Last night, a big meteor shower was witnessed by the Mane 6 and the other citizens of Ponyville. Of course, we were invited to partake in this once in a life time event, but since I was too tired that night (and also didn't really have much interest in watching a bunch of meteors fly by), I chose to sleep that night and just let the guys go watch it without me. Today, the guys and I decided to take a walk through Ponyville while I listen to both of them explaining what happened during that previous night.

"So after the meteor shower was over," Jonathan gave his overview, "we all decided to get some punch, but Spike had fallen asleep right in the punch bowl, and Pinkie literally said that the punch was now 'Spiked'."

Even though I had just gotten out of bed, I'm still able to groan at that bad pun of hers. "Yeah, we had the same reaction, man." Said Andrew.

We soon found ourselves nearly approaching Twilight's place where which the Mane 6 were crowded amongst one another in a deep conversation. After receiving a beckoning gesture from Twilight, the three of us decided to get close enough to them where we finally noticed the brown owl that's been perching on Twilight's back.

"I bet you're wondering why I have an owl with me?" Twilight somehow read our thoughts.

"How'd you guess?" Jonathan pretended to be surprised.

"Well, this is the first time you three are meeting Owlowiscious, and since I was planning on introducing him to all my friends today, I figured it was a no brainer."

"When did you get this owl?" Andrew inquired.

"Last night."

"And you already gave it a name?" I said.

"I know, it almost feels like we were meant to meet!"

"Oh, what a fantastical, flufflicious feathery little friend! I'm...Hooked!" Pinkie put a lot of emphasis on the hoo in hooked. While the ponies laughed at that obvious owl pun, the guys and I could do nothing but pinch the bridge of our noses.

"He's just wonderful." Fluttershy complemented.

"'He's just wonderful.'" The mocking sound of Spike's voice didn't go unnoticed by anyone. "Uh, yes. Wonderful. He's quite...the charmer."

Sensing that bit of tension in Spike's voice, I quickly asked Twilight, "Is it OK if I go talk to Spike?"

"Sure, go ahead." Twilight gave her permission.

Making my way into Twilight's treehouse, I went up the spiral stairs and found the little dragon sulking by the window. "Hey, how's my favorite dragon?" I gave a little complement in the hope that it may lighten Spike's mood.

"Oh, hey Jeffrie." Spike gave me a nonchalant greeting before turning his eyes back to that owl.

"Say, I noticed that you don't seem too thrilled about that new bird Twilight's bragging about," I went straight to the point. "Is something wrong?"

The little dragon looked up at me with eyes full of sadness as he made his confession. "I think Twilight's wanting to replace me."

"With the bird?" I said. "Come on, Spike, I know Twilight can be a tad hard towards you now and then, but I'm sure she would never replace you; especially if it's some owl she just found last night."

"Well this morning, I ended up sleeping late, and Twilight tells me that all my usual chores have already been taken care of by Owlowiscious. Not only that, but the same ponies who were just praising me last night, are now giving that owl the exact same praise. And just look at that!" he pointed his claw back to the owl--who's now donning a big red bowtie with little diamonds embedded on it. "Rarity's now giving him the exact same bowtie she made for me last night! I'm just scared, Jeffrie. What if all my friends start to like him more than me? What if they all forget about me altogether?!"

Not being able to withstand anymore of this poor kid's turmoil, I placed a comforting hand on his scaly shoulder and said, "Hey, they're not the only friends you've got; I should know, I'm one of them, am I not?"

"Of course you're my friend," Spike said with assurance. "And you wouldn't forget about me?"

"I could never do that to you." It was at this point where I finally became serious with him. "Look Spike, I don't want to see you feel sad or left out; so if you ever start feeling like Twilight's not giving you enough attention, you can always stay with me and the guys for as long as you like."

"You mean it?"

"Absolutely. The guys and I would just love to have you as a guest."

As I got up to make my leave, I was stopped by the sound of Spike's voice. "Jeffrie, thanks for listening to me."

"You're welcome," I told the little dragon. "And remember, my door is always open to you." Little did I know, that Spike's visit would begin much sooner than expected.

Our day wasn't as eventful as yesterday. The three of us felt like today is an off day for us to just lie around the couch and binge watch episodes of Futurama. We've been watching so many episodes throughout the whole day that it turned to night in a matter of seconds. Over the sound of Bender telling anyone to bite his "shiny metal ass," we all heard rainfall coming from the outside; luckily it wasn't a thunder storm, so Andrew and I had nothing to fret about. What did startle all of us was the sudden knocking that came from our door.

Judging by the rapid sound of those knocks, I immediately rushed towards the door as if whoever was knocking would be eaten by a lion if I didn't open it in time. After twisting the knob and pushing the door forward, I looked out, only to find nothing but the rain pouring down on Ponyville. I would've simply closed the door and head back to the couch had I not bothered to look down and see a shivering Spike leaning his head down and carrying a small bag by a long stick standing upon our doorway.

"Oh God, Spike, get in here!" I beckoned the little dragon to enter our house where it's nice and warm.

Acting like doctors trying to make room for a patient, Andrew and Jonathan wasted no time in getting off their spots on the couch and allowed all the space for Spike. "What were you doing in the rain, Spike?" Andrew asked him.

"Planning on going somewhere, were you?" said Jonathan, making note of the stick and bag that was placed on the table.

After we were all silent for awhile, the three of us picked up what sounded like sniffles coming from the drenched little dragon sitting upon our couch. "Spike?" placing my finger under his chin, I slowly lifted his head up to reveal a waterfall of tears streaming down his face. "Spike, what's wrong?" as if by instinct, Andrew handed me a tissue to wipe some of the tears off the poor kid's face before he took it from me and blew his snout by himself.

Clutching the tissue with his claws, Spike tried his best to hold back his sobs as he told us, "T-twilight doesn't l-l-love me anymore."

Those words hit us like an atomic bomb. To think that only yesterday he was worried that Twilight might end up stop loving him (assuming that she ever loved him to begin with), and now his worst nightmare seems to be coming true just like that. "What makes you so sure of that?" Jonathan asked the broken hearted dragon with an ounce of doubt.

"She made it very clear that I'm n-not her number one assistant a-a-anymore." Spike stated with pain.

"Why don't you start from the beginning?" I suggested.

After fully drying himself of anymore tears, Spike told us everything we needed to know. "Well...before the meteor shower started, Twilight had asked me to get her a book on constellations; I went to retrieve it of course, but when I opened it to look at some pages, a lot of dust got in my face and I ended up sneezing fire into it. I didn't want my little mishap to ruin Twilight's fun, so I simply told her that it wasn't there. I must've forgotten all about it, because just this morning Twilight slams the book next to my basket and tells me that Owlowiscious found it right where it was. I tried to explain to her that it was all just an accident but she didn't want to hear any of it and called me a disappointment. I figured that that owl must've done this to purposely make me look bad to Twilight, so I tried to get back at him by making it look like he killed a mouse. Twilight of course didn't fall for it; she instead got angry at me for being jealous of her new assistant and..." up to this moment, Spike manage to remain stable. When he got to this point, however, some tears were slowly building up. "...a-and that's when she told me that she d-d-didn't love me anymore!" not wanting us to see him bawling, Spike buried his head in his knees in attempt of hiding his tears. Sitting myself right next to the boy, I wrapped both my arms in a comforting hug and allowed him to shed his tears all over my shirt. "After that, I decided that I couldn't live with her after that; so I packed all my things and was going to runaway from Ponyville. But just as I was getting close to the Everfree Forest, I remembered what you told me the other day; about how you'll always be there for me and let me stay with you if something like this happens. So I quickly ran back as I could to your place and ask if I can stay with you guys. I can stay, can I?"

Gazing upon that sad, heartbroken look on Spike's face made me realize right away that breaking my promise is not going to be an option. "Spike, I meant every word I told you yesterday; if you really need a place to stay, then you're welcome to be here for as long as you like."

"Jeffrie, can we speak to you privately?" Jonathan leaned next to me and whispered in my ear. Wanting to keep Spike distracted during our private chat, I picked up the remote and turned on SpongeBob SquarePants for him. As soon as the guys and I were in the kitchen, Jonathan gave me his honest opinion. "Jeffrie, what the Hell do you think you're doing?! We can't have Spike living here with us!"

"Why the Hell not?" I retorted. "He's got nowhere else to go! Besides, you heard what he said; Twilight replaced him with a bird, he's got nothing now!"

"Huh, I guess Fluttershy was right," Andrew said aloud.

"What does she have to do with this?" I pressed my friend for some answers.

"Yesterday, while you were off talking with Spike," Andrew explained, "we all heard Fluttershy suggest that maybe he was fearing that Twilight's owl might take his place, and Twilight just sort of shrugged it off. If what Spike is telling us is true, then maybe Twilight really did replace him."

"Now guys," Jonathan raised his hands in defense, "I understand that you're both concerned about Spike, but haven't any of you even consider that he may have been exaggerating a little?"

"You're seriously suggesting that that little heart broken kid out there just lied to us?" I said.

"No, no, I'm sure that Twilight really did say something to make Spike feel this way; I'm just saying that he may have only paraphrased what she told him. You know how over sensitive kids can get whenever someone gets on to them."

I needed a moment to pinch the bridge of my nose before continuing this discussion. "Jonathan, I know you have a crush on Twilight, but that doesn't mean you should automatically defend her all the time. I mean Andrew has a huge crush on Applejack, and even that didn't stop him from not siding with her during that little snafu at the Winter Wrap Up."

"He has a point, Jonathan," Andrew concurred. "Don't get me wrong, I love Applejack just as much as you love Twilight, but that doesn't mean I have to automatically side with her; especially when I feel she's going too far."

Still not wanting to let the matter be settled, Jonathan once again tries to convince us otherwise. "Come on guys, we've all seen Spike take care of Twilight long enough to know that he's more than capable of looking out for himself. I mean, it's not like he's gonna stumble upon a cave full of gems and get attacked by a big dragon."

Unfortunately for Jonathan, that last statement would only work to his disadvantage. "Well, I guess when you put it that way," I said, "it makes it all the more reason why we need to let Spike stay." Realizing that there's no way to counter my point, Jonathan wisely kept his mouth shut. "Now, I know very well that you and Spike don't exactly get along, but now's not the time for you to hold a petty grudge. There is a kid in that room who's probably lost the one thing that matters most to him, and we're going to do what we can to help him out whether you like it or not."

"All right," Jonathan admitted defeat, "if you really feel that Spike needs us that badly, then by all means let him stay."

"Good," I closed the matter. "Now that that's been taken care of, I better go fill in Spike." Stepping back into the living room, I was both surprised and relieved to see the once bawling dragon letting out a little laugh as he watched Patrick Star explain to all the callers that this is in fact Patrick they're talking to. "You like that?"

Getting his focus away from the TV, Spike looks to me and says, "Oh yeah, this stuff is hilarious. Do you guys watch this stuff back where you're from?"

"You bet," I took a seat next to him, "me and a lot of other people would watch these cartoons all the time when we were your age."

"Are there other 'cartoons' like this one?"

"Uh-huh, and you just might get to see all of them while you're staying."

"You mean I can really stay?"

"I promised you, didn't I?" taking my eyes off of the little dragon for a brief second, I suddenly felt my waist being tightened a tad. I jolted, of course, but I immediately calmed down when I found that I was only receiving a tender hug from Spike.

"Thank you, Jeffrie." He said to me.

"You're welcome, Spike." I returned his hug with a small pat on his scaly head. "All right then, since you're gonna be staying with us, I might as well write a letter to Twilight letting her know where you are." I went into Jonathan's room to take out a piece of paper from his journal and a pencil that was lying on his bed. Sitting myself back on the couch, I placed the paper on the coffee table in preparation for the letter I'm about to write. But just as I raised the pencil, I felt it being tugged by Spike's claws.

"Here Jeffrie, let me do it for you." Spike offered.

Not wanting to let myself become Twilight Sparkle, I gently removed his claws from the pencil and told him, "I'm fine writing the letter by myself, Spike. Why don't you go to the bathroom and give yourself a nice warm bath? I wouldn't want you to catch a cold; especially after being out in the rain."

"Oh, OK." Springing himself off the couch, Spike made his way to the door that leads to the bathroom, only to stop just as he pushed it midway. "Just a heads up, I tend to stay in the bathroom for seven hours when I'm taking a bubble bath. So don't be surprised if I'm still in here."

As soon as I heard that door shut, I took the pencil in hand and allowed it to write away. In only a minute I manage to convey all my anger, my disappointment, and my disdain towards Twilight Sparkle, onto one sheet of paper. With the letter now finished, the only thing left to do was to deliver it to Twilight. Due to a lack of any raincoats, I had to resort to using just a plain black jacket that I've been keeping for some time and used it as a means to keep myself--and the letter--partially dry. The trip over to Twilight's place was a difficult one to say the least; the rain showered upon me with big globs of water that practically splatter on impact. As I continue to trek through all this downpour, I just prayed that my letter will still be readable once I've reached Twilight's place. Through both a miracle and sheer willpower, I finally found myself standing on Twilight's doorstep. Not even bothering to knock first, I marched right inside and quickly slammed the piece of paper onto a nearby table, which caught the attention of a certain purple unicorn and her new pet owl.

"Jeffrie?! Oh thank Celestia, you're here! Something really horrible has happened! I got onto Spike today for trying to frame Owlowiscious, and now I can't seem to find him anywhere! Have you seen him?" instead of acknowledging her with an answer, I simply turned my back and made my way towards the door; only to be blocked by a teleporting Twilight. "Jeffrie, did you not hear me?! Spike is missing, and I need to know where he is!"

"Just read the damn letter!" my tone may have had more venom in it than it should have, but at this point I honestly don't give two shits if this neglectful bitch feels hurt or not. After pushing her aside and making my way out, Twilight lied on the wooden floor in confusion until her owl flew up to her with the letter held by his talons. Taking the letter from him with her magic, Twilight unfolded the piece of paper as her eyes scanned through everything that I had to say to her.

Dear Twilight,

--Jeffrie.

Lifting her gaze away from my letter, Twilight stumbled to the floor as tears began to leak from her eyes as the very weight of remorse proves to be too heavy for her to carry. "Oh Spike," she sobbed, "what have I done to you?!"

Finally returning to the house, I was not the least bit surprised to hear the sound of running water coming from the bathroom; what did surprise me was the fact that Spike is apparently one of those people who like to sing while bathing. While I left him to his bubble bath melody, I went straight to my room and gathered the necessary supplies to turn our couch into a guest bed. Since I was never given the foresight to buy a spare pillow incase something such as this would happen, I was more than willing to sacrifice one of mine. As for a blanket, it had to have been my luck to have brought that same green blanket that my granny had given me for Christmas; it is small for my size (what with it only being able to cover my feet and up to my torso), but since Spike is no doubt smaller than it, then it would suit him just fine. Going back down the stairs, it only took about eight seconds for me to place the pillow and blanket on the couch and have it turned into a guest bed for Spike. Even after I had finished setting all of this up, I could still hear the little dragon singing his tune.

Not wanting to disturb his privacy, I pushed the door ever so slightly that it left a small opening for my voice to be heard. "Spike, I got the couch setup for ya. It may not be a bed, but it should still be more comfortable than a basket."

"OK, thank you Jeffrie." The little dragon once again gave me his gratitude.

While Spike continued with his bathing, I dragged myself back up those stairs until I finally returned to my room where I allowed my whole body to drop onto the bed and let sleep takeover me.

Normally I would be sleeping for as long as I want until I felt like getting out of bed, but a certain scent that my nostrils haven't picked up for some time pretty much forced me to wake up early. Walking out the door, I was immediately greeted by the sudden presence of my two buds--who both seemed to have picked up the smell as well.

"You guys smell it too?" I asked them.

"Yeah man, I can smell it all the way up here." Andrew confirmed.

"Am I the only picking up a burning scent here?" Jonathan inquired.

Taking whiff of this aroma a second time, there is no denying that the smell is coming from a burning source.

"Maybe it's coming from the kitchen," Andrew suggested.

Little did he know that uttering his idea aloud would end up planting an even crazier one in Jonathan's head. "I bet Spike has something to do with it!"

As we all made our towards the kitchen, I tried my best to quench the flames that were building up in my friend. "Now Jonathan, let's not jump to any conclusions."

"Jeffrie," said Jonathan, "I swear to God if that little lizard sets something on fire, I'm...!"

Whatever else he was about to say, he couldn't bring himself to finish once he stepped foot inside the kitchen. Instead of walking into a fiery inferno, all we found was a kitchen that was a hundred percent fire free and came with a giant stack of waffles placed upon the table; and behind it was a purple dragon adding another batch to the ever growing pile.

"Oh hey guys," Spike finally noticed us, "I was wondering when you were going to wake up."

Not exactly sure how either of us should respond to him, we decided to simply keep our mouths shut and sit ourselves at the table. As if he were getting ready for a race to start, Spike, immediately--with a spatula in his claws--commenced to placing waffles on our empty plates; it was at this moment that the three of us finally took notice of the pink apron that the little dragon has been donning.

