Rainbow Dash flew as fast as she could across the afternoon sky, the setting sun casting long shadows over the valleys and hills as the blue pegasus cut her way through the clouds.

'I hope I reach the others before Twilight does something stupid!' She thought nervously as Ponyville appeared over the horizon. Seeing the town only fueled her drive as she pushed her wings to their absolute limit, the wind against her face pulling the water from her eyes. She noticed that the rest of her friends were waiting in the town square where they had split up, but so was Spike. It wasn't her place to tell Spike what was upsetting Twilight, but she wasn't sure what she was going to tell him. She was so lost in thought that she forgot to slow down on approach to the town square, ending up crashing into a stack of hay bales. She stuck her head out of the now hey pile to find all of her friends staring at her.

"Hey everypony! I didn't keep ya waiting long did I?" She asked smiling sheepishly as her vision refocused.

"No sugarcube, did you find Twilight?" Applejack asked.

"Well...Yeah." She admitted in a Fluttershy-like manner, drawing the rest of them around her as she stood up out of the hay and shook the loose pieces out of her mane and tail.

"Then where is she? Is she hiding?" Pinky Pie asked burying her face in the hay looking for her.

"I kinda...lost her." She said flattening her ears in embarrassment as her friends cast her looks of confusion.

"What? Honestly Rainbow Dash how do you just lose someone?" Rarity asked impatiently.

"Hey it wasn't my fault! She used her magic to teleport away from me, there wasn't anything I could do!" She said defensively as Applejack stepped between them.

"Now look, no one is blamin' you R.D. Any idea where she might have run off?"

"No! I tried to stop her, but she kept going on about a way to kee-" She stuffed a hoof into her mouth to keep herself from revealing the truth to Spike.

"What?" Applejack pressed as Rainbow Dash glanced over at the purple and green dragon, who wore a still worried expression.

"I...Spike, I need to talk to the girls alone for a sec." She said nervously.

"What? Why? If it's about Twilight I think I deserve to know!" He protested, folding his arms and staring down the group as his troubled features now shifting to a look of aggravation.

"Spike, I'm tellin' ya I just need a second with the girls. Now if you will please WALK. AWAY." She said raising her voice to emphasize her urgency.

Even though Spike was equal in size to all of them and unmatched in strength in comparison, Rainbow Dash still scared him. He dropped his arms and relented, taking a few steps backwards until he was out of whisper range.

The other ponies huddled around her and put their hooves on each other's shoulders.

"Twilight got a letter from the Princess today, and it really upset her. That's why she missed Scootaloo's party. I found her in the meadows outside of town crying by a tree." She whispered so Spike couldn't hear, occasionally checking to make sure he wasn't trying to eavesdrop on their conversation.

"What could the princess have said to upset Twilight? I've never seen her cry before... Is she making her leave Ponyville? That would make me cry too..." Fluttershy said softly.

"No...Not her. Spike."

They all gasped simultaneously at such shocking news.

Spike tried to hear what they were saying but he was too far away. He heard them gasp, then look at him before turning back to each other.

'What if Twilight found out I accidentally sneeze-roasted her first edition of Potions for Purposeful Ponies? Her parents gave her that book! She'll hate me forever!' He thought, his mind racing with paranoid thoughts about what the other ponies could be whispering about as he fidgeted with his tail nervously.

"Why would the Princess make Spike leave? He's never hurt anypony!" Rarity added in a hushed tone.

"I had a chance to read the letter before she took off. It was something about Spike getting too old to live here anymore. She wanted him to start his own life. I guess I get that...but she only has two days to tell him!" She whispered to them.

"I don't get it. We're all older than Spike, but we get to live here!" Pinkie stated, struggling to keep her normally loud voice in check.

"Twi said something about dragons entering their third... growth state or something that makes them dangerous. I don't remember what she said exactly, but if I know Twilight, she's probably right."

"That is terrible. I can't believe the princess would do that." Pinkie Pie said in a very uncharacteristic manner; very softly. The rest of them couldn't believe that in two short days, Spike would have to leave Ponyville for good. There wasn't a cheerful face in the huddle as Rainbow Dash continued.

