Bailey in her forearms, but her mane had lost its bounce. Big Mac was holding Autumn Gold, and Fluttershy held a hoof on Pinkie’s shoulder.

A pain shot through his body, as he finally realized what had been said. Spike cared very deeply for her, perhaps he could even say he was in love with Pinkie; but he hadn’t considered what she might have to give up being with him.

Conversation was a lot quieter after Caramel’s inappropriate joking. Spike crossed the room, and laid a gentle claw on Pinkie’s shoulder. She turned to look at him, she was smiling, but the redness of her eyes did not fool him. He wrapped his arms around her, as she continued to gently rock the foal in her arms.

Spike lead Pinkie Pie through the hospital grounds. He stopped to buy two small cups of juice from a vending machine, then they sat down under a tree.

“Pinkie?” Spike pulled her next to him, draping a wing around her. “You want to talk about it?”

She buried muzzle in his chest, breathing in his scent and enjoying his warmth, hiding her eyes.

“You know, if you wanted to, umm…” Spike loathed to words he was about to speak, as much as he meant them. “I-If you wanted to find somepony who could, you know, give you what you wanted… I wouldn’t begrudge you.” He breathed a deep sigh. “We’ll always be friends.”

He stroked her mane as she sobbed into his chest.

“It’s not that, Spikey… I don’t want you to leave me.” Pinkie sniffled.

“Well, maybe we could talk to Twilight about it one day? She might know of something–”

“I’ve already asked Twilight, a few years ago.” Pinkie shook her head, pushing herself away from his chest to look him in the eye. She let out a bitter laugh. “Fluttershy even asked Discord if there was something he could do. But there’s nothing anypony can do.”

“You’ve been thinking about it for years?” Spike was flabbergasted. “How long have you been interested in me?” He was touched. Sure, he had a crush on her for some time, even though it had taken a long time to admit it to himself. But she’d been thinking about children with him for years?

“No Spike. It’s not you.” Pinkie Pie wore another smile that did not reach her eyes. “I am usually happy being just Auntie Pinkie. I love foals, and really do want a family.”

“But… I can’t have foals.” Pinkie slumped with the confession.

“Oh.” Spike’s sighed, slumping his shoulders. “I’m sorry, Pinkie. I didn’t know.”

“It’s okay.” She stretched her neck to give him a kiss. “Only the girls knew, I told them when I found out. It just hurts when somepony tells me I should have foals, because no matter what I want, I can not have them.”

Pinkie let out a deep sigh, and cuddled back under his wing. She craned her neck to look at him. “But you’re already thinking of having foals with me, hmm?” she asked with a wry smile.

“What? No, I didn’t, I mean I don’t…” Spike blushed, getting more flustered by the second. “I mean, not that I didn’t think you’d not be a good… but it’s not like I… oh wow, is it getting hot out here?

“It’s not like I’ve been thinking about foals. Or hatchlings, I guess. It’s not really even in the cards for me. I’d just like to have a family, one day, I think.”

Pinkie Pie giggled as she nuzzled his chest. “So you think about us?”

“Umm, sometimes, yeah, maybe? Is that not good?” Spike was nervous of what effect his words might have on her. Was he too serious, would he frighten her off? Was he supposed to already have an answer, or was it too early. He didn’t have a lot of experience to draw from, and the last thing he wanted was to hurt Pinkie.

When she cuddled in closer, he continued. “If I was to have a future with somepony, they’d have to be a lot of fun to be around, make me laugh and smile.”

“I think about it sometimes too.” Pinkie admitted. “But I want to enjoy what we have now as well.”

“Mmmm,” Spike hummed in agreement. “Maybe one day then, but I like what we have now too. No need to rush.”