Had the little guy been caught wearing it back on our world, he no doubt would've found himself facing a never ending onslaught of boys calling him a sissy. Luckily for him, I have no intention on making him feel embarrassed--especially after what just happened to him last night; but unfortunately for him, Jonathan doesn't share my same courtesy.

"Cute apron, Spike," Jonathan snickered.

"What's wrong with my apron?" Spike took notice of Jonathan's snarky comment towards his apparel.

"Other than the fact that it's pink and has a cartoony heart on it?" Jonathan gave his reasons.

"So what if I wear something pink?" Spike shot back. "Twilight gave this to me as a present, and she never laughed about it."

It finally made all the more sense once he brought Twilight into this. From what I gathered from our first meeting, Spike has been raised--and surrounded--by a girl since the day he was born. And like most boys who are brought up by girls, they all end up falling prey to the girls' attempts to feminize them. Now of course you can bet that since Spike is going to be staying with us, that I--and hopefully with the help of my buds--will see to it that he will regain his boyhood.

But until we get to that, all I can do now is tell Spike, "Look Spike, if you like wearing that apron so much then you can go ahead and wear it. I mean it's not your fault that Twilight doesn't know how to raise a boy."

"You mean boys aren't allowed to wear pink?"

Not unless you happen to be Bret Hart or Timmy Turner, I thought to myself. But out loud, I told the kid, "Let's not worry about that. If we keep on talking then all these waffles will get cold."

No sooner had I picked up my knife and fork, I was immediately greeted by a bottle of syrup that Spike quickly placed before me. I wasted no time in squeezing enough syrup until my waffles were practically drowned by the stuff; because who the hell would be crazy enough to eat a dry waffle? And don't worry, I made sure I left enough syrup for both of the guys. In fact, the moment I let go of that bottle, Andrew quickly extended his arm out to reach it, only to watch it be swiped away by Jonathan. And while he was patiently waiting his turn, I cut a piece of one of the waffles and led it straight to my mouth. Upon taking that first bite, my taste buds felt like they were in Heaven. My mom would make me waffles from time to time, but they would always either come off as burnt or undercooked. I don't know what Spike could have possibly done while making these waffles, but they were just right! I would normally wolf down a waffle by at least two minutes, but since I wanted to savor the taste of Spike's waffles--and because my plate had at least three on it--it ended up taking me twelve minutes to finish them.

"Spike, I don't know how you made these, but they've might've been the best waffles I've ever eaten." I gave my compliments to the chef.

"Yeah Spike, I don't eat waffles that often, but I sure wouldn't mind having these around if I ever find myself trapped on an island." Andrew gave his praise while sucking off any remaining bits of syrup from his fingers.

"Eh, they're OK I guess." Jonathan nonchalantly declared as he pushed his plate away.

"Well I hope you three aren't full yet," Spike took each of our plates as he made his way to the sink. Once he decided to sit himself back down, he placed a platter which carried three grilled cheese sandwiches on the center of the table. I myself have never been much of a fan of grilled cheese sandwiches, or any kind of sandwich for that matter, but since Spike must've worked very hard to make them I was in no position to act ungrateful for it, so I helped myself to one. If I didn't end up liking the taste, I promised myself that I would try to not make it look too obvious in front of Spike. So I manage to take one bite out of it and...must like how Spike did with the waffles he somehow manage to turn something I assumed would taste terrible and make it become one of the greatest pieces of food that graced my taste buds.

"These are just as good as the waffles," I complimented Spike for his efforts.

"Eh, I can definitely say that I like this more than the waffles," Jonathan somewhat gave his approval.

"Uh guys, are any of you picking up something hot in your sandwiches?" Andrew asked as beads of sweat began to leak from his head.

"No, mine tastes just right." I confirmed.

"Yeah, mine also tastes fine." Jonathan verified as well.

"Then why the Hell is my mouth on fire?!" as if being shot out of a cannon, Andrew made his chair fall flat as he jumped up and ran towards the fridge, in hope of finding something to quench whatever fire that was building up in his taste buds. "What the fuck?! Why is there no more Cokes in here?!" suspecting that he was probably pulling my leg, I got up to take a look and I was both surprised and annoyed that there are no more cans of Coke to be found. Before I could even let out so much as a sigh I immediately found myself being shoved aside by a rampaging Andrew who began to twist both levers of the sink, thinking a downpour of water will enter his mouth, but not even a single drop came out. "Give me water you piece of shit!" Andrew strangled the faucet with both hands as if it were a throat, but even that failed to get him any water. "Oh fuck it!" like a charging rhino, Andrew burst through the door to the bathroom with his shoulder and brought himself down to his knees as he shoved his burning red head into the toilet!

Before my mind could linger longer on the image of Andrew drinking like a dog, I was snapped out by the sound of Jonathan's voice. "Hey Jeffrie, it looks like there's a bit of hot sauce on Andrew's sandwich." Removing the bread on top, he gave me a clear look at the melting cheese which had a streak of red hot sauce upon it.

Knowing full well that Spike was the one who had cooked it in the first place, it made all the more sense why the two of us turned our eyes on him. "Spike, did you put that hot sauce on his sandwich on purpose?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.

The kid looked down at his feet with guilt written all over his face as he made his confession, "Yes, I did."

"And just what made you want to do that?" I inquired.

"Well, because I sometimes see you and Jonathan prank him on occasion," he explained while tugging his tail with both his claws, "so I thought I'd join in as well."

By the time all of what Spike said started to sink in, Jonathan and I couldn't hold back the downpour of laughter that came flooding out of our mouths! Spike, in a small amount of relief, even let out a little chuckle as the left side of his lips began to form a smile. "OK, maybe we're mostly to blame for Andrew having to drink toilet water," I said once my laughter started to die down, "so we'll be willing to let this slide if you apologize to him."

Knowing full well the condition I offered was more than generous, Spike did not hesitate to walk up to Andrew (who's still drowning himself in the toilet) and said, "Andrew, I'm sorry if I humiliated you. No hard feelings?"

Finally emerging out of the toilet, Andrew's whole face was now being covered by drenched black bangs of his once neat looking bowl cut with his mouth being the only visible part of his face. "As long as you don't mention this to anyone outside this house," he pointed his finger at where he assumed the little dragon was standing, "then I'll have no reason to hold a grudge."

Upon receiving his pardon, Spike happily ran towards the sink where he proceeded to go inside it and do a little tweaking, by the time he got out I decided to turn one of the levers and was surprised to see water finally come pouring out. "You really thought this prank out well, haven't you?" I commented.

"Well I had to make sure he couldn't drink anything else," Spike explained.

"Then I also take it that you purposely threw out all the Cokes on purpose?" Jonathan asked.

"No!" Spike shouted in offense to that claim. "I'll let you know that that fridge was already empty when I looked in it this morning!"

Wow, who would've thought that we could drink so many cans of soda so quickly? Although, it's not like this has been the first time we ran out. And it's for that reason why I said, "Well, I guess this means another trip to the store."

"OK, you have fun doing that," Jonathan placed both his hands behind his head as he placed his feet upon the table in a relaxed manner.

"Aren't you coming with me?" I inquired.

"Yeah, I could," he then let out a yawn, "but I'm not exactly in the mood to leave the house right now. And Andrew probably smells like piss by now, so I know he's definitely not going to join you."

"The toilet was flushed before I dunked my head into it, asshole!" Andrew yelled.

Knowing full well that I won't be able to rely on my friends to give me a hand with the shopping, I turned my eyes to a certain dragon who just may be more than willing to assist me. "Do you want to come with me, Spike?"

"Sure!" the little kid grinned with glee upon hearing that his assistance is required. So with Spike by my side, we both began our little mission to go grocery shopping.

The store we went to just happens to be the same store where we got the supplies for Zecora. Since I had shopped here on numerous occasions, finding the Coke boxes was not difficult. After I placed the third box into the cart, Spike saw this as an opportunity to say, "You know, since we're here, we should probably get some more food for when I cook you guys another meal."

Since he chose to bring that up, I decided to tell him, "Spike, we enjoyed the breakfast you made us, but you didn't have to do it."

"Of course I did," he insisted, "how else was I suppose to repay you for letting me stay?"

"You don't owe us anything," I said. "We would've let you live with us regardless."

"It's OK, Jeffrie, I don't mind serving you guys a meal; besides, I know that you would never take advantage of my assistance." Knowing that I have the kid's trust gave me a nice feeling inside of myself. I would've just kept pushing the cart and let myself savor this moment until Spike decided to bring up, "Of course, if you and the guys just prefer to cook your meals by yourselves then I can totally understand."

You ever find yourself in a position where somebody asks you if you've done something that many people are known to do but you're just too embarrassed to admit that you've never done it even once? Because that's exactly where I'm at right now! As if I were standing upon a piece of ice that'll drop me into the cold water if I even make a single move, I chose the words I would tell the little dragon as slowly as possible. "Well...you see, Spike...the guys and I don't exactly cook our food."

"But if you don't cook, then how can you possibly eat?" he asked in confusion.

"We do eat food," I admitted somewhat, "if it comes in a box, a plastic wrap, or can just be eaten without having to be cooked."

I suddenly felt the cart being stopped as I looked down and saw that Spike had blocked the end with both of his claws. The look he was giving me was the one that you'd give if you didn't recognize the person standing in front of you. "Are you saying that none of you guys have ever cooked before?" not being able to downright say it, I meekly nodded my head as I prepared myself for the onslaught that Spike is about to unleash upon me. "Seriously?! You have been living here for nearly a whole year and yet you've been eating nothing but snack foods this whole time?! Do you even realize how unhealthy that is; even Twilight would have a cow if she knew I was eating nothing but snacks all the time! Well, it's a good thing I'm living with you guys. Come on, let's see if we can't find some real food for you to eat." Dragging the cart by himself, I was left with nothing but the company of awkwardly staring ponies until I decided to follow the little dragon to the next aisle. "OK, there's plenty of food that can be cooked around here. You got any preferences?"

"Now Spike, you don't have to do this," I told him.

"Don't start!" the little dragon put his foot down. "I don't care if you feel like I'm doing too much work; I'm not letting one of my friends destroy his own body with unhealthy habits. Now start giving me ideas, or I'm just gonna start tossing any random food in this cart!"

Knowing full well that Spike isn't going to take no for an answer, I decided that the best thing to do is to humor him. "Well, I haven't had spaghetti in awhile."

"All right," the little dragon wasted no time in tossing a nearby box of pasta into the cart, but immediately found himself standing in front of a roadblock when he saw that the tomato sauce is on top of a high shelf. "Um, Jeffrie, can you...?" before he even finished that request, both his claws were now clutching the can of tomato sauce that I quickly reached with ease. "Thank you!"

Right when he tossed the can in the cart, I figured that now would be a perfect time to ask, "So how do you plan on making the meatballs?"

The look he gave me is the kind that one would normally receive when someone thinks you've gone insane. "Jeffrie, you do know you're living in a herbivore community, right?"

Of course I know full well that ponies don't eat meat, but since a dragon like Spike can be a residence here, it had me wondering if they make any exceptions for meat eaters. "You mean they don't at least keep any meat just in case anyone who likes meat comes by?"

"They don't even serve gems at the restaurants here," Spike made it more than clear.

Accepting the sad truth that I won't be eating meatballs on my spaghetti for probably the rest of my life, I let out a defeated sigh as I said, "Well, I mostly eat it for the noodles anyway; it's still spaghetti either way."

After awarding my acceptance with a nod, Spike immediately asked, "What else would you like?"

Looking over to the left of the aisle, my vision zoomed straight at the blue box of mac and cheese that was right in front of me. "I also like mac and cheese."

"Then throw it in."

Doing as he requested, I dropped the mac and cheese box in the cart only to quickly pickup a bag of conveniently placed blueberry muffins. "Think you can make these for next breakfast?"

"If that's what you want." No sooner had the bag of muffins land into the cart did Spike ask, "Do any of you guys like soup?"

"I don't," I admitted, "but Andrew really loves tomato soup."

The little dragon scurried over a few paces and came back with three cans of tomato soup stacked together. "Is there something Jonathan might want?"

"That depends," I grabbed a nearby bag of bread. "Can you make toast?"

"Do dragons breathe fire?"

With nothing else to throw in the cart, Spike and I pushed forward to the end of the aisle and came to a stop near the freezer section. In front of us stood an array of refrigerators containing ice cream of all flavors. Allowing my eyes to look over each box, a certain pink one had immediately caught my attention; there was a kind of black image that I couldn't make out, so I decided to give myself a closer look. Taking the container out, I can hear the sound of a Heavenly choir chanting "Hallelujah!" ringing in my eyes when I saw that the black image is that of a girl pony tugging a cow, and it was at this moment that I've discovered that the ponies have their own version of Blue Bell Ice Cream all along!

"Yes!" I raised the box triumphantly in Link fashion. "I never thought I would ever get to eat ice cream ever again!"

"You like ice cream too?" Spike pushed the cart next to me.

"Only this kind," I explained, "I've been eating this brand ever since I was four."

Dumping the ice cream box with the rest of our groceries, Spike took a good look at it and came to a conclusion. "I take it strawberry is your favorite flavor?"

"Of course," I confirmed, "it's the only flavor I'll ever eat--aside from vanilla."

"Strawberry's my favorite too!"

"Is that so? Then let's get another."

After placing a second box in the cart, the two of us pushed our way to the line. Since there were so many ponies in front of us, Spike and I passed the time by chatting.

"So how do you usually eat your ice cream," the little dragon asked.

"I mostly prefer to eat it out of the container," I told him.

"Yeah, sometimes I don't really feel like putting mine on a cone, so I'll just get a spoon and chow away--until Twilight stops me of course."

"Well, I for one eat it like that because I know for a fact that ice cream tends to melt faster in a bowl."

"That a fact?"

"Yep, I remember having a bowl over at a neighbor's place when I was six, and I still remember seeing the ice cream melt the second it got on the bowl." As the crowd of ponies grew thinner, Spike and I took our steps. "So what was that song you were singing last night?"

"Oh that," Spike said, "that's just a little jingle Twilight's mom would sing to me whenever she gave me a bath."

"You mean it wasn't just Twilight who's been raising you?" I asked.

"Well she was a kid when she first got me," Spike said it like it was a no-brainer. "I mean, who can possibly be stupid enough to allow an eight year old to take care of a baby?" a shred of my hope for these ponies' sanity has been restored upon hearing that statement. "Besides, even though her mom stopped taking care of me when Twilight got older, she always treated me like I'm one of her own; she even taught me how to cook."

"Did she?"

"Uh-huh, you see, she mostly did the cooking by herself; one day, Twilight didn't really need me to do anything for her, so I roamed around until I saw her mom working in the kitchen." We took a few steps more. "I noticed that even with her magic all this cooking was beginning to overwhelm her, so I walked up to her and asked if I could help her." The both of us took even more steps. "After that I've been her little helper up until Twilight and I moved to Ponyville."

"And she basically gave you free lessons?"

"Yeah, she'd let me read the cookbook for her, show me how to work a stove, how to use the cooking utensils, how to check if the food's ready, she even let me taste everything for her. But the best part of all was when she'd let me cook all by myself." The next steps we took seem to drag us evermore closer to the cashier. "I was all prepared to help her out once more, and the first thing she tells me is 'I want you to cook dinner for everypony.' Of course I was nervous when she asked me this, but after doing everything that Twilight's mom had taught me I managed to make everyone's favorite meal in time for dinner. The best part was that none of them even knew that I cooked it; they all thought it was Twilight's mom to thank for the meal, until she corrected them of course. Once they all knew that I cooked dinner for them, seeing the happy looks on their faces, and hearing the praise for meals I'd prepared for them just may have been the proudest moment of my life. It truly felt like I was part of the family that day." When I looked down on him, I saw what appeared to be a melancholy smile form upon his face (as if recollecting this happy memory would drive him to tears). I was prepared to give the kid a comforting pat on the shoulder until he and I were called upon by the cashier who beckoned us to come forward.

Through our combined teamwork, the two of us patiently waited for the cashier pony to tell us the price of our groceries. "All right fellas, that'll be forty eight bits." Taking out my wallet, I rummaged through each bill that my parents had given me in case I wanted a souvenir from Mars and managed to pull out two twenties and a ten. Extending my hand to the pony, I expected him to take the money and let us be on our way; but I instead received nothing but a long, awkward stare that lasted for ten seconds until the cashier pony finally found the urge in him to say words. "Yeah, I'm sorry sir, but I'm afraid your paper currency is no longer acceptable."

"It's money: you use to pay for and buy stuff with." I refreshed his memory with my personal definition as if he had forgotten what the word meant.

"I'm well aware of what currency is, sir," he said, "it's just that yours was never really worth much anyway. In fact, the only reason why you were able to buy anything is because the Mayor had you and your friends under a special welfare program that allowed any of you to purchase anything for free."

To say this information took me by surprise would be an understatement. "When were we under a welfare program?!"

"The same time you three decided to stay in Ponyville as permanent residences. You may not have been considered homeless, but you were still classified as unemployed, which is why the Mayor chose to place you all under this program--which you've neglected to renew."

"How was I suppose to renew something if nobody even so much as sent me a letter saying so?!"

"Well sir, our main mail-pony happens to be Derpy, and she's been known to mix up letters and packages all the time, so it's most likely that she sent your reminder to the wrong address."