"That's not even the worst part. Twilight ran off because she thinks she's figured out a way keep Spike here! Princess Celestia is gonna banish her forever for disobeying a direct order!"

"We have to find her before she does somethin' she'll regret!" Applejack added in an urgent tone.

"I know! But what do we tell Spike? We can't tell him what the letter said, Twilight has to!" Rainbow Dash added.

They stood in silence for a few seconds before Rarity voiced an idea.

"I know! I'll fake an injury and you all must insist that he take me home. I'll keep him there as long as possible while you all try to find and talk some sense into Twilight."

"That's a mighty fine plan Rarity, but you're a terrible actress. We'll need to give you a real injury." She said, stomping as hard as she could on her back hoof.

The white unicorn let out a scream as she broke the huddle holding her injured hoof and hopping around on one in pain.

"Spike! Rarity's gone and hurt herself. Can you take her back to her place, I don't think she can walk." Applejack said as Rarity shot daggers at her, Rainbow Dash struggling to keep herself from bursting out in laughter.

"What about Twilight? What were you talking about over there?" Spike demanded.

"We'll catch you up later! Right now we have to find Twilight!" Applejack said as the rest of the ponies made haste to the first place Rainbow Dash thought to look: the library.

Spike watched them leave with suspicion. They definitely weren't acting like themselves, though he wished he knew why.

"Spike...Can you be a dear and keep my hoof off the ground? I've still got a few orders to complete before nightfall and I simply must get back and finish them." The white unicorn said as he was glad to put her hoof across his shoulders as his crush limped slowly back to her boutique.

"What makes you think Twilight is at the library?" Pinkie asked bounding at full speed beside Applejack while Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash flew above them.

"Before she does anything, she researches it! If she has some crazy scheme to keep Spike here, that's where she'll be!" The blue pegasus replied as they neared the library.

"Twilight! We need to talk to you!" Pinkie Pie called from outside the large tree, but to no response.

"The door's locked!" Applejack said pushing on it with her front hooves.

"It only locks from the inside, she has to be in there!" She said putting everything she had into pushing on the door. Not even a few strong kicks were enough to make the door budge.

"Shucks, I can't get it open!" The country mare admitted.

"Stand back, I got this one." Rainbow Dash said calmly, fluttering back about twenty feet. The other ponies stood well clear of the door as their friend flew straight towards it, both hooves out in front of her ready to smash through it. Right as she got to her doorstep, the top door opened, revealing a tangled maned purple unicorn with bags under her eyes. Rainbow Dash collided with her head on as they tumbled together a few feet before stopping with the blue pegasus seated on Twilights chest.

The rest of the ponies hurried inside and closed the door behind them.

Twilight didn't struggle under the weight of her friend; she merely lay there accepting defeat.

"Twilight, I don't know what your plan is but you have to stop!" Rainbow Dash pled holding down her friends front legs with her own.

The look on the unicorns face was one of pure apathy. Realizing this, she climbed off and allowed her to stand. Her mane was still somewhat matted and sticking up in places, she looked as though she'd been up all night. The expression she wore was one of pure dejection, a helplessly downtrodden appearance that instantly removed any and all happiness from the group. Books on magical spells were scattered all over the floor, some opened on top of stacks of others and some turned face down on the floor as pieces of parchment littered the room.

"Sugar, you want to tell us what's bothering you?" Applejack said tilting her hat upward, looking into her friends' eyes even though Twilight was reluctant to meet hers.

"But we already know what's bo-" Rainbow Dashs blue hoof silenced the bubbly pink pony in hopes that Twilight would be honest with them.

Twilight drew a heavy sigh as she looked at all of her friends, gathered here only because they care that much about her. Enough for them to at least try to stop her from getting exiled from Equestria forever.

"Princess Celestia said that Spike has to leave Ponyville by the next full moon. The night after tomorrow night." They all feigned surprise, but still felt a fresh sadness wash over them.

"I was trying to find a spell to reverse Spikes aging...but I couldn't. No amount of magic can reverse time..." She said softly. The realization that there was truly nothing that could be done having long sunk in. Her eyes couldn't produce a single tear, even though she felt worse than ever.

Without words they moved in and group hugged their friend. In silence Twilight was so grateful that Rainbow Dash had gotten them all together for her. If not for them, she had no idea what she would recklessly have done in her moment of weakness.

"Spike still doesn't know..." She whispered to them as they all broke the hug.

"How do I tell him? I don't think I can look him in the eyes and tell him he has to leave!" She admitted with a hoof on her forehead, biting her bottom lip to keep from losing her composure again.

"There there darlin'. We'll be right here with you. We can get through this together, that's why we're here." Applejack said comforting her friend with a hoof around the shoulder.

"Oh Twilight...I wish Spike didn't have to go either...but sometimes...friends have to move away...You didn't think Spike would be here forever...did you?" Fluttershy asked trying to get Twilight to see some good reasons for Spike striking out on his own.

"No...But I didn't think his time with me would go by so quickly. I thought that when the time came for him to leave, I would be ready for him to start his own life...but I'm not!"

"Wait. So if Spike just has to leave Ponyville, why don't we just find him a cave close to town so you can visit him!" Pinkie Pie suggested.

"It wouldn't matter how close he lived. An adolescent dragon's brain is flooded with a hormone called Somatostatin when they enter their third growth cycle. Spike is near his now. Once that happens, all they know how to do is eat, sleep, and hoard treasure, just like every other dragon we've encountered. Essentially, their mind becomes a blank slate..." Twilight recited as if the book containing this information was right in front of her.

"You mean...he's going to forget all of us?" Rainbow Dash asked.

Twilight hung her head sadly and simply nodded.

A loud bang startled the group of forlorn ponies as they saw Spike standing in the doorway, dragging Rarity behind him clutching onto his right leg.

"I tried to keep him as long as I could." She said standing up.

"Oh my goodness I'm simply covered in dirt! Filthy filthy..." She said trying frantically to brush herself off still walking gingerly on her now bandaged back hoof.

"Will somepony please tell me what is going on?" He said more than a little irritated that everyone he knew had been acting weird around him since Twilight disappeared earlier that day.

Twilight's moment of truth had arrived. Now was her time to say those words she had been dreading since this morning. She lifted her head, as somehow fresh tears were present in her eyes even though she was sure she had spent the whole day crying them out.

Spikes angry demeanor dropped as soon as he saw Twilights face. His arms unfolded as his face shifted to one of concern. He had never seen his best friend like this before. Twilight was always so rational; she barely ever let her emotions get the best of her.

The purple unicorn finally looked her faithful assistant in the eye, but she couldn't produce any words. She opened her mouth, but they just wouldn't come out. A pain deep in her heart kept her from speaking, paralyzing her in anxiety even though her friends were there to support her. Rainbow Dash sensed the purple unicorn might need a little help starting out, so she tried to break the silence in hopes of helping Twilight find her voice.

"Spike...Twilight has something she needs to tell you..." She began as Applejack whispered a few words of encouragement into her ear.

"Be strong sugarcube. You can do this."

Twilight sniffed up a breath and faced her faithful assistant.

"What is it?" He asked, extremely worried now that whatever was upsetting her so badly had to do with him!

"S-Spike...in two days..." She began, but stopped as she bit her bottom lip and closed her eyes tightly to keep herself from losing her composure.

'Keep it together Twilight! He has to know!' She thought.

She felt another hoof on her shoulder in support, and she inhaled sharply, and slowly exhaled.

"Spike. In two days, you have to...to...leave Ponyville. The Princess sent me a letter today saying so..." She managed without too much interruption.

The young dragon didn't know what to think. Why would Princess Celestia do that? He hadn't received a letter from the Princess all week! It just didn't make sense. Then he knew what was going on. A smile graced his lips before becoming laughter.

"He's taking this pretty well." Pinkie Pie whispered.