Giving the bridge of my nose a firm pinch, I let out a sigh which drained me of any aggravation and replace it with a shred of calmness. "OK, how am I suppose to pay for all of this?"

"Simple, the only form of currency that we accept are bits--and sometimes gems."

The cashier pony at least had the courtesy to show me what these so called "bits" look like. Thinking that my eyes are playing tricks on me, I requested a closer examination which the cashier was happy to oblige. Now holding the bit with my finger tips, I found myself becoming so flabbergasted that I thought my eyes would pop out of their sockets when they both saw that I was a clenching a gold coin!

"Is this a joke?!" I demanded an explanation. "I know you're not expecting me to pay in gold!"

"But sir, it's Equestria's main form of currency." The cashier tried his best to clarify. "It's not even really worth much compared to gems."

"Not worth much?!" I cried. "Where I'm from, one of these could be enough to pay off a bill; and the other forty seven could possibly buy me a mansion!"

"Sir, I can understand the value of bits is vastly different on your world, but you still need them if you want to pay for all of this."

I didn't want to have to put everything back and go home empty handed, but unless I can somehow make gold coins appear just by snapping my fingers, the guys and I might go hungry. I was ready to try to reason with the cashier once more, until a certain dragon spoken up. "Take it easy, Jeffrie. I've got it all covered." The kid then let out a green flame which, to my surprise, materialized a small ,plump purple pouch that landed on his claws. Digging inside the pouch, I could make out the sound of coins scrapping together and found myself becoming more shocked to see Spike pull out the forty eight bits that we were in desperate need of.

After receiving the cashier's approval of the payment, Spike tossed the pouch high in the air and made it disappear with another green flame. "Come on, Jeffrie," he snapped me out of my shock, "you don't expect me to carry all of these bags myself, do ya?"

Leaving the grocery store with bags in hand, the two of us had made it ten steps away until I decided to break the silence that followed us. "Since when do you make money appear out of thin air?"

"You mean my money pouch?" Spike clarified. "That's just one of the many possessions I keep inside my pocket dimension."

"Your what?" I was even more confused now.

"I wasn't exactly born with pockets attached to my scales," Spike explained, "so around the same time Princess Celestia started to teach me how to send her letters, she taught me this special trick that can help save anything I own inside a kind of invisible safe that only I can access."

Satisfied with the answer he had given me, I soon found myself feeling a shred of guilt for letting Spike a huge amount of what could be his life savings for my sake. "Spike, I'm sorry for making you spend some of your money for all of this."

"You don't need to apologize," he brushed it off, "I have more than enough bits to spare; what with all the ponies I help around."

"You mean you don't just work for Twilight?"

"Sometimes I get a break from Twilight, and I mostly spend it doing some small tasks for anypony who needs help. The Cakes once paid me six bits when I got them some more cake frosting, Cheerilee paid me fifteen bits when I repainted the schoolhouse with her, the Mayor paid me twenty five bits when I delivered some important documents for her, and sometimes I get three to four bits from tourists who ask me for directions. And I haven't even started talking the tips I get from rich ponies in Canterlot."

"You mean Camelot."

"No, I'm pretty sure it's called Canterlot. Anyway, some of the rich ponies can be real stingy jerks, but some of them are very generous tippers. This one pony named Fancy Pants gave me a hundred and twenty bits just for telling him the time, his mistress, Fleur de Lis, gave me seventy bits just for holding a cup of coffee for her, and Sapphire Shores gave me two hundred and forty bits just for being a stand-in for one of her music videos. Even Twilight's parents use to give me an allowance of ten bits anytime I help with chores."

"I take it, Twilight, pays you as well?"

"Pfft! I'm lucky to even get a 'thank you' out of her. If she even found out about the money I've been saving, she'd most likely take and spend it on something that'll just mean more work for me."

I began to become rather curious as to what kind of life Twilight as laid for Spike. "What exactly does she make you do for her?"

The kid didn't hesitate to give me a list. "Write letters, clean messes, put away books that she finished reading, make up her bed, keep her from staying up late, make breakfast, lunch, dinner, supper, buy groceries and supplies, be her voice of reason whenever she verges close to insanity, pretty much all the things she can easily take care on her own. I sometimes wonder which one of us is really the grown-up."

Just when I thought I was already disappointed in Twilight, she goes ahead and gives me more reason to be pissed at her. To think this whole she's been forcing some kid to grow up early just so she couldn't have to take up the responsibility herself. Holding back the anger that started to build inside me, I turned to Spike and said, "I know I've already told you this, but you don't need to worry about me or the guys having you serve us; from now on, you can do whatever you like as long as you're staying with us. In fact, is there something you've always want to do but Twilight would never let you?"

Spike began to rub the bottom of his chin with one of his claws in contemplation to this question, until he spotted something that made him shout, "What about that?" following the kid's direction, I saw him point to a poster that's nailed to a post. Taking a closer look, I see that the poster is serving as an advertisement for a Little League Baseball team.

"You never played baseball?" I asked the dragon.

"Twilight's never been much of a sports fan, so I never got to play anything sports related." He explained. "But baseball does look like it could be fun."

"Sure, it's very easy to play," I told him. "In fact, how would you like me and the guys to teach you tomorrow?"

"You'd do that?"

"Sure. We'd only need to buy some equipment and find a big enough space to practice on."

"That won't be a problem; I have more than enough bits to spare."

"Now you don't have to spend too much of your money."

"Jeffrie, I've been getting paid since I was five; I know how to handle my money."

"If you say so." With that out of the way, the two of us continued the rest of our trek through silence until we finally got close to the house. After hearing Spike's tale on how he learned to cook, a certain feeling has been building up inside me and desperately wanted to get out. Just as the kid's claws were centimeters away from the doorknob, I chose to indulge this newfound feeling. "Spike?" freezing his claw in place, Spike turned to me as he waited for me to say something. "Would you like to maybe teach me how to cook someday?"

Processing my request, a smile began to grace his scale covered face. "Absolutely." Gripping the doorknob and giving it a firm twist, Spike and I made our way inside with enough food and drinks to last us for a few weeks.

After putting away the groceries, the guys and I decided that now would be a good time to play some Mortal Kombat X. After annihilating Andrew as Goro, Jonathan and I decided that our match will be another brawl between Scorpion and Sub-Zero (with me playing as Scorpion, of course). There are two reasons why I chose Scorpion for this match; the first is because I simply wanted to hear his patented "COME HERE!" and "GET OVER HERE!" catchphrases, and the second is because ice is for pussies. Once we've both decided what variations we would use, we chose the Dead Woods as our battleground. We would've watched an epic cutscene between these two rivals had Jonathan not been impatient and click the X button too early, but once the word "FIGHT" was said, I landed the first hit. I then delivered a few modified combos that allowed me to attack Jonathan with some swords, but then he quickly dashed back until he had enough space to hit me with a frost hammer. Jonathan wasted no time in firing an ice ball at me, and the moment I was frozen he took me down with an ice slide. He would've froze me again had I not took him by surprise with an enhanced version of Scorpion's teleport--which took a fair amount of health from Jonathan. I then performed the takedown move three times until Jonathan decided to start blocking it, but he positioned himself to be hit with the swinging tree branch stage interaction. At the distance he was at, it was more than perfect opportunity to unleash Scorpion's spear technique on him; once Jonathan was dragged to me, I ended the first round with a throw. Just when the second round was about to commence, Jonathan immediately paused the game to look over some combos and special moves that could be of help. The moment he un-paused the game, he completely took me by surprise with an unexpected uppercut and he started to take away big chunks of my health by spamming the Absolute Zero combo. As Scorpion began to edge closer to the end of his health bar, I quickly performed his teleport hit and manage to get a few decent hits until Jonathan smacked me in the face with a tree branch. And now we've come to the final round; we both knew that only one of us would get to receive the satisfaction of victory, while the other shall garner the shameful honor of having his ass kicked. The two of us battled with everything we got--while occasionally pausing the game to check for combo's. Now we were practically tied to having less health then we've started with. To make doubly sure that he would come out on top, Jonathan went back to a reliable friend: the Absolute Zero combo. All it would take is one more hit and he would finish me off. Sadly though, I denied him this victory, because once I unleashed the x-ray move and depleted all of his health, the game immediately demanded that I "finish him." After delaying Jonathan's inevitable fate with a quick pause, I pressed the necessary combination that allowed Scorpion to summon a wall of rock, pull off Sub-Zero's head with a spear, and pinned said head with a sword.

"Dammit!" Jonathan shrieked in rage. "I was so close to beating you! I should've known that you'd pull off a cheap shot at the last minute!"

"Now Jonathan," I said, "If I didn't want to give you a fighting chance, I would've picked Raiden." Letting Jonathan sulk to himself, I finally took notice of Spike--who throughout our matches would turn his head back and forth between watching us play with the controllers and reading the combo list from the pause menu. Suspecting that he maybe interested in video games, I figured that it only be fair to give the kid a turn. "You wanna play, Spike?"

"Can I?!" He asked with the enthusiasm that only a kid his age can have.

"Of course you can. After all, video games aren't really that fun if you never get to play them." I then turned to Jonathan. "OK Jonathan, give Spike your spot."

"Why me?!"

"Well you did lose the last game, so it only makes sense."

"What about Andrew? He technically lost to you first."

"You can always let Spike sit on your lap, Jonathan," Andrew suggested.

Upon hearing that, Jonathan's pupils began to shrink as his whole face shifted into uncomfortable mode. Turning his gaze down to the little dragon, who's been sitting in front of his legs all this time, with nervousness in his voice he said, "Yeah, no offense Spike, but I wouldn't exactly feel comfortable with you on my lap."

Crossing his scaly arms and raising an eyebrow in response, Spike only had this to say. "Well no offense to you, Jonathan, but I wouldn't feel comfortable sitting on anyone's lap, especially if they have a face like yours."

"What's wrong with my face?! Don't answer that, Jeffrie!"

Holding back the snickers that tried very hard to escape my mouth, I decided to give my own suggestion. "How about you and Spike play a match for the right to sit on the couch?" needless to say, they were both interested in the idea. "Here Spike, you can use my spot for now." Getting himself nice and situated on the cushion, I finally handed my controller to the kid while giving a few pointers. "Now this is a 2-D fighter, so pressing up will make you jump. Also..."

"I got this."

I have to admit I was rather surprise to hear that much confidence come out of his mouth. "You sure wouldn't like a few tips? This isn't exactly a game you can learn in the first few minutes."

"I said 'I got this'."

Jonathan only let out a soft chuckle to himself as he picked Kitana. After Spike settled with Scorpion, he and Jonathan agreed on the Dead Woods as their battleground. A saucy grinned started to form on Jonathan's face; he was so sure that he would easily beat Spike that he allowed the opening introduction between the characters play out. And why wouldn't he be? Jonathan's been playing video games since he was a kid and this was Spike's first game. By the time this is all over he's gonna make Spike go crying to his mommy; he didn't care that he was a kid, he was gonna put this newb in his place without cutting him any slack. Once the first round started, Jonathan's overconfident demeanor immediately turned to one of alarm when he saw Kitana become bombarded by a flurry of punches. He didn't even blink and now he's suddenly seeing his character being juggled in the air in the kind of style that only the true masters of gaming can pull off. He was so dazed that he didn't even notice that the first round was already over. With that one flawless victory out of the way, Jonathan shook his senses back into place as he prepared for the next round. He tried to land one hit, but the moment Spike unleashed the teleport attack, Jonathan, was already at the kid's mercy. I watched as Spike pressed each button as if every motion of his finger was by sheer instinct, while Jonathan was just frantically mashing every button as if he were a newb instead. And despite Jonathan's efforts, he can only watch as Scorpion sent a fireball through Kitana's chest and slice her face off in another flawless victory.

"What just happened?" Jonathan's controllers slipped from his fingers as his mouth gaped open in shock.

"A newb who never held a controller in his life until now just handed your ass on a plate," Andrew made it clear to Jonathan that this all isn't some sick nightmare he's having.

"Does this mean I get to sit on the couch?" the victorious little dragon asked.

"It sure does." I felt it was my duty to make Jonathan give up Spike's prize. "OK Jonathan, time to get off Spike's spot."

"How about a rematch?" Jonathan practically pleaded.

"No can do, the bet was for one match only. So get up."

As soon as I placed a hand on his shoulder, Jonathan seemed to turn into a hissing cat as he cling to his former spot on the couch. "No! It's not fair! I shouldn't have to give up my seat over one little fluke!"

"Grab his legs, Andrew!"

Leaping off the couch, Andrew made a mad dash to the other side of the couch where he wrapped his arms around Jonathan's legs, while I tugged at his vest as our combined strength tried to pry our desperate friend off of the spot that use to belong to him.

"Come on guys, please! Don't do this to me! I just wasn't ready! Just give me a rematch; one rematch! I know I can beat Spike! Please! No!"

After much struggle, Jonathan now found himself sitting on the floor. Crossing his arms with the pouty face of a whiny brat, he could do nothing but contain every ounce of frustration as he felt the scaly feet of the very dragon who stole his seat on the couch being placed on his head like a footrest.

"Wow Jonathan, I can understand why you wouldn't want to give this spot up," Spike wrapped both his arms behind his head, reveling in his relaxing reward. "This is far more comfortable than that hard floor."

"This is fucking bullshit!" Jonathan muttered to himself.

Feeling tired of playing games, we decided that now's a great time to watch episodes of Transformers. We were all silent throughout the viewing of the first episode, but by the time we got to the second one, Andrew decided to ask about the one thing that's been plaguing our minds.

"You know Spike, I still don't get how you were able to pull off those combo's on your first try."

"Simple, I just paid close attention to when you guys were playing and I merely repeated it." The comfortable dragon explained. "I know this seems hard to understand, but sometimes I can remember stuff after watching, hearing, and even reading it only once."

"So basically you have a photographic memory?" I deduced.

"If that's what it's called," said Spike. "I suppose it would explain how I'm able to write letters for Twilight so fast."

"Well shit, I guess we better not tell little Spyro here some embarrassing secrets that'll come back and bite us on our asses." Jonathan snarked.

"By the way, what are those words you three keep saying?" Spike asked.

"Which ones?" I said.

"'Shit' and 'ass'."

The three of us just froze in place upon hearing those two words come out of that kid's mouth. "Wow, you're the first one to ever acknowledge our cursing." Andrew said with astonishment.

"You mean you guys can perform magic?"

"No Spike," I clarified, "it's just a term we humans use for when grownups say bad words. Don't any of these ponies say bad words that aren't meant for kids' ears?"

"Oh, you mean like buck and hay?" Spike gave some examples. "Yeah, I sometimes overhear Twilight spew some of them whenever she thinks I'm not around. In fact, I remember Twilight's dad saying them constantly whenever he loses at bingo or drinks too much cider." After a rather awkward pause, Spike felt that he still had a few more words to say. "Say, could you guys teach me all the bad words from your world?"

I of course had to do a double take after hearing that request. "Now hold on, Spike, I already said I would teach you how to play baseball. Don't you think that's more than enough?"

"Eh, I can multitask."

"I don't know, Spike, it's just not consider good to be encouraging a boy your age to say curse words...then again, none of the ponies seem to care whenever we swear, so I guess you shouldn't be any different. All right, I'll give you a little lesson in all of them, but only if you promise to not make a habit of it. I can understand you saying them when you're angry or just need to let out stress, but don't you ever insert them in every sentence you make. Understand?"

"Yes sir." Spike said in a dry tone. Doubtless, I'm sure a whole lot of you don't want to be reading about us teaching curse words to a little boy, so I'll just do you all a favor and skip straight to the montage covering all best times we've spent with Spike over the next three months, while listening to "Mr. Blue Sky."

The first moment occurred on the next day. After paying a quick visit to a sport's shop, the guys and I--along with Spike--wandered around Ponyville until we came across a large open space that would make the perfect the training ground for the little dragon. Placing all of the bases to form a giant diamond, the three of us went ahead and took our positions: with Jonathan as the pitcher, Andrew as the batter, and myself as the catcher. If all of Andrew's claims of being an awesome football player is to be believed, he just might've also been one hell of a baseball player as well. Infusing all of his strength into his bat, Andrew sent the first ball that Jonathan threw at him flying high up in the sky with one swing. Letting the bat slip from his hands he manage to make it all the way to the second base before Jonathan got close to getting him out.

"All right, Spike, it's your turn." I called the kid over. Dragging his scaly feet in a nervous manner, Spike picks up the bat--which ironically makes him appear to be a lot smaller than he actually is--and stands to the right of the plate. "Now the main goal in baseball is to hit the ball and run to all four bases. The reason Andrew stopped at the second base is because he would've got out if he Jonathan had touched him with the ball; you can also get out if the pitcher catches the ball before it hits the ground and if you get three strikes."

"That's when I miss the ball three times, right?" Spike asked.

"Exactly, which is why it's all the more important that you try your best to not miss. Because the only way you'll ever score any points is based on many times you and your team run all the way to home base. But sometimes, if you're somehow able to run back to home base without stopping once, you'll score what many refer to as a homerun; but that's mainly based on luck and how slow the opposing team is when it comes to getting the ball. Now once you do manage to hit the ball, you must always remember to drop the bat before you run to the bases."