"Wow, you guys went through a lot of trouble for this one! I gotta admit you had me going there for a second. So who's idea was it? My bits are on Rainbow Dash. Twilight, where did you learn to cry on cue like that?"

The studious unicorn's expression quickly shifted from one of hopelessness to one of extreme offense.

"Why in Equestria would you think I would play such a mean joke on you?" She snapped with anger in her eyes.

"Although I wish it was...it's not a prank Spike." Rainbow Dash explained.

"Twi, do you still have the letter?" She asked. The crumpled, tear stained piece of parchment floated over from her bed in the library loft and hung in front of Spike as he grabbed it out of the air.

He made quick work of the letter and looked back at them. The royal seal was on the top of and bottom of the letter, as well as Princess Celestia's signature.

"So...this is real? I have two days to leave?" He said in absolute shock, looking back at the group. Twilight slowly nodded, confirming his worst fear.

"We wish there were some other way Spike...but there isn't. You have to start your own adventure...without us." Rarity said, her makeup beginning to run as she teared up. For once her penchant for drama was actually warranted.

"B-but I don't want to leave! This is my home! How can she expect me to just pack up and leave everything I've ever had?" He said, anger growing inside him as he clenched the parchment in his fist.

"Twilight, isn't there something you can do? Some kind of spell, or potion-"

"I tried Spike, honestly I did! I looked through every book in this library...but the one thing magic can't effect, is time." She answered with lament heavy in her voice at having to relay such a helpless response to her oldest friend.

"And what if I don't want to leave?" He asked barring his fangs in frustration.

"The Princess said if you weren't gone, she'd come remove you." Rainbow Dash added.

The fury inside the young dragons heart rose as the letter burst into flames in his fist.

"I won't leave you Twilight! I'm your assistant, and you're my best friend and nothing will ever change that!" He said stepping toward her.

"No Spike! You have to. You can't live with me forever...you have to go out on your own and start your own life! We gave you a good start...but now it's your turn. Go out into the world and make your mark on it." She said through blurry eyes.

Spike was stunned. How could this be happening? He prayed this was just a terrible nightmare, and that he would wake up in his warm bed with Twilight asleep in front of him on her bed...but it was not to be.

"So...y-you want me to leave?" He stammered in disbelief.

"No! Of course I don't! But I don't have any choice...my hooves are tied Spike..." She said softly as she could only look at the ground and watch her tears roll off the end of her nose and onto the wooden floor in a sizable puddle.

The young dragon took a few steps back until he was against the wall. He slowly slid down it until he was seated on the floor, a blank stare now across his normally happy face as all that was revealed to him sunk in.

"I..." He began, but truly had no words for his situation, one he couldn't imagine in his wildest dreams he'd find himself in. He rested his elbows on his knees as he put his claws on his forehead. The only world he had ever known was with his oldest and best friend, and now it seemed to be crashing down around him! Now he was supposed to start over somewhere else? What about the other dragons out there? They could still eat him in one bite, and he had to go live in the same realm as them? That thought alone scared him to his very core. All he knew was assisting Twilight; he knew practically nothing about being a dragon! Every time he encountered one, he ended up fleeing for his life instead of asking them for tips. Although in his defense, none of the dragons he'd ever met seemed like they would have been interested in talking.

Applejack hated seeing all of her friends so upset. She racked her brain for a solution, scratching her head with her hoof when an idea struck her like lightning striking an apple tree. She pushed her hat forward in determination, ready to rescue everypony (and dragon) from the depths of sadness with some country fried brilliance.

"Spike, I know you're feelin' pretty down right now, but what if we spent the next two days doing whatever you want?" The southern mare suggested.

After a moment to consider the offer, he stood back up. He had two options: either be mad at the Princess, his situation, and the world and ruin his last few days with Twilight. Or suck it up, and mask his true feelings to help his best friend confront hers. It was an easy choice to make.

"Yeah...I...I'd like that." He said subduing his feelings, for Twilights sake. Though this was the first time he had ever seen her like this, he already couldn't stand it. He calmly walked over to her as she lifted her head up upon hearing his footsteps.