"Why can't I just hold onto the bat all the time?"

"That's just the rules of the game, Spike. Oh, and you better wear this." Slapping a blue helmet on the little guy's head, I went back to my position as the catcher as I gave Spike the necessary space he needed to hit the ball. Clutching the bat with both of his claws, Spike's whole body began to tremble as he waited in anticipation for the throw that's about to come. The very moment he saw Jonathan's arm pull the ball back, he immediately swung the bat which sent him spinning around until he fell flat on his back, thus allowing the ball to collide with my mitt. "Strike one!" tossing the ball back to Jonathan, I wasted no time in raising Spike up to his feet. "Now Spike, the reason you missed that first throw is because you swung too early. What you need to do is to always watch the ball; as long as you stay calm and keep all of your focus on it, then you'll be able to send it flying." This time, Spike drained his entire body of any jitters and stood as still as statue. Keeping his reptilian eyes locked on that ball, the kid let out a breath of air right when Jonathan hurled the ball towards him. Then, as if his whole surrounding had gone into slow-mo, Spike waited until the ball came to the right distance as he brought the bat to meet it. The next thing we all heard was the sound of leather impacting upon wood, as each of us saw the baseball soaring into the sky.

"I did it!" Spike bounced with enthusiasm as he took off his helmet. "I hit it! Did you see it?!"

The celebration, however, was immediately cut short once the sound of shattered glass crashed into our ears. As if a giant curtain had been lifted from our eyes, we all finally noticed the big mansion across from us which had a broken window that's impossible for anyone to miss; and out of that window came the voice of a certain spoiled brat who's calling for her dad.

"Ah shit," Jonathan cursed, "We're definitely screwed now!"

Picking the bat up, Spike looked back and forth in a frantic manner until he shouted, "Hey Derpy!" following his movement, the three of us saw the little dragon run up to Ponyville's cross-eyed mail-pony.

"Hello Spike!" Derpy greeted him. "How are you doing?"

"Oh, I'm doing fine," the kid said as he covered the bat with nervous sweat. "I just came to tell you that you've...won a free baseball bat!"

"Yay!" Derpy gave the bat a hug. "I've always wanted one of my own!"

Turning his attention back to us, Spike gave us all a gesture that suggested that we should all run as far away as possible. Of course a bit of us felt bad that Derpy would end up taking the blame for this, but then again, most of the ponies here seem to be more than aware of how she's not too bright, so chances are she'll probably just be given a firm warning. Because who could possibly be cruel enough to press charges against someone with special needs?

The next day is one of those rare occasions where I decide to take a bath. Once the tub was full, I would mostly just lay down and allow the water to soak my whole body until I felt like getting out. When I finally did decide that I'm clean enough, I would let my feet land on the towel that I placed on the floor and dried myself off with another one. With that out of the way, I make my way to the counter and put on my boxers and pants. Before putting my shirt on, I just couldn't resist the urge to look at myself through the mirror.

My body isn't exactly on par with Andrew's, so my arms only have the bare minimum of muscle. Despite my somewhat scrawny appearance, however, I did have a broad set of shoulders with caved in skin that made my collar bone all the more noticeable. I can't really explain, but there's always been something about that part of my shoulders that make the skin cave in that always fascinated me. I was so enthralled by this that I was completely taken by surprise when I heard a voice say, "You like watching yourself flex too?"

Turning myself around, I was somewhat relieved to see that it was only Spike, standing across from me. "Uh...yeah. After I take a bath." I admitted.

"I only do it whenever no one's around." Spike confided in me.

"It's not like it's something to be embarrassed about; a lot of boys do it."

"Mind if I join you?"

"Sure, knock yourself out."

I then watch the little guy perform a little parkour trick on the toilet that manage to get himself on top of the counter. Standing in front of his reflection, Spike sucked in some air which made his chest fin out as he made two small muscle bumps pop out of his arms and formed a tense grin on his face. It lasted for about ten seconds until we both looked at each other and saw that we stood in the same flex pose. It started off as soft chuckling until the two of us suddenly erupted into a fit of uncontained laughter.

With that done, Jonathan and I decided to go out for a walk, leaving Andrew by himself (with the exception of Spike, of course). Having nothing better to do, Andrew lay flat on the couch as he doodled some more of his lizards in his sketchbook. Finally finish with drawing the outlines, Andrew reached out for a green colored pencil, only to have it fall on the floor. Cursing himself, Andrew looked down for it until he lifted his head up to find it being held by a certain baby dragon.

"Thanks Spike," he gave the kid his gratitude.

Peaking over his shoulder, Spike got a glimpse of Andrew's newest creation. "That's a nice frog you've drawn."

Upon hearing those words, Andrew, almost let the colored pencil slip from his fingers as his body went into a temporary shock. "Thank you!" Andrew said after regaining his senses. "You're the first person to not mistake it for a lizard!"

"I don't see how," said Spike, "I mean, it obviously looks like a frog."

"That's what I always tell the guys," Andrew sounded so frustrated that he was this close to pulling his hair off. "I swear, Spike, you must be a lot smarter than anyone gives you credit for."

Feeling humbled by that sort of compliment, Spike, chose to show more interest in Andrew's hobby. "Is that all you draw?"

"No, I just pretty much draw whatever comes to mind." He then flipped through some pages to give the kid a quick review over all of his drawings. The one that really caught the dragon's eye is the anime caricature of the three of us.

"Did you use to draw caricatures for people back from your world?"

"Nah, I was too busy with school, and I mostly just draw for fun."

"I bet if you were to ask the Mayor for a permit, you can be able to setup your own caricature business."

"I don't know, Spike, I'm not sure if I'm even talented enough to be a caricaturist."

"Not with that attitude you won't. I'm sure if you just do a little practice you'll have all the confidence you need; in fact, I'll even model for you."

Spike walked behind the coffee table as he stood across from Andrew, posing for him. Figuring that he has nothing else to do, Andrew chose to humor kid as started to draw him on a blank page. After at least thirty minutes of hard work and attention to detail, Andrew turned his drawing over to his dragon model. "What do you think?" gazing at the anime styled caricature of himself, Spike awarded Andrew a thumbs up. Andrew, in turn, placed his fist in front of the now confused kid. "It's a fist bump. Just clench your first and bump mine." Following his instruction, Spike let his scaly fist collide with Andrew's, as they both share a smile with one another.

Moving onto the next day, I stepped into the kitchen to find Spike waiting for me by the table, with his pink apron on.

"All right, Jeffrie," Spike pushed himself away from the table as he hopped off the chair, "for our first lesson, let's start with spaghetti."

While he was getting the box of spaghetti noodles and can of tomato sauce, I filled a big pot with hot water and placed it on top of the stove, next to an empty small pot. When my teacher came back, he looked me from top to bottom and had this to say, "You sure don't want to wear an apron?"

"I'm not scared of getting dirty," I responded. "It's not like it's gonna kill me."

"That's not what Rarity thinks."

Then it sucks to be her, I snarked in my head. Placing the box and can on the table, Spike stood on stool as he inspected both pots. He seemed please with the small pot, and he seemed rather impressed with how I handled the big pot. That is until he dipped his claw into the water and immediately poured it all down the drain.

"What's wrong with the water?" I asked my teacher.

"It was hot," he gave his explanation.

"Sure it was. Hot water boils faster, doesn't it?"

"Yes, but it also contains lead chemicals that can contaminate the noodles."

"I'm guessing that Twilight's mom taught you that as well?"

"You bet she did." With the pot now empty, Spike quickly filled it back up with cold water. "I know that cold water takes longer to boil, but it'll be worth not having a stomach ache." Placing the pot back on the stove, Spike decides to move onto the next lesson. "All right, Jeffrie, why don't you turn on the ignitor." Following his instruction, I twisted the knob which generates heat for the burners, but I quickly flinched back once I heard the ignitor make a clicking sound. Raising an eyebrow at me in confusion, Spike takes care of turning on the ignitor before speaking to me. "What's the matter?"

"I'm sorry," I apologized, "I just got a little worried that it might blow up in my face."

"As long as you learn to handle the appliances properly, you'll have nothing to fear." My teacher assured me. "OK, I'll get this can opened, you can pour in the pasta." It goes without saying that it doesn't take a whole lot of knowhow to open a box of spaghetti noodles and dump them into a pot of boiling water. A bit of me, however, was more than curious on how Spike can manage to open a can without a can-opener; that is until I looked back at the kid and realize that his claw is the can-opener.

Ten minutes had passed since we've placed the pasta and tomato sauce into their respective pots. Searching through a drawer, Spike pulls out a spaghetti spoon and hands it to me. "Here Jeffrie, scoop up one of the noodles and take a bite."

Taking the spaghetti spoon out of his claw, I dipped it into the pot and scooped up a chunk of the pasta. I proceeded to grab one strand of the noodles and let it drop into my mouth. After a few bites I quickly dumped the rest of the pasta back to the pot and tried my best to swallow it. "It's too crunchy."

"Then it means it's not ready yet." When the spaghetti did become ready, Spike and I got to enjoy ourselves two bowls of what was my first cooking lesson.

Following over to the next day, I was treating myself to a box of this world's equivalent of Cap'n Crunch when I suddenly felt an excruciating pain erupting from the left side of my mouth. No sooner had I let out my painful yelp did my ears pickup the faint pitter-patter of scaly feet heading my way.

"What's wrong?" Spike asked with concern in his voice.

"I don't know," I held the left side of my jaw with my hand, "I think I have a toothache."

"Well you're in luck. I just happen to know somepony who runs a dental office here whenever she comes to visit from Canterlot."

My memory began to receive a recollection of a certain blue unicorn. "Her name isn't, Minuette, by any chance?"

"Yeah. You've met her?"

"Back at that party Pinkie held for us when we first got here. If I have to be honest with you, Spike, I don't think she's gonna want to help me."

"Why not?"

Sensing the skepticism in his tone, I knew I had no choice but to tell him the whole truth. "The last time we spoke to one another, I pretty much insulted her. It all may have happen a year ago, but I'm certain that she hasn't forgiven me for it."

"Then apologize to her," said Spike. "Trust me, I've known her my whole life; she would never hold a grudge against anypony. Besides, would you rather spend the rest of the day with that toothache?"

I know he's right. As much as I worried that she would still be angry at me for what I said to her, I knew that a small act of kindness could make a big difference. After all, I was able to bring myself to apologize to Fluttershy when I hurt her feelings and was able to earn her friendship for it. So why would making amends with Minuette be any different?

Two minutes hadn't even pass once we've finally reached Minuette's dental office. The moment the bell on the door let out a ring for our arrival, Spike found himself receiving a warm greeting from the dentist herself. "Good morning, Spike! Have you come for an early checkup?"

"Not me," said Spike, "but my friend here could use one."

Once her eyes met me, the gentle smile on her face quickly turned to a look that was neither angry nor thrilled. Wanting to prevent this from becoming more awkward then it needs to be, I stepped forward as I muster up the nerve to speak with her. "Hi Minuette, I take it that you haven't forgotten about me--or the things I said to you. I'm glad you haven't, because I've come to tell you that I'm sorry for saying all those rude comments back at the party and for not appreciating the help you were willing to offer. I just got a toothache this morning, and you're the only dentist in this town. I may have no right to ask this of you, but would you kindly check my teeth?"

Although the look on her face shows that she's probably feeling indifferent, the fact that she continues to keep her gaze on me might suggest that she's processing everything I just said. After a tense silence, Minuette let out a breath of air as I caught the slightest hint of a smile grace her face.

"Have a seat." As soon as I laid myself down on her chair with my mouth wide open, Minuette was quick to insert a mouth mirror with her unicorn magic as she began her search for what's causing my toothache. "Ah-ha! It looks like somepony has a cavity on their upper left bicuspid."

"Are you going to pull the whole teeth out?" I asked.

"No," she giggled, "it's nothing a little shot can't fix. Of course, injecting the cavity with the shot is probably going to hurt even more, which is a good thing that I keep a cannister of nitrous oxide for just the occasion."

My ears felt like they were experiencing an earthquake when they heard the sound of metal scratching upon marble. When the noise had finally ceased, I saw that the blue unicorn had use her magic to drag a big cannister of gas to her. "I should let you know that I don't really have the money to afford this," I confessed to the dentist.

"It's OK," Minuette shrugged it off, "your apology is payment enough."

As she placed the gas mask on my nose, I looked into her eyes and I somehow had the feeling that her last statement was completely genuine. By the time the nitrous oxide made my whole face go numb, my mind wasn't focusing on the needle this pony dentist was sticking in me, but the fact that the said pony dentist found it in her heart to forgive me. To those of you who aren't aware, nitrous oxide is what a lot of people like to refer to as "Laughing Gas." Oddly enough, the whole laughing part didn't even hit me as she was giving me the shot. But by the time she was done and had the gas mask removed, I suddenly gotten a big case of the giggles--which quickly built up to a violent cackle that would put the Joker to shame.

Raising my body out of the long chair, a little bag containing a toothbrush, toothpaste, and some dental floss, was now floating in front of my face, while being held by a blue aura.

"I'll have a check up setup for you in no time," Minuette assured me. "In the mean time, keep brushing your teeth daily; you'll be doing your teeth a big favor."

"I'll keep that in mind," I grabbed the floating bag. "Also...thanks for helping me."

"It was nothing."

Turning back to Spike, the two of us walked right out the door to head back home, only to be greeted by the bewildered stares of a whole bunch of ponies--whom I'm guessing had heard my loud laughter in there.

Although it may have taken Spike a whole week to learn everything he needed to know about baseball, there was still enough time for him to signup. After the kid signed his name on the hanging clipboard, the two of us made our way out into the field where Ponyville's Little League team--called the Ponyville Fireballs--are in the middle of practice. Every filly and colt who was wearing a red uniform and cap were running bases, hitting balls, and throwing pitches in such a perfect synchronization that it almost seemed as if they were really machines. Our arrival was able to grab the attention of the light brown stallion who we both figured out to be the coach.

"Is there something I can help you with?" he asked as he trotted towards us.

"You can start by getting a uniform for your new player." I motioned to an eager Spike.

Upon saying this, every foal immediately stopped their practicing and kept their attention on the dragon, who just might their new teammate. "I take it that you've signed him up?" the coach wanted to make sure this wasn't some joke.

"Oh yeah, he didn't forget to sign his name on that board." I confirmed to him. "Spike here saw your poster awhile ago and he just felt interested in the game."

The eye's of the coach quickly turned to Spike. "You've ever played baseball before, son?"

"Nope, this'll be my first time playing it." The kid didn't hesitate to give the pony a straight answer.

"Have you at least practice?"

"Uh-huh, I've been practicing all of last week before this."

Looking back to his team, the coach saw every colt and filly standing perfectly still in anticipation for what his next decision's going to be. Knowing that he doesn't really much of a choice, the coach let out a sigh as he said, "OK kid, step up to the plate and show me what you can do."

Eager to show everyone what he's made of, Spike hasten himself towards the home plate. Receiving a gesture from the coach, the pale gold colt with jagged teeth relinquished his bat and helmet while going off to take his seat on the bench. With the plate all to himself, Spike darted his eyes toward the grey pegasus pitcher, who in turn, stared right back at the dragon who's now up to bat. Like two cowboys facing each other in a standoff, Spike and the pegasus pitcher neither stir a muscle nor remove their gaze from the other. Any sound became mute to their ears and the rest of the foals could not be seen by their eyes. Twisting the ball in his mitt, the grey colt pulled it back with his hoof and made the air snap as he sent the ball flying. Hoping to impress the whole team, Spike put so much of his strength into his swing that once the ball darted back it would've knocked out the pitcher--had he not duck down in time. Putting his feet on full sprint, Spike made a dash to the first base. By the time he passed the second base, he was confident that he just might pull off his first homerun; that is until he saw one of the foals toss the ball to a light opal filly with a cornflower blue mane--who just happens to be standing on the third base. Not getting enough speed from his scaly feet, Spike resorted to letting his body fall into a slide that ended up covering himself with a cloud of sand dust. With the sand cloud cleared away, Spike opened his eyes and was relieved to find that he was saved by the tip of his tail.

Witnessing the kid's potential, the coach had a small smile on his face as he made his way to the new member of his team. "Come with me, Spike. Let's get you a uniform." Leading the little dragon to where his uniform is being kept, the coach decided to make a quick announcement. "That's it for today, everypony. Gather your things and go home. Back on your hooves, Rumble!" while all the fillies and colts were more than ready to call it a day, the petrified grey pegasus known as Rumble was left to lay on the ground and watch his life flash before his eyes.

The guys and I had to sit through a whole lot of ball games for the past few weeks; by the time we've reached the third day of the second month, Spike's team finally made it to the finals. Taking our seats amongst the parents of Ponyville, the three of us took notice of the ponies who came all the way from Canterlot. How do I know they're from Canterlot? Aside from their team being called the Canterlot Diamonds (which, to be honest, sounds more like the name of a girl band instead of a baseball team), all of their parents were wearing bright colored polo shirts, in addition to the sweaters tied around their necks, and every single one of them had disgusted looks that more than shows their complete disdain for this small town.

It didn't take long for the respective teams to make their entrance. Standing on the left side of the field is the Canterlot Diamonds, donning their light blue uniforms with purple letters and numbers that sparkle with glitter (as well as mostly being consisted of unicorn colts). And on the right side of the field stood the Ponyville Fireballs, wearing their plain red uniforms plus orange letters and number with pride. Spike spotted us and gave a wave, which we all returned with waves of our own--although Jonathan was mostly checking his phone while giving his apathetic wave.

"Oh look dear, they've trained a dragon to play sports." A grey unicorn snob--sitting beside me--joked to the yellow unicorn (whom I'm guessing is his wife), both of whom let out mocking laughter at the kid's expense.

"You got a problem with that?" I asked the Canterlot stallion.

When he turned to look at me, the unicorn's snobby smirk dissolved and the pupils in his eyes shrunk in terror as they gazed into the death glare I was giving him. "Uh...no, not at all! I honestly think that kid's adorable!" he then made a big nervous grin while beads of sweat started to drench his green polo shirt. If death glares could destroy then that unicorn's glasses would probably shatter by now. Not being able to hack my stare any longer, the snob of a unicorn meekly turns his attention back to the kids while his wife has a hard time deciding between whether to feel sorry or embarrass by his timidity.

After the umpire flipped the coin it landed on tails, which meant that the Canterlot Diamonds got to go up to bat first. Once the teams got into their respective positions, the attention span of every foal on that field was immediately disturbed by the sudden cheerleading performance of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Of course none of us had the heart to tell the girls that there are no cheerleaders in baseball, so we all just allowed them to have their fun. As the girls leaped around waving pompoms and singing a chant to boost Ponyville's spirit, I took notice of the unicorn colts from the Canterlot team who seemed to be the ones who're more than fixated towards the three fillies. (I could even make out little pink hearts taking the place of their pupils.) Before these colts could get to ogle at the cheerleaders any further, they were immediately snapped back into reality by means of a firm scolding from their coach.

During the Canterlot Diamond's first turn, they were making it more than clear that they're the real deal. For every ball they've hit, they've manage to pass from base to base in a quick blur, while bringing six points with them. (It was a good thing that unicorns were forbidden to use their magic while playing, otherwise those six points would've tripled.) Luckily through a miracle--and sheer willpower--the Ponyville Fireballs were able to get three of the Canterlot players out and switch sides.

Now don't think for a second that Ponyville didn't have any star players of their own. This little pink filly with a magenta mane tied with blue hairbands doesn't really look much different from any of the other ponies upon first glance, but when she swung the bat and made the ball disappear from existence, it was clear that she possesses the strength of the Incredible Hulk and the Juggernaut combined! She's basically the teams' equivalent of having a main character in a fighting game. Her homeruns were making points fall into Ponyville's lap like candy spilling from a piñata, that is until they were down to the last spare baseball and had to force the poor kid to not go up to bat anymore. But that didn't mean that she couldn't be a pitcher...until she eventually got banned from pitching every time the force of her throw would push the catcher back or break any bat that made contact with the ball.

That's not to say that there aren't any players who tend to screw up on the field. There's this little aquamarine filly with a long bubblegum colored mane and tail who has no problem hitting the ball, but as soon as she tries running to a base she ends up tripping on her long mane and get herself out. There's also this little brown colt with a mane that looks like a mix between orange and brown who doesn't even seem to care about playing the game; whenever he's up to bat he'll either swing so hard that it makes him dizzy or loosen his grip from his muzzle and send the bat flying to any unfortunate foal who's in the way, and when he should be trying to catch the ball he'll drop his mitt and start playing on what looks like a Gameboy.

As for Spike, there has not been one moment where he wasn't giving his all throughout the whole game. If he missed some hits he'll still manage to get in the end, and when he dashes to the bases he'll always put himself at top speed and stop when he feels that he won't make the next one, and when he's waiting for the ball to fly he'll put every ounce of effort into catching it and passing it to his teammates (he's even able to catch the ball before it touched the ground at least three times now).

After two hours of intense playing, both teams have finally reached the sixth inning. The scores were now 20-17. Standing on all three bases were Rumble, the light opal filly, and the pale gold colt with the jagged teeth. The only way their team was gonna win this game for Ponyville is to score a homerun; and the player who'd be stuck with having to pull that feat off was Spike. Before leaving the bench, Spike's coach felt know would be a good time to give him a little talk.

"All right Spike, it's very important that all four of your reach home base. The second you hit that ball, you just keep on running and don't stop until your feet touch that plate. Good luck."

Up till now, Spike, has been more than capable of keeping his cool while playing a game, but the pressure that his whole team will either lose or end up with a tie is refusing to get off his back. The unicorn pitcher truly believed that the little dragon will slip up once he got a good look at the uneasy expression that's covering Spike's face. The kid's eyes were glued to tight on the pitcher that stood in front of him, until the sound of the Cutie Mark Crusaders' cheer chant made him look away.

That brief distraction ended up earning Spike a strike. Seeing the smug smirk on the pitcher's face, Spike's brows started to furrow as he entered into serious mode. This kid didn't play through countless games just to let his team trip at the finish line and let the sound of pompous laughter haunt their dreams; he was gonna lead them to victory. Taking a deep breath, Spike watched as the ball was slowly coming towards him and at the last minute, he let the bat swing. The sound of wood hitting leather was all the signal the kid needed to know that it's time to run. By the time he reached the third base, all three of the foals had already boost their score to twenty, the only thing left was for Spike to step on that plate and the game would be over. As he got closer to home base his reptilian eyes caught the sight of the ball falling towards the catcher's mitt. But that didn't make him slow down; Spike knew that if he hesitated now, then all of his hard work would've been for nothing. But either by an act of God or a convenient accident, the ball missed the glove and hit the catcher right in the head, which allowed Spike the perfect opportunity to score his first homerun!

While most of the snobby Canterlot ponies were resisting the urge to shout "most unorthodox!" everyone else--excluding Jonathan--had risen from our seats and burst out into thunderous applause. No sooner had Spike removed his helmet did he find himself being glomped side-to-side by all of his teammates. With the celebratory hug out of the way, all the foals start dragging Spike to their coach, who just happens to be standing next to the trophy they've just won, and joined them all in a group photo.

"You did great out there, Spike!" I congratulated the MVP as we were making our way home.

"I call it luck," Jonathan quipped, which I rewarded him with a firm slug to his arm.

"It sucks though that I couldn't bring that trophy with me," Spike voiced his only complaint of the day.

"If you got to take that trophy then all those other kids would've felt left out." I pointed out to him. "Besides, who needs a trophy when you get to be the reason why that team achieved that trophy in the first place?"

"So Spike," Andrew spoke up, "with baseball out of the way, you wanna take a shot at football next? I can teach you everything I know."

"You mean all there is to know about being a linebacker?" said Jonathan.

"Linebackers are the most important players in the game," Andrew responded in defense. "And besides, they're much cooler than quarterbacks anyway."

"You mean you're not just saying that because you never became one?" Jonathan teased some more.

Just before Andrew could get close to pounding Jonathan, we were all stopped by a sudden shouting of, "Hey Spike!" turning around all at once, we spotted an excited looking Rumble making his way to Spike--with the rest of the foals trailing behind. "We're all heading to the arcade. You wanna come with us?"

Not giving his answer right away, the little dragon looked up to me as if he were awaiting me to grant him my permission. Knowing that it's important for kids his age to play with other kids, I told the little guy, "You go ahead and fun, Spike." Not needing to be asked twice, Spike immediately joined the rest of the kids in their stampede o the arcade. "Just be back by 10:30."

"Boy, at this rate he'll probably start dating girls his age." Jonathan commented.

The next day, Spike and I paid another trip to the grocery store for some more food and supplies for my next cooking lesson. Stepping out of the store with bags in hand, I struck up a conversation with the kid to pass the time. "Did you have fun at the arcade?"

"Oh yeah, I got to play with everyone on the team," Spike spoke with so much excitement that I worried that he might lose his grip on the two bags he was carrying. "I even got to beat Button Mash's high score, which he was totally upset about, so he challenged me to a fighting game, which I also beat him at as well. To make him feel better, I said to him, 'At least you're a better gamer than Jonathan'."

That last statement was enough to make the two of us fall into a fit of laughter that could only have been disrupted by the sudden sound of, "Hi Spike!" we both saw the same light opal filly from yesterday come trotting up to Spike--with the strong pink filly and the filly with the long bubblegum mane following behind her.

"Oh, hello Petunia," Spike greeted her.

"My parents are throwing a celebration party for the whole team," Petunia enlightened the little dragon. "You wanna come?"

Being allowed to ponder over this small request, I looked over to the two fillies who both share a pleading look on their faces, as if they were praying beyond all hope that Spike would accept Petunia's small offer. The two fillies kept scooting themselves closer as the suspense over this started to bring them to the verge of hyperventilating, then like a divine intervention the little dragon decided to let his answer be heard.

"I can come by if I still got time."

Jumping up and down while letting out a giddy squeal, Petunia controlled herself long enough to reach into her saddle bag and pull out a pink invitation with her home address on it. Taking the party invitation out of her muzzle, Spike and I bid the girls adieu as we both picked up our pace. Even though we started to get farther and farther away from those fillies, my ears still manage to pick up the unmistakable sound of girlish giggling that I knew must mean only one thing.

"Looks like you got some admirers," I shared my little hunch with the dragon.

"Who? Petunia, Lily, and Bubblegum Brush?" said Spike. "I got to know all three of them a lot better when we were at the arcade; they definitely liked being around me more than anypony else."

"That's probably because they all have a crush on you."

The little guy immediately stopped dead in his tracks like a deer in headlights. It was only due to the sheer willpower that I had inside myself that I didn't let out a big overflow of laughter upon seeing every purple scale on Spike's face turn blood red.

"W-what?! No!" Spike frantically stammered. "We're just friends! I-I-I mean, granted they all look cute, but it's not like I ever held their hooves or give them flowers!"

"That doesn't stop them from having feelings for you," I told him. "I can even guarantee that they're just waiting to make some kind of move on you the moment you go to that party."

"Well they're just gonna have to find other boys to fawn over; besides, Rarity's the one for me."

"Of course she is," with that said, I let one of the grocery bags be clutched by my--already full--left head so that my hand can grasp the doorknob and allow the unfortunate playboy to enter the house.

For my next lesson, Spike decided that today I should learn how to properly cook mac and cheese and bake cookies. With the cookies roasting in the oven and the macaroni boiling in the pot, the kid and I only have to wait for the time to take them out.

"The important thing to always focus on when cooking is the time it takes to be made," my teacher instructed me. "With mac and cheese, it usually only takes ten minutes for it to be ready. Which is why you must never lose track on any time that has passed; if you let the macaroni sit in the pot for too long, it'll end up being mushy."

"My mom sometimes does that whenever she makes me mac and cheese." I added. "It'll look all mushy and soggy and it never really tastes as good."

"That's why it's always best to keep an egg timer for extra measure." No sooner had he said that did the egg timer started to ring like crazy. "All right, Jeffrie, you can pour the water out and mix in the cheese powder and butter."

Wrapping both the handles of the pot with two rags, I lightly tilted it over the sink until all of the water was completely drained. Dumping the macaroni into a bowl, I then proceeded to adding some butter, milk, and the cheese powder, and with spoon in hand I wasted no time in mixing it all up until it turned into the cheesy goodness that it's meant to be.

Finished with mixing the macaroni and cheese, I watched as Spike opened the oven and reached inside to take out the cookie sheet--without any oven mitts.

"Shouldn't you put some mitts on first?" I reminded him.

"I don't have to," the kid insisted, "every scale on my body is a hundred percent fireproof; think of it as one of the many perks of being a dragon."

Placing the sheet on the table, the two of us took out some spatulas as we went down to scooping all twenty of the chocolate chip cookies onto a big plate to cool off.

"You know, if you keep this up, you just might be ready to cook on your own." Spike commended me on another successful lesson.

"That's only because I have such a great teacher," I complemented him. I then decided that now would be a good time to share a little trick to my new friend. "Up high." I raised my hand up until Spike gave me a high five. "To the side." I quickly jerked my hand to the right side until he slapped it as well. "Down low." Then I lowered my hand down before I immediately swiped it away just as Spike's claw was about to make contact. "Too slow! In the hole." Forming an O with my thumb and index finger, I patiently waited for the little dragon insert one of his claws into it, where I then squeezed it with both fingers, shook it a little, and shouted, "Toilet bowl!"

"What was that?" the kid asked.

"It's just a little thing that my dad use to do when I was five. And the strange thing is, I only just remembered it."

"How come?"

"I don't know, I guess he just didn't feel like doing it anymore as I got older." Getting myself a bowl of some of that macaroni and cheese, I was about to seat myself only to stop half way when I saw the little pink invitation that was next to the edge of the table. "You still gonna go to that party?" upon being reminded, Spike started to blush anxiously knowing that three fillies--whom he considers to be his friends--are probably attracted to him. "Now Spike, you promised Petunia that you would show up when you have the time; they're probably still waiting for you. Besides, she and the others may just want to be friends; in which case you have nothing to worry about."

Taking all of that into consideration, Spike's nerves slowly calmed down as his scales turned back to purple. "OK, I'll give it a shot." Snatching the invitation as he made his way out of the house, I was left to myself with a bowl of warm macaroni and cheese to feast on.

Twenty five minutes have passed since Spike left to go to Petunia's party. In that time, the guys and I laid down on the couch as we each gorged ourselves on the cookies that Spike and I baked together. (We of course saved five of them for when the little guy comes back.) As soon as all three of us finished our fifth cookie, we heard open and close and saw a rather uneasy Spike stand right before us with a heart trying desperately to pop out of his chest and a claw covering the left side of his cheek.

"Something wrong with your cheek?" I inquired.

"Oh, it's um..." the little dragon darted his eyes away from us as he frantically tried to bring words out of his snout. "I was at the party, and uh...I just scratched myself while playing. But it's nothing to worry about! It's nothing a band-aid can't fix!"

From the sight of him dragging his feet and leaving behind a trail of sweat with each passing step, we all knew that Spike must be hiding something. Inches away from the bathroom door, the kid was taken by surprise by the sudden grasping from Andrew's arm as he moved his claw away to reveal, not a red line of blood, but a pink kiss mark.

"Well, looks like someone got lucky." Jonathan said with a teasing smirk.

"It's not what you think!" Spike cried out defensively. "I swear, this didn't happen on purpose!"

"OK, why don't you tell us what happened?" I offered him a chance to explain himself.

"Well, it all started when I made it to Petunia's house. Her parents welcomed me in and congratulated me for winning the game, then they led me to their backyard where everypony from the team was having fun. I went to the punch table and chatted with Bubblegum Brush for awhile. She was feeling bad about tripping on her mane during the game, so I told her that I think her mane looks fine the way it is. But just as I'm taking a sip of punch, she suddenly whispers to me, 'I think you're cute,' and I end up spitting it all out and I start walking away before things can get more awkward.

"I then went and played musical chairs, and throughout the whole game Lily and I talked together. By the time we got to the last two chairs, I felt something soft brushing against my claw and I saw that I was holding her hoof! So I quickly hid inside the moon bounce castle before anypony could notice.

"While I was just sitting inside and giving myself a breather, that's when Petunia came bouncing towards me and let me joined her. I never been in a moon bounce before, but jumping up and down with her was pretty fun. And just as I was finally getting all of that stress out of my head, she pecks me on the cheek out of nowhere and I end up falling flat on my back! So I immediately got out of there as fast as possible and came back here before I could be even more embarrassed!"

"There's nothing embarrassing about being kissed by a girl," Andrew assured him. "Lord knows Jonathan would feel more than lucky to even get one kiss on the cheek by a girl."

"You're not one to talk either, Andrew!" Jonathan shouted back. "I don't exactly recall any cheerleaders lining up to kiss you!"

"I just hope that Rarity doesn't hear about this," Spike worried.

"Trust me, even if she did find out, she wouldn't care." Jonathan snarked.

Instead of slugging him on the arm or smacking him on the head, I instead chose to give him a bitter reminder. "Shouldn't you be off of Spike's spot?" giving me the same pout that a bratty five year old would have, Jonathan stomped his way up to his room, while Spike took this chance to go and clean the proof that he'd been kissed by a girl off his face.

Two weeks have passed, and nothing even remote of interesting had transpired. Because of this, Andrew and I decided to go out on a search for something fascinating. With the two of us gone, Spike was left in the care of Jonathan. As of right now, Spike stood by the bathroom door patiently waiting for Jonathan to be done with his shower.

"Come on Jonathan, you've been in there long enough!" Spike banged on the door with a closed fist.

"Hey, I had to wait seven damn hours for you to get a bath," Jonathan retorted, "so you'll just have to deal with waiting for ten minutes when I'm taking a shower! Now quit acting like a baby and shut up!"