He wrapped his arms around her neck in a gentle hug her as she returned it, holding each other and just glad to be reunited again after only a day apart.

Twilight rested her head on his shoulder, as she heard him whisper into her ear.

"It won't be all bad...I'll still come visit you here." He said as his vision began to blur with his own sadness. He buried his face in her two-tone mane attempting to pull himself together, and drying his eyes.

"Yeah...of course you will..." She whispered back, knowing the impossibility of that scenario. Sometimes she wished she wasn't so educated.

Spike pulled away from their hug and looked her straight in her still moist purple eyes.

"Now... since we're doing what I want to do, my first rule is I don't want to see any crying for the next two days. That goes for everypony!" He said trying to lighten the mood while wiping away his friends tears.

"Everypony go home, and get some rest. Tomorrow we're gonna have a full day of whatever the heck I want!" He said confidently as the rest of Twilights friends bid her goodbye and left just Spike and herself alone in the library.

"I'll get started cleaning this place up. You really threw organization to the wind in here didn't you?" He teased picking up a couple of books in his arms and climbing the ladder to the upper shelves.

"Yeah...Sorry about that, I was just...I don't know what I was thinking." She admitted levitating a couple of books up and sliding them back on their respective shelves.

"I appreciate what you were trying to do Twilight." He said over his shoulder from atop the ladder.

She smiled for the first time that day, feeling her cheeks warm as they blushed. She looked over at him as he slid down the ladder, the first few spikes on his tail just beginning to grow in as it thumped on the hardwood floor upon reaching the ground. The space on his back where his wings would grow in were also becoming slightly discolored. It would still be a few years before he could fly, but the signs of the end of their time together were written all over his body.

"Thanks Spike...I knew you would do the same for me...so I had to at least try." She said picking up a group of books in front of her and placing them back on the lower shelf.

"You're darn right I would." He said with a grin as he grabbed another stack of books and headed back up the ladder.

"...Hard to believe this is the last time you'll have to clean up after me..." Twilight mentioned, her voice gently revealing her true feelings, even though she was trying her best to mask them. The young dragon saw right through her charade however. Living with someone for years allows one to intimately know the others voice queues and the feelings behind them.

Spike looked back at her from midway up the ladder, still holding the books in one arm.

"Hey now. Remember rule number one? No more of that sad stuff until it's time, okay?" He insisted as she couldn't help but attempt to mask her pain with a smile.

"You're right Spike, I should be enjoying the time we have left, not crying over it...I've been such a filly today, I'm sorry..."

"Nothing to be sorry about Twi! You'll still have Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy. You'll just see me a little less often is all."

She bit her tongue, reminding herself what happened to dragons as they got older. No matter how hard she tried, the reality of the situation kept invading her every conscious thought. Spike was always there for her, weather she actually needed him or not. Not to mention the many times she had rescued him from numerous kinds of danger, mortal or otherwise that he seemed to get himself into when he was younger, and a few times when he saved her when he had gotten old enough to flex his muscle against some of Equestrias most dangerous wildlife. Whenever she would come down with hey fever, her seasonal allergies, or any other ailment, Spike was there with hot soup and a warm blanket, relentlessly ready to take on Twilights chores as well as his own. Anytime she would fall asleep studying, she somehow always woke up tucked safely into her bed. Another thing that unnerved her was how Spike could be so calm about this whole ordeal. She supposed it was because he didn't know about the mind erasing hormones ready to wipe every memory he had made in Ponyville from his mind. Still, she decided to keep that little detail to herself.

'No need to sully his good mood.' She thought putting away the last group of books in front of her. After a few more minutes of silent cleaning, all the books were back in order.

"Rest up Twilight, tomorrow's gonna be a big day!" He said climbing onto his bed and covering himself with a blanket and pulling up to his neck.

"Yeah, I can't wait. Sweet dreams Spike." She responded.

She slowly walked up the stairs and passed Spikes bed and climbed into hers, blowing out the candle once she had settled in.