Crossing his scaly arms and letting out a huff, Spike laid his back against the wall as he tried his best to holdback his impatience. While his anger kept on amplifying, it all suddenly diminish once an idea so insidious had crept into his mind which made his lips form a devilish grin. Luckily for Spike, the door to the bathroom just happens to be one of those that can be pushed without a doorknob--so he didn't have to worry about any creaking sounds that'll alert Jonathan of his presence. Sneaking past a still unsuspecting Jonathan, Spike made his way to the toilet (with the lid being conveniently closed for him). Once he reached the top of it, he push the handle ever so slightly with the tip of his claws, until the whole bathroom echoed with the combined sounds of the toilet flushing and Jonathan screaming like a little girl.

Pulling the shower curtains away, a shivering Jonathan scrutinize the entire bathroom with the eyes of a hungry vulture, until those eyes locked onto the little dragon. "YOU!" he pointed an accusing finger at the dragon. Unlike me, Jonathan didn't bother to leave a towel on the floor, so he ended up falling face first into the solid marble the moment his soaked feet touched the ground. Seizing his opportunity, Spike scurried out of the bathroom and slammed his whole body against the front door (the force of which was strong enough to push the whole door open once he turned the knob). Now out of the house, the little dragon continue to run as a rampaging Jonathan started to catch up. "You won't be eating solid food for a year when I get my hands on you, you little...!" my drenched and enraged friend immediately brought himself to a halt when he saw a crowd of ponies standing in front of him.

There were only six ponies, and all of them just remained silent as they gazed upon the butt naked creature known as Jonathan. That is until Jonathan picked up the faint sound of suppress laughter as he turned his sight to the far left and saw Rainbow Dash biting her lip as she tried to conceal her built up chortle until her muzzle opened like a broken dam as she fell to her stomach and allowed herself to become possessed by her guffawing--with Spike joining her.

"Mom, is that a worm or a baby snake?" the little brown colt--whom Spike described to be Button Mash--asked his mother.

"Button, don't look!" the tan colored mare covered her son's eyes with both her hooves.

"I never would've guess that Senor Man-tits was compensating for something," a black pegasus stallion with a blue mohawk snickered alongside a blue stallion with a dark blue mane.

Jonathan's eyes quickly became temporary blinded a sudden white flash that followed with the sound a camera makes with spitting out a picture. Rubbing his eyes back in working shape, Jonathan soon realized that the culprit of the blinding flash was none other than Lyra. "Incredible!" she praised the photo she just took. "I had a feeling that humans have reproductive organs. But who would've guess that they'd be so tiny?"

With that said, Jonathan's subconscious slowly started to put all the pieces together. While he was under the influence of his anger, Jonathan had neglected to wrap a towel around his lower region and the pupils of his eyes instantly shrunk as he came to the realization that he's now suffering the same humiliating fate of George Costanza.

"I was in a cold shower!" he covered his shriveled up extension before anymore ponies could get a good look at it. "I was in a cold shower! I swear, it's much bigger than it actually is!"

"You mean by one centimeter?!" Spike's little quip was enough to get the other ponies--except for Lyra--to laugh with him. As he stood there, surrounded by nothing but jeering laughter, Jonathan only had one thought in his head. I really hate that dragon.

It took until the first day of the third month for all of Ponyville to stop talking about Jonathan's shrunk package. By the time night had covered all of Ponyville, the guys and I decided that our next feature presentation for movie night will be the director's cut of Alien (because everyone knows that the director's cut is the better version). Before we started the movie, Spike came out of the bathroom and asked if he could join us. At first, I was apprehensive t the idea of exposing a film as famously scary as Alien to a boy his age. (The videogame alone gave me nightmares twice.) But through some convincing from the guys, and Spike giving me the puppy eyes beg trick, I decided to give the kid a chance. And for all I know, he just might be able to watch through the whole movie without being scared, the same way I did when I saw Return to Oz and Small Soldiers for the first time.

With all the lights turned off, and a bowl of popcorn in front of us, we all sat back and watch the classic sci-fi horror film. Due to the slow pace of the first half, Spike almost looked like he was going to fall asleep through the rest of the movie, that is until the scene of the facehugger lunging at Kane pumped the kid with so much adrenaline that he just has to stay awake. When he finally got to get a good look at the facehugger, Spike seemed more intrigued than scared--even seeing the acid blood didn't make him flinch. Once that creature had kicked the bucket and Kane woke back up, Spike assumed that the movie was about to end, that is until he watched blood gush out of his chest. When the chestburtser finally ripped through Kane's body and suddenly dashed away, Spike's jaw had dropped after witnessing such a bloody scene. If only he knew that that little alien was about to grow into something more fearsome. When he finally did get to see the Xenomorph in all of its horrifying splendor, the kid's body began to tremble, and the added bloodcurdling cry of Brett being dragged away sent even more chills down his spine. I figured that Spike would end up losing his chill, once he gets to the air vent scene. The moment the beeping of the Xenomorph's presence drew nearer, we all turned to Spike and saw his entire body shaking in fear, sweating up a storm, the pupils of his shrinking beyond measure, tugging his tail in Cowardly Lion fashion, and hyperventilating.

"You OK, Spike?" Andrew patted the kid's shoulder.

Then something happened that none of us could've seen coming. The loud screech of the Xenomorph went in sync to the terrified shriek of Spike, and next thing you know the little guy jumps from the couch followed by a loud thump to the floor that made the coffee table shake in place. Pausing the movie and turning the lights back on, Andrew and I were absolutely dumbfounded by the sight of Jonathan lying flat on the floor with a petrified Spike latching onto his face in facehugger fashion.

Watching Jonathan kick his legs in the air, Andrew and I stepped forward for a closer view. With the two of us standing on each opposite side of our friend, we wasted no time in trying to pull Spike off of Jonathan's face, but his claws were buried so deep in Jonathan's temples that it made him let out some muffled curses.

"Looks like we're just gonna have to pull him off like a band-aid." I told Andrew.

Griping Spike's arms as tight as we can, we both took a deep breath, count to three, and with all the strength we can muster we yanked the little dragon off of our friends face. What followed next was an agonizing scream that could no doubt be heard all over the entire town.

"Goddammit Spike," Jonathan cursed the kid, "don't you ever trim your claws?! Ow!"

Seeing blood pouring from both sides of Jonathan's head, Andrew quickly picked him up to his feet and led him straight to the bathroom. I on the other hand merely looked back to a somewhat traumatized Spike. "OK, that should be the last scary movie you get to see."

The moment I turned the TV off, I could feel my leg being clenched by sharp claws. "Come on, Jeffrie," Spike moaned, "you don't have to stop just because I panicked a little! I can handle the rest now!"

"This isn't just about you not hacking this kind of movie," I explained to him, "I simply don't want to risk you ripping all of Jonathan's face the next time."

Nothing eventful transpired the next day, the only thing that's even worth mentioning was the dinner we all had together. With a white bandage wrapped around his head, he was understandably still pissed at Spike for digging his claws deep in his temples. Although, his ire towards the kid cool down a bit when the said dragon brought him a plate of three slices of crispy toast with a jar of jam. After Spike brought a bowl of warm tomato soup to Andrew, he took his seat next to me as we prepared to enjoy our bowls of spaghetti. Before we could start digging in, Andrew insisted that we perform grace first. After giving our gratitude to God, each of us picked up our forks, spoons, or knives and chowed down.

"Spike, you just might be able to make soup as good as my mom does," Andrew gave the dragon his praise.

"Well, I can at least say that I'm glad you didn't burn the toast with your fire breath," he acclaim the kid in a stoic tone.

"Who said I cooked all of this?" Spike pointed out.

This new information cause the guys to stop just as they were about to keep on eating. "If you didn't make all of this, who did?" Jonathan asked.

Spike turned his eyes to me, and I in turn pointed to myself in a non-subtle manner with my thumb, until Andrew blurted out, "It was you?!"

"Why so surprised?" I said. "I have been taking lessons from Spike, after all."

"But no one can possibly learn how to cook that fast," Jonathan continue to deny my newfound talents.

"It's only been three months," Spike reminded him, "that's more than enough time to be a good cook."

"What are you even complaining about?" I said. "You both said the food taste good, so you should be glad that I can cook now." And with that said, the guys accepted the fact that I made them a delicious meal and just went back to eating in silence, without a single complaint.

With the montage now coming to an end, we can finally get back to the present day (or night in this case). I sat upon the couch with an open book in hand, while my lap was being used as a chair for a very tired looking Spike--who always likes to have a better look at the pages. For the past three months, I would always read three chapters before putting the kid to bed; and the one I've been reading him just happens to be Eragon (seeing as how Spike's a dragon and the whole book is about them). We were now reaching the final chapter; and once it was finish, to say that Spike was confused would be an understatement.

"That's it?!" Spike exclaimed. "This is how it all ends?!"

"No, that was just the first book," I eased his dismay, "we've got three more to go."

"Does that mean we get to read the next one?"

"Sure we will...tomorrow night. Because I know a certain dragon who needs to go to bed."

After hearing the kid let out a displeased groan, I closed the book with the snap of my hand and nearly rose from the couch, until...

"Jeffrie?" twisting my neck back to the little dragon, I watched as he twiddle his claws until mustering up the nerve to say, "Could you sing to me?"

"What made you want that?"

"Well, Twilight use to sing to me when I was very little, but she sort of stopped doing it later on. I guess when you mentioned how your dad stopped doing that special handshake with you, it just reminded me."

I could tell simply from his tone alone that he really wanted me to indulge his request. I stood there, unsure of what to do next. I never been much of a singing person, I couldn't even think of a single song to lullaby him with, but then a suggestion came to me. "I can sing you a short one." Excited by my response, Spike eagerly sat himself back on my lap as I sang to him a shortened version of my favorite song, "You've Got a Friend in Me." By the time it ended, I could already hear the little guy snoring and feel his scaly arms clasping my arm and using it as a pillow. Lifting him ever so gently, I placed the sleeping dragon's head back on his pillow and pulled the green blanket over his body. With the kid all snug and rested I wasted no time in switching the lights off and headed up the stairs to let slumber overtake me as well.

The dream I had took me to a familiar place that I hadn't set foot on since I was eleven. I stood in a living room which consisted of two sliding doors that lead to a vast backyard, an old fashion box shape TV, an upright piano made with brown wood, two recliner chairs, a long straight grey couch, and in the center of it all stood a large, bulky, hexagon shaped wood table with a glass top that looked like it was stolen from a king's palace. It didn't take me too long to catch onto the fact that I'm back in Florida, and standing inside the one story house of my nana and papa.

After being gone from this place for so long, I would love nothing more than to hug my papa and hear say, "Hey Boo-Boo!" or go to the kitchen and eat the best fried chicken that only my nana can make, or rub the belly of my grandparents' wiener dog, Brandy, or go outside and play with our old Labrador, Brutus, or receive some strawberries from the neighbor farmer, or chase any guinea fowls all over my grandparents' cotton field. But some kind of force was preventing me from even stepping out of the house.

Was I trapped inside a prison that's cleverly disguised as a fond memory? I couldn't see anyone else inside, so it might almost be just that. Just as I was preparing to accept this suspicion, my eyes suddenly caught sight of...Spike? That's right, I was literally seeing Spike in plain view; the little guy was sitting at the bottom of the recliner just staring off into space as if I didn't exist. Things only got stranger once I saw my sister, Lindsay, creeping on the floor like a tiger. But the most bizarre thing about it is the fact that she appears to be four years old. Then, as if someone had turned off the mute button, my ears finally picked up a sound coming from the TV. Turning around, I figured out that Spike was simply watching Toy Story the whole time. Once the last puzzle piece fell onto my lap, the whole recollection of this specific memory made the scar on my forehead sting.

"Get up, Spike! Move!"

Alas, my warning fell upon deaf ears. With her hands gripping the handle, my sister raises it with all her strength and catapults Spike high in the air and then his whole body plunge straight to the glass center of the table! Once the glass had shattered, instead seeing the little guy crying his heart out with a piece of glass stuck in his forehead, I only saw him falling down a dark, bottomless, abyss. Not even wasting a moment to think, I jumped right into the dark hole, reaching my arms out and just hoping that I can catch him. But no matter how fast I fall, Spike seem to keep plummeting faster and faster until his entire body just vanished within the pitch-black nothingness! Now I was terrified; I just saw my friend become engulfed by darkness, and I just might forever be stuck in a bottomless pit of darkness. I quickly started to scream and flail every part of my body, praying that this nightmare will come to an end.

Forcing my eyes open, I laid up to find myself back in my room. I couldn't bring myself to lie back down just yet; that whole experience made my breathing feel hoarse and my heart pounding like a drum. I'm not even sure that even can even turn my gaze.

"Are you all right, Jeffrie?"

Like a released prisoner relieved from his restraints, my eyes diverted there gaze to a fully awaken Spike who has concern all over his face. "Yes, I'm fine," I calm down his worry, "it was just a nightmare. What are you doing up?"

Despite my room not having single shred of light, I could still make out the downtrodden look that Spike was having right now. "I...I...I had a bad dream."

"Was it about the alien?"

"No, I was back at the library to see Twilight. When I went up the stairs I ran to hug her, but she just acted very cold and pushed me aside. And when I saw Owlowiscious sleeping in my basket, she told me she didn't want to see me anymore and she just teleported me out."

Even after all of the fun and new friends he's made over the past three months, the poor kid still couldn't get the weight of Twilight rejecting him off his shoulders. Having to just talk about that horrible dream must've broken his heart so badly that I was hearing him make sniffles. Not wanting to bear the sight of the kid breaking down into tears again, I gone with the very first option that my brain fathomed and yet my mouth do the rest.

"You want to sleep in here tonight?"

Any tears that were building up immediately dissipated once Spike heard my offer. He stood there in a daze; unsure of if he really heard what I said correctly. Shaking his head, the dragon regained enough of his senses to start making his way to the doors.

"I'm sorry for waking you. I'll just go back downstairs and..."

"Wait." Like an obedient dog, Spike didn't take one more step. "Look, I'm totally fine sharing my bed with you for the night."

"You mean it?" he asked in a skeptical tone.

"Sure I do. If you'll kindly close that door first."

Satisfying my compulsion for shutting opened doors, I scooted myself just a bit to give Spike enough space of his own as he climbed up and made himself comfortable. "You know, Twilight use to let me sleep with her whenever I got scared." Spike reminisce while pulling himself under the covers. "Anytime I get a bad dream or hear a dreadful sound she'd let me crawl into bed and always keep me close to her."

"But she stopped doing it when you got older?" I inferred.

"Yeah. The last time I tried sleeping with her, she told me to go back to sleep and quit acting like a baby."

"Well you can feel free to sleep in here anytime you get scared; there's no shame in it. Heck, my mom still lets me sleep in her bed whenever there's a loud thunderstorm, even when I got up to middle school."

"It sounds like you must have a great family."

I remained silent before saying anything further. "Well, nobody's perfect; the same goes to families."

"How come?" Spike's tone alone carried confusion with it. "Your dad taught that fun handshake. Didn't you like it?"

"I did. My dad's a man of good intentions; he served in the Navy and the Border Patrol, always did the best he could to keep a roof over our heads, and he constantly assures me how proud he is to have me for a son. But as I got older he started becoming fatter, arrogant, and he just became a temperamental man who would look for any excuse to start an argument and deem anyone a girl for even showing the slightest fear towards anything. Honestly, the only member in my family who can make him look sufferable by comparison is my sister."

"What did she do?"

I decided that now's the time to show Spike my scar. "You see this little scar? I was still a able when my sister gave it to me. She used a recliner to fling me in the air and send me crashing into a glass table. My mom told me that she didn't even come in to check on me the moment I started crying; when she finally did find me with a shard of glass stuck in my forehead, she wasn't too slow to rush me to the hospital. Of course, later on my folks tried using the whole 'she was just a baby and didn't know any better' excuse to convince me that my sister still loved me. But as she kept getting older, she would hit me at the movie theater whenever she thought I was picking my nose, barge into my room while I relax or sleep like she owns it, and show absolutely no sympathy anytime I had a bad day, almost as if she purposely wanted me to hate her. Sometimes, I'd like to imagine how slightly easier my life could be if I never had a sister and just be an only child."

"You mean you wouldn't even like to have a brother?"

Upon bringing that up, I was suddenly struck by a remembrance from an old childhood wish of mine. "Actually, I use to always pester my folks into giving me a baby brother when I was six. I don't exactly remember why, but I just liked the idea of being an older sibling for once. Every time I come back from school I would ask my parents for a baby brother, after I say my prayers I would add in a request for a baby brother, I even tried including a baby brother as part of my Christmas list. (I also wanted his name to be Jayden for some reason.) But sadly my dad chose to get himself a vasectomy and my desire of becoming a big brother just died."

Opening my mouth wide enough to allow a yawn to escape, I ended my little discussion right there and granted my eyelids permission to close...until the voice of a certain dragon decided to speak some more.

"Jeffrie?"

"Yes Spike?"

"What if I was your brother?"

Even though I ought to be crabby for being denied a chance at a goodnights sleep, the little guy's innocent question just couldn't sour my mood towards him. "If you were my brother, my sister would go out of her way to drive you nuts, my dad would hurt your feelings the moment you do something that he deems girly, but I wouldn't do any of those things to you. If some punk or a jerk from the family ever tries to give you trouble, I would always be by your side."

Assuming that the matter is finally closed, my eyelids once again try to do the same thing.

"Jeffrie?" the sleepless dragon spoke some more.

"Yeah Spike?" I said while keeping my eyes shut this time.

"Can I be your brother, even though we're not related?"

Had he waited until tomorrow to tell me this, I would've hugged him by now. But seeing as how tired I am, I remained in bed as I gave him my sincere opinion. "Family doesn't always have to be someone you share blood with, Spike. It can sometimes be your good friends, or somebody you just really care about. So yeah, you can be my brother if you like."

To my relief, Spike didn't ask me anymore questions after that; but my eyelids immediately unclasp themselves when I felt something warm nestle beside me. Leaning my head up, I was surprised to see a now sleeping Spike wrapping his arms around and laying his head upon my waist the same way a kid snuggles a teddy bear, or a son who cuddles next to his mom or dad, or a little brother who nestles against his big brother. I could feel a tear sliding down my cheek upon this sight. Not wanting to wake the kid up, I pulled a bit more cover over his body and placed a caring and protective hand around his shoulder. You know, a year ago, I would've given anything to go back in time and stop myself and the guys from getting on that space cruise. But now I don't really mind being stuck on this planet anymore; because now I finally get to have the little brother I always wanted.

I treated myself to another stroll around Ponyville the following morning. Just as I was thinking that I wasn't going to have to speak to anyone on my constitutional, I immediately felt a presence I have not felt since...well, three months ago.

"Jeffrie, over here!"

Following the sound of the voice, I was mildly surprised to see Twilight Sparkle in the flesh. Requesting my presence with a beckoning hoof, I decided to go along and take a seat outside of a nearby restaurant.

"I take it that you eat here frequently?" I started things off with a simple question.

"Only when I feel like it," she said, "today just happens to be one of those times. And who would've thought that we'd run into each other?"

That's when I finally noticed the waiter pony standing beside us. "What will you have today, sir?" the waiter asked me.

"That depends, do you have anything without hay in it?"

"Would a bowl of apples suffice, sir?"

"Fine by me."

After taking my order, Twilight and I were allowed to have a moment to ourselves. "I've been hearing a lot of things about Spike ever since he moved in with you guys." Twilight brought up.

"Was him winning the Little League championship for his team one of them?" I mentioned.

"Yes it was. In fact, I was actually there to watch it."

"Really? I don't remember spotting you in the crowd."

"I didn't want Spike to notice me. You see, after I read your letter, I just felt like the worst friend in all of Equestria. A day hadn't even pass before I started to miss having him around; so I've been watching him from a distance these past few months. Every time I had to see him roaming around with you, your friends, or by himself, I wanted nothing more than to run to him and tell him how sorry I am for driving him away, but a bit of me knew that he probably still thinks I'm ashamed of him, so I gave him his space. I come to accept that having to write letters, put up books, make breakfast, and buy supplies all by myself was the punishment I deserve for making my number one assistant feel like I didn't need him anymore. And last night, when I had to crawl into bed and see that empty basket for the umpteenth time, I realize now just how much I've taken him for granted."

I spotted fragments of tears beginning to build up in Twilight's eyes, I started to form a half smile as I took those tears as a sign that maybe she truly does want to make amends. "So you decided to apologize to him?"

"Yes, of course," she wiped away those tears with a napkin, "as soon as he comes back to the library."

My half smile and any hope that I may have started to have for her quickly crumbled after hearing that last statement. Before I could continue, I was briefly interrupted by the arrival of the waiter. After he left the bowl filled with apples of every color on the table, I looked Twilight dead in the eyes and said, "What are you trying to say exactly?"

"I appreciate you giving Spike a home to stay in when he ran away." She started. "But three months is long enough for me to not be near him. So if you could go back and tell him to pack up his things, I'll come over and take him home."

I couldn't believe the words she was telling me. Spike and I had just become brothers last night, and now Twilight comes out of nowhere and tells me that he's got a return policy on himself. I wasn't going to have any of that! Clenching my fist to the table cloth, I chose the next words to come out of my mouth while making my anger more than clear. "You can't do this, Twilight. You can't just turn your back on a nice kid and try dragging him back to you just as he's finally started to move on with his life. Do you just enjoy denying that boy a chance at having fun and making new friends? Or did you just get tired of that owl you replaced Spike with and decided to put that kid back in his old place as your underappreciated slave?!"

"I never adopted Owlowiscious to replace Spike!" After receiving some very awkward stares from the other ponies, Twilight had to compose herself before saying anything else. "I just needed him to help me at night whenever Spike got too tired."

"Then why didn't you just tell that to Spike in the first place?" The stunned look on Twilight's face more than proved what a jackass she must feel like right now. "If that was truly your intention from the get-go, why couldn't you bother to tell that to Spike the moment you introduced him to Owlowiscious? Andrew told me all about how Fluttershy mentioned that Spike may have felt he was being replaced and how you shrugged it off. All you had to do was be straightforward with that boy and he wouldn't have had any reason to be jealous of that owl, nor would you have end up hurting the poor kid's feelings. Doesn't it kinda go without saying that good friends would always let each other know what there real intentions are? Because for a pony who supposedly tries to teach everyone about friendship, you seem to really suck at it. I suppose that's what I should expect from a pony who treats a kid she's suppose to take care of as one of her library books that needs to be returned by a certain date."

"You're not being fair, Jeffrie."

"Who the Hell are you to talk about being fair?!" my outburst attracted a lot of scared ponies' attention. "Was it fair for you to leave Spike behind to clean up your messes while you go have fun with your friends? Or what about the fact that you've pretty much made a kid spend the majority of his life having to take care of your lazy ass? That sure don't sound fair to me. The way I see it, Spike has never had so much fun in his life since the day he stopped having to serve you. What makes you think he even wants to come back to you?"

"I'm the one who hatched him!" a now defensive Twilight retorted.

"So? That doesn't make him your property, Twilight, and you should be ashamed of yourself for viewing him as such. Spike will keep living with us for as long as he likes, and you're not gonna get in the way and take his happiness away from him. If you got a problem with that, tough shit."

"I would remind you that I'm still Spike's legal guardian! Even now, I can so easily press kidnapping charges against you if I wanted to!"

Not intimidated even the slightest by her venomous threat, I leaned my head forward with a stone expression as I gave her my reply. "Then I guess it's time for Spike to get a new guardian." As I rose from my seat, I gave the bowl of apples a firm slap with my hand and let the sound of it cracking echo around the restaurant. With that done, I then turned my back and left a rather startled Twilight by herself.

Once I returned home, I caught Spike and Jonathan playing a round of Marvel vs. Capcom 3--with Andrew just sitting back and watching it. After hearing Jonathan spew out a curse in defeat, I didn't hesitate to turn off the PS3.

"Hey, I was just about to do a rematch!" Jonathan whined.

"You can get your ass kicked by Spike later," I told him, "right now, I have something very important to say. I bumped into Twilight this morning, she told me that she wants Spike back and I made it clear that he doesn't have to live with her if he doesn't want to. She of course reminded me that she's his legal guardian, but I'm gonna see to it that raising Spike no longer becomes her responsibility."

"And how are you gonna do that?" Andrew wondered.

"By suing her, of course."

The whole turned quiet after that, until Jonathan broke that silence with a loud snort. "Good luck affording a lawyer."

"If I'm lucky, he or she might go pro bono for me." I said somewhat optimistically.

"You actually won't have to worry about that." Spike made his voice be heard. "If you guys were living in Canterlot or other big cities, you'd have to hire an actual lawyer. But small towns like Ponyville operate on a volunteer system; all anypony has to do is take a five hour class, score a ninety or above on their test, and they can be a volunteer lawyer."

"Well that makes things easier." I said. "Andrew, you're gonna be my volunteer lawyer."

"Why can't Jonathan do it?" he asked.

"Because knowing how much Jonathan has a hard on for her, I can't risk having him cost me the case."

"Oh, good point. But what makes you think I can even past the test? I was lucky enough to even get passable grades on those tests back in high school."

Taking note of his lack of confidence, I decided to resort to another tactic. "That's a shame, because I once overheard Applejack saying how much she finds lawyers to be very sexy."

Looking at me with an irritated expression, Andrew shook his head as he said, "You clever son of a bitch."

The moment he went out the door, I turned back to Jonathan. "All right Jonathan, while Andrew and I are off to court tomorrow, you're gonna have to keep Spike company."

"Why do I have to babysit him?" he crossed his arms.

"Because I said so. Besides, you two need to start getting along anyway. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to gather a few notes before tomorrow."

Andrew did all that he can to pay attention throughout the whole five hours he had to spend in that class, and to say that he wasn't nervous to take the test afterwards would be a blatant lie. But through hard work and luck, Andrew was able to score a ninety-one and earned himself a certificate that makes him an official volunteer lawyer.

With all of that out of the way, Andrew and I were than prepared to annihilate Twilight on this trial. Rarity was generous enough to fashion a grey suit for Andrew, as well as a dark red tie and a white collar shirt to wear beneath the suit. As we took to our seats inside Town Hall, awaiting for the trial to commence, I watched Andrew--who put a big pair of glasses in attempt to make himself look like Atticus Finch--rub some Axe hair gel on his head (hoping to impress Applejack no doubt), a bunch of random ponies coming in to witness the whole thing, and Twilight sitting by herself across from us. After we both gave each other cold glares, everybody rose up once we've heard the Mayor finally making her entrance as she got up on the judge's podium.

"This court is now in session." After delivering a firm bang with her gabble, we all sat down. "Mares and gentlecolts, todays trial will be between Twilight Sparkle and Jeffrie..."

"Turner." I enlightened the Mayor. "My last name is Turner."

"Right." The Mayor continued. "Twilight Sparkle v. Jeffrie Turner: over who gets sole custody over Spike the Dragon. Now, will the..."

"Why doesn't Twilight have a lawyer?" a pony in the crowd blurted out, which caused a ripple effect of a whole lot of ponies murmuring to each other.

"Order! Order!" the Mayor let her gabble pound away until the courtroom was filled with nothing but silence. Looking over to Twilight, she saw that she's--in fact--sans a lawyer. "Do we have any volunteer lawyers amongst us?"

Everyone just stood still without uttering s single sound; not even a cough could be heard. Just as we were all thinking this taciturnity would be going on any longer, we were all startled a by sudden shout. "I'll do it!" following the sound of that voice, we all saw that belonged to none other than Derpy!

"You're a volunteer lawyer, Derpy?" the Mayor wanted to make sure.

"Uh-huh, I received my certificate yesterday!" she immediately raised her certificate in the air for everyone to see.

I have to admit, I was a little amazed to see that Derpy was somehow smart enough to pass a test (although it could've been a temporary stroke of genius). None of us knew whether God is on our side, or karma has finally come to collect Twilight's debt. The only thing we did know, is that winning this case will be a cinch.

"Would the prosecution wish to make an opening statement?" the Mayor offered Andrew a chance to speak.

Rising from his seat, Andrew faced the crowd--after clearing his throat--and said, "Everyone, my friend, Jeffrie, may not strike any of you as the sentimental or caring type, but during the past three months he has given a boy who was rejected by his so called 'guardian' a warm and loving home to stay in. Jeffrie isn't just trying to be Spike's new guardian, he's here to keep that boy from falling into the hooves of a certain unicorn who only wants him to clean her home and write letters for her. By the time this trial is over, I truly hope that the court will see just why Jeffrie is the guardian Spike deserves."

"Does the defense have anything to add?"

Derpy wasted no time in flying off her chair and making her statement. "Twilight Sparkle isn't just one of the smartest ponies in Ponyville, she's also a loving and caring friend to Spike. Sure, they may have had a little fall out, but it's nothing that two good friends can't fix together. But how will she ever get the chance to make up to him if she's denied his custody? This is why it's very important that the court allow Twilight to continue raising Spike as his guardian."

"All right then, who'd like to go first?" Andrew was about to take his turn until I made him sit back down and allow Derpy to go first. "Do you have any witnesses?"

"Yes Mayor," Derpy confirmed, "I call Twilight Sparkle to the stand." After teleporting herself to the stand and swearing the oath, Twilight was prepared for what's to come next. "Twilight Sparkle, how long have you known Spike?"

"Since the day I hatched him during an entrance exam."

"What led to you being his guardian?"

"A week after the exam, Celestia told me how she's been looking after Spike but could no longer have the time to do it. So she placed the responsibility of taking care of him on my back. Of course I was still just a filly when I adopted him, so my parents had to help me out most of the times. But once I got older, I took it upon myself to teach him everything he needs to know."

"Like how to do your laundry?" I said out loud.

Finding the will to ignore my remark, Twilight continued. "Now, I admit that I may have been too harsh when I snapped at him; but doesn't everypony lose their tempers whenever their children do something wrong? Does that automatically mean they no longer love them? Would I even be fighting for Spike's custody if I didn't love him?"

"Good point." Said Derpy. "No further questions."

With that said, Andrew was more than ready to start his interrogation on her. "Twilight, is Spike more than just an assistant to you?"

"Of course he is," Twilight said in a matter-of-fact tone, "he's both my friend and my family."

"You care to explain to the court what exactly happened on the day Spike ran away and lived with us?"

"On that day, Owlowiscious and I walked inside and saw Spike tear up a toy mouse and tried to frame Owlowiscious for it. I was so appalled by his actions that I had to scold him, and I'm guessing he must've took it the wrong way."

"Now why would a nice kid like Spike try to frame an owl?"

"I'm guessing it's because he must've felt jealous towards him."

"And what reason did Spike have to be jealous?"

"I don't know! I only took in Owlowicious to help me whenever Spike's too tired; I never thought even a second that Spike would feel like he's being replaced. What else could I have done?"

"You could've just told the kid that you never planed on making your pet owl his replacement in the first place."

"So I've been told."

Andrew decided to move onto another topic. "Twilight, when Spike came to our home and told us all that had happened, he said that you called him a disappointment."

"I never said that!" she shouted in defense. "He must've just exaggerated my words a bit."

"Did he also exaggerate about you yelling at him for sneezing fire into one of your books?"

"No, that did happen. But I didn't raise my voice at him for setting one of my books on fire."

"Then why did you?"

"Because he lied about it! I raised him to be better than this, and he just lies to my face!"

"So you're saying that when you were Spike's age you never once did something wrong and lied about it to your parents, simply because you were afraid of getting in trouble?"

That was enough to make Twilight sink to her seat. "Well...I wasn't really much of an angel when I was filly."

"Then you admit that you could've been a little easier on Spike when you called him out?" Twilight couldn't bring any responses to come out of her muzzle. "Twilight, before Spike told about the events that drove him to run away, the first thing he said was that you didn't love him anymore. Do you deny it?"

"You bet I deny it! I would never say something so hurtful to him! All I said was he's not the same Spike I know and love! I told you he was exaggerating my words!"

"Who's more to blame here?" I spoke out. "The kid for being jealous, or the incompetent grownup who's naïve enough to not even bother to spare a few seconds to assure the kid he has no reason to be jealous in the first place?"

"You be quiet!" Twilight pounded both her hooves on the stand as she lost her cool.

"Order in the court!" the Mayor banged her gabble until we were all subdued.

"I have no further questions for her." Andrew replied calmly.

With Twilight back at her seat, the Mayor looked to Andrew as she said, "Do you have any witnesses to call to the stand?"

"As a matter of fact, Mayor, I do." Andrew confirmed. "I call Jeffrie Turner to the stand."

The moment I took my seat upon the stand, I looked Twilight right in her eyes with a look that says "you're going down" as I also gave my knuckles a firm crack. Once Andrew asks me my first question, I intend to remove my gloves and hit her with everything that I got until she no longer has single ounce of breath left in her.

"Jeffrie, do you believe that Twilight deserves to hold sole custody over Spike?" Andrew started off.

"Hell no," I made my opinion more than clear, "I can honestly say that Spike is much better off never having to be near her ever again!"

"OBJECTION!" Derpy cried out.

"On what grounds?" the Mayor asked.

"No reason, I just wanted to say that."

While Twilight let her head drop to the table in response to that sheer density, the Mayor stared blinking at the cross-eyed pegasus until clearing her throat. "Overruled. Continue Andrew."

"Jeffrie," said Andrew, "do you have any reasons as to why Twilight should never be near Spike again?"

"Oh, I got enough reasons to fill up a whole volume!" I claimed. "It all started on the first day we came to Ponyville and lived with Twilight. After he pulled out a big guest bed for us, we were shocked to see him sleeping in a basket. And you know what else likes to sleep in baskets? Dogs. So when Twilight referred to him as 'family,' I was wondering if she meant as the family pet."

"That's a lie!" Twilight shouted.

"Order in the court!" the Mayor silenced her.

"Furthermore, Twilight claims to have taught Spike everything he needs to know. The truth is she only taught him to do one thing and one thing only: to serve her. After we both made a trip to the grocery store, Spike shared with me all the times he had to do Twilight's biddings. From writing letters, to gathering scrolls, to making her food, to even cleaning her entire home, and not once did Twilight Sparkle paid him for his services. There's a word for people who work without getting paid: slaves." Allowing all of that to sink in, the whole crowd began to murmur amongst themselves while Twilight just sat there practically feeling their stares. "And if you ask me, I find it more than ridiculous that a pony who has to be at least sixteen or seventeen is having to depend on a ten year old boy to take care of her."

"Spike's nine!" Twilight corrected me.

"Thanks for proving my point." After allowing Twilight to silently curse herself for an idiot, I continued my speech. "She may convince all of you that she's given that kid everything, but there's one thing I've given him that she couldn't."

"What's that?" Andrew asked.

"A childhood. Once he started living with us, he got to join a baseball team, go to the arcade, go to parties, and play with kids his own age. At first he was having to cook for us, but once I've finally learn to cook myself, that boy was allowed to have just as much fun as he wanted. Twilight, however, went out of her way to deprive him of a chance at just being kid; she forced a sweet little boy to grow up too early and make him handle the responsibilities that she's suppose to be taking care of."

"You take that back, Jeffrie!" the now defensive unicorn shot back.

"Twilight Sparkle!" the Mayor banged her gabble some more. "If I hear one more outburst out of you, I'll hold you in contempt of court!"

With now no choice but to keep her trap shut, I continue to make my statement in peace. "My point being is that should Spike have the misfortune of being stuck under Twilight's custody once again, not only will he be denied of a childhood, but he'll also find himself having to spend the rest of his life with a responsibility dodging unicorn whom he takes care of more than she does him."

"What exactly first caused you to suspect that Twilight doesn't really care for the boy?" Andrew asked.

"My suspicions were confirmed the day Spike almost drowned at the end of the Winter Wrap Up." Twilight was about to blurt something out, only to have her hoof quickly plug it up. "I remember it as if it were yesterday; Twilight Sparkle, her five friends, and the entire population of Ponyville stood by and watched a little dragon fall asleep on melting ice which drifted towards the center of the lake. And I do believe you were there to witness this yourself, Mayor."

The Mayor began to blush in shame after receiving that brutal reminder. "Ah...yes, I do remember being there when it happened."

"You'd all think that after claiming how much she loves Spike that Twilight would've teleported him back to dryland or lift him with her magic, right?" I got back to where I left off. "No, she instead laughed with her friends as they all stood there and watched. I discovered recently from one of Twilight's books that dragons are apparently cold-blooded; which means had he been left in that water for too long, it would've harmed him a great deal. So because I went out of my way to save that boy, I prevented him from both drowning and freezing to death.

"After that incident, I took it upon myself to keep my cellphone on the recording settings every time I speak with Twilight. During Rainbow Dash's and Applejack's Iron Pony competition, she allowed them to use Spike as a crash test dummy for one of their games. When I called her out on it, these were the exact words she used to describe her concern over his well-being."

Taking my cellphone out of my pocket, I set it to the recorder and turned up the volume so that even someone all the way from outer space could hear it. Finding the right recording, I gave the play button a firm press and this is what came out: "Oh please, Spike's been through much worse than this; besides, he's a tough dragon, he can handle a little pain."

The entire crowd joined together in one loud gasp upon hearing Twilight's condescending words; Twilight in turn did nothing but let her head drop in both shame and regret.

"But it didn't stop there. Oh no, she immediately setup Spike for the next round in the competition, and I didn't stay silent during that either. After I called her out on her disregard for his safety, she had some pretty choice words to say about that."

I then scrolled down to the next recording and pressed it for all to hear: "Hey, don't tell me how to raise my assistant! I was the one who made him hatch, so therefore, I automatically know what's best for him! So why don't you butt out and leave the parenting to the professionals?!"

Now the ponies began to shower Twilight with aggressive boos and jeers; had there been crates filled with empty bottles, they would no doubt be throwing them at her. After the Mayor quelled the rowdy audience with her gabble, Andrew was allowed to ask one more question.

"Jeffrie, do you love Spike?"

The next words I said were filled with nothing but sincerity. "I do. I love that kid like he was my own brother. I cherished these last three months I've spent with him; not once did I ever regret opening my door to him. Not only did he teach me how to cook and made everyday a lot more fun, but he also showed me how it feels to be a big brother. Last night, Spike comes in and tells me about a nightmare he had which involved Twilight not wanting him in her life again, and seeing how upset it was making him I let him sleep with me for the night. We chatted for a little bit, and next thing you know he asks if he could be my brother. And who am I to deny him such a request? I, in a manner of speaking, adopted him as my little brother, and that's when the little guy embraced me as he fell asleep. I knew that from that one gesture alone, that I had truly earned his trust; so I pretty much vowed to myself that as his brother I would protect him from those who would hurt him, listen to any problems he may have, and never abandon him when he needs me the most.

"So when Twilight Sparkle walks up to me and says that I have to give him back to her, I wasn't gonna stand for it. I confess, I've grown too attached to that little guy to just hand him over like an overdue library book. And if anyone of you have little brothers of your own, you'd be doing the same thing if you were in my shoes." Pausing for a moment, I took a good gander at the rows of ponies who were crying and hugging their little brothers who accompanied them. "Now, after everything I've just said, I'm sure that some of you might feel that I'm being too harsh on Twilight or just downright going too far. If there are some of you who feel that way, then I'll tell you right now that I don't regret saying anything if it's to protect someone I care for. I can say as a fact that I strongly believe that I care about Spike more than she does, because of how far I'm willing to go. By the time this trial ends, it'll all come down to a very simple choice: Spike's safety can either be placed in the hands of a man who can take care of himself, who doesn't ignore him, and who'll risk his life just to save his skin; or be placed in the hooves of a lazy, unappreciative, sadistic pony."

"No further questions." Andrew went back to his seat.

Just as Derpy was about to fly up to me, her tail got caught by Twilight's aura and was pulled back to her seat. "OK Derpy," Twilight whispered to her, "my chances of keeping custody over Spike are in your hooves. Which is why it's extremely imperative that you ask him a question that'll turn things around."

"Don't worry, Twilight," the cross-eyed pegasus gave the stressful unicorn a pat on the head, "I know exactly what I'm gonna ask him." Being allowed to fly up close to me at last, Derpy took a deep breath before asking her essential question. "Jeffrie, do you like muffins?"

After seeing Twilight's jaw fall flat on the table, I decided to just go along and humor the simpleminded pegasus. "Yes, I do."

"Would you like to get some at Sugarcube Corner afterwards?"

"No, I'm good."

A now dejected Derpy ended it all on, "No further questions."

Once the Mayor got up to leave and contemplate her judgement, Twilight looked at Derpy with twitchy eyes as she said, "Um, WHAT?! That was your question?!"

"I was hungry," Derpy justified her action, "so I wanted to know if he was too."

"How was that suppose to help my case?!"

"Nothing. I figured that we already more than prove what a great guardian you are."

"Jeffrie got everypony to boo at me, there's no way the Mayor is ruling in my favor!"

"Think nothing of it, Twilight. The Mayor probably wasn't even that influenced by what he said anyway."

Thirty minutes passed until we heard the door creak loud enough to announce the Mayor's return. Sitting herself back on her podium, the Mayor kept everyone of us still in anticipation until passing on her judgement. "After careful consideration, it is the court's decision that custody over Spike the Dragon shall hereby be granted to Jeffrie Turner. Twilight Sparkle, you will be entitled to visit Spike on certain days, during specific times--while under the supervision of his new guardian. Tomorrow morning, I'll expect you and Jeffrie to arrive at my office to setup a schedule; but should you make any attempts to see Spike pass your schedule or without any consent from his guardian, you will be permanently stripped of your visiting privileges and be placed under a restraining order. Court adjourned!"

Rather than jumping out my seat and shouting my lungs out in celebration, I settled on giving Andrew a fist bump. As the ponies started making there way out of Town Hall, Andrew and I were about to join them until the sound of sniffling made us stop. Looking over at Twilight, we saw the purple unicorn bury her face within her hooves, weeping to herself, while none of the rest of ponies--except for Derpy--showed any interest or sympathy.

"There, there, Twi," the cross-eyed Pegasus did her best to comfort her, "I know it won't be the same as seeing him as much as you like. Would you like a muffin? They always cheer me up when I'm down." Her kind offer only intensified Twilight's sobbing to the point where tears began to flood over the table.

Before I could dwell on this sight any longer, Andrew placed a hand on my shoulder as he led me out of the building. If there was one upside to delaying our exit, it's that it kept from having to plow through a large crowd of ponies. "What do you say we head on home?" I stretched my arms while speaking to my friend.

"You go ahead," Andrew said distractedly, "I've got some matters of my own to attend to." After Andrew started making his way to a passing by Applejack, I decided that he more than earned his alone time, so I went on to tell Spike the good news.

Back at home, Jonathan chose Street Fighter IV as his next dish to satisfy his more than bizarre hunger for humiliation. During the entire Trial, he and Spike has played on every arena, with every character. And just as you may have expected, Spike rekt Jonathan throughout every single last playthrough.

"Dammit!" Jonathan threw his controller down in a fit of salty rage. "Why can't I beat you?!"

"Other than because you suck?" Spike rubbed a lot more salt in Jonathan's wounds.

"Gary Stu!"

"Sore loser."

Accepting the brutal reality that he won't be beating the kid anytime soon, Jonathan turned the PS3 off before sitting back down to speak his mind. "You know something, you're just lucky that Jeffrie has such a soft spot for you, otherwise you wouldn't be living here!"

"Yeah, I overheard your little argument from that night," Spike looked at and spoke to him with indifference. "I know fully well about you not wanting me around."

"I wouldn't have to feel that way if you quit being such a pain in the ass! Just what did I even do to you?!"

The raised eyebrow and frown Spike was making more than hinted indignation. "Seriously? You're really gonna pretend that you never called me a lizard on the first day we met?"

Hearing this new tone took Jonathan back a bit. "OK, so I may have said an offhand comment. So what?"

"So what?! How would you have liked it if I called you a monkey?! Not a single bit of your feelings would've been hurt?! Well what you said certainly hurt mine; and I was thinking you and I may have been good friends, and you just insult me for no reason and not even be a little contrite for it!"

Getting all of that out of his system, Spike wrapped both his claws behind his head giving in to the couch's cozy power, while leaving Jonathan to ponder all that he said. The more Jonathan ruminated over it, the more he started to reckon that perhaps he was more to blame for their petty feud. Seeing that the stoic expression is still stuck on the dragon's face, Jonathan kept his eyes forward as he dug deep inside himself to find these next words.

"Look, Spike, if it's not too late, I'm sorry for calling you a lizard."

Turning his head back to the kid, he expected to see him keeping eyes off of him, only to instead find him returning his gaze with a forgiving smile.

"I think that's the first nice thing you've ever said to me." Spike pointed out.

"Yeah, well don't get use to it," Jonathan tried shrugging off his brief kindness as if it were making him dirty. "You're still an obnoxious little pest."

"And you're still the same whiny crybaby who's in love with a unicorn who's way out of your league."

"Oh, and I suppose you believe you actually have a chance with Rarity?"

"Of course I do. After all, I help her with anything, I always compliment her dresses--as well as her looks. Why wouldn't she fall for me?"

"You're. A. Kid."

"So? That doesn't mean I won't grow into a handsome, strong dragon later on; and when I do, she'll be all mine."

Why can't you just stick with girls your own age? Just as Jonathan made that thought, he and Spike quickly twisted their focus over to the opening door which signaled my arrival. "I take it by your grin that you won the trial?"

"You bet!" I confirmed with glee.

"Great, now I can finally stop babysitting and go take a shower."

Once Jonathan was out of the room, I took this chance to share an idea I just had with the kid. "So Spike, since you're gonna be a permanent residence here, how would you like to have a room of your own?"

"You mean it?!" from the way he said it, I almost expected Spike to pounce on me with a big hug.

"Of course. It was Twilight's friends who helped build the whole house, I'm sure they may have some time to add a new room."

"Sweet! You wanna play a game?"

"Why not?" just before the tip of my fingers even graze the controller, my whole body came to a halt by the sudden knocking coming from the door. Opening it, I was greeted by a more than downtrodden Twilight with her head bowed down, while letting little droplets of tears land on my front porch. "What is it?"

My tone was harsh at first, but it diminished the moment Twilight raised her head and I saw those bloodshot eyes of her. "You've won fair and square," Twilight sniffled. "I know that I'm not suppose to be visiting until tomorrow, but I can't wait. Please Jeffrie, I just want to speak to him."

Had this been the condescending and insensitive Twilight from yesterday I wouldn't hesitate to slam the door and tell her to piss off, but the Twilight standing before me is now a devastated and humbled pony who only wishes to patch things up with the child whose heart she had broken. I may have taken away her guardianship over Spike, but I wasn't gonna deny her the chance to apologize.

"Spike, you have a visitor."

Leaping off the couch, he scurried to me with a little pep until his whole body completely froze stiff the minute he finally noticed Twilight. After months without seeing or speaking to her, and assuming she wanted nothing to do with him, the little guy just stared at her with wide eyes while she stared back at him with eyes full of sorrow. Feeling that her towering presence is probably intimidating him, Twilight bent all four of her legs so that she knelt down to his eye level.

"Spike, I am so sorry. I can't even begin to comprehend just how much I've hurt you. And all because you were consumed by jealousy towards Owlowicious, which is mostly my fault. You see Spike, I didn't take Owlowicious in to replace you, I did it because he could help me at night while you're asleep. I understand now just how foolish I was to never tell you this from the beginning. I'm also sorry for making you feel that you lost my love; there is nothing you could do to make me stop loving you. The truth is, Spike, you're more than my number one assistant, you're also the first real friend I ever had. When Celestia gave you to me, having to take care of you got in the way of my studies as well as put me through a lot of stress. Then, when we returned home after an embarrassing scene, you grabbed Smarty Pants and tried to tell me how you wanted to be like her. (I even remember how I came up with your name from those words you tried saying.) It then occurred to me that Celestia wasn't just giving me a baby dragon to raise, she was giving me a friend. I know that none of that stopped me from being such a lousy friend to you, and I'm very sorry for being so harsh towards you for a little misunderstanding. It's just that you're so smart and helpful that I keep forgetting that you're still a kid; I never even truly appreciated all the hard work you do for me. I had to live all by myself for three months to realize just how lonely my life is when you're not in it. If living with Jeffrie is what you really want, then I'll settle to visiting you for a couple of days; and when we do get to spend time, I promise you that we'll only do any fun stuff that you can think of. The only thing I can ask for you is your forgiveness."

Every single word she just said came at Spike so fast and unexpected that it left him speechless. Looking down in deep contemplation, while neither smiling nor frowning, Spike almost couldn't believe that he heard everything that came out of Twilight's muzzle. While watching the boy process it all in silence, I had a feeling that perhaps Twilight's tender words really did go through to him; and I felt both relief and dread over the thought of it.

"Jeffrie," Spike came to a decision, "living with you guys have been the most fun I've ever had in a long time; I don't even know how to thank you for bringing me into your home and for helping me get over the heart brake I had felt...but I can't hurt Twilight the same way she did to me. I ran away because I thought she didn't need me anymore, but now she needs me more than ever. I know you went through a whole lot just be my new guardian, but is it OK if I go back with Twilight?"

Even right now, I can easily grab Spike by the arm and just make him stay here. True, I would risk straining our newfound brotherly bond, and he'll even grow to hate me for it, but I could always take comfort in myself knowing that it was for his own good. Alas, I couldn't find it in my heart to hurt that boy (not even for his own good). Repressing my true feelings to the farthest corner of my mind, I dropped to one knee and told my little brother what he wanted to hear.

"My door will always be opened to you, Spike. The next time you decide to come back, there'll be a new room waiting for you." I almost choked once the little guy lunged towards me and bind my neck in a tight hug. Loosening his grip, I was allowed to give the boy an embrace of my own. It only lasted for about twelve seconds, but I could still feel his warm scales scrape against my face, and the tears of joy that were sliding down my cheek. Once we both let go, I felt that our goodbye wouldn't be complete without something else. "High five," his claw slapped my hand, "to the side," his claw and my hand both collided, "down lo--" my palm was given a hard smack before I could finish. "In the hole," forming an O shape with my fingers, I waited for Spike to stick his claw in and hear something different, "you got sole!"

With that out of the way, Spike didn't think twice before tackling straight into Twilight and allowed her to envelop him with both her hooves. Laying her head atop of his, I saw more tears leaking from Twilight's eyes (only these weren't the kind that hurt). Twilight did not want to have to let go of him; she must've been convinced that he'll always be with her the longer she hugs him. But she eventually remembered that even dragons need to breathe, so she reluctantly released her hold on him. The minute Spike started making his way back to Twilight's place, the said unicorn had a few more words to say.

"Jeffrie, I can't begin to tell you how..."

All it took was one raised hand to make her go quiet. "Let's make this clear, I'm not doing this for you, I'm doing it for him. Tomorrow, when we go see the Mayor, if I ask her to give guardianship back to you, then you have to promise that you're gonna do right for that boy. That means no more leaving him behind to fool around with your friends, no more making him do manual labor for you without thanking him or paying him, and no more keeping the truth from him until the last minute. I want you to look me in the eye and swear that you'll be a better friend from now on; I don't want this to be something I'm gonna regret. You hear me?"

Wiping off any stray tears, Twilight's eyes got a little bit of white back. "After everything that has happened, I don't plan on ever driving Spike away ever again." Accepting her word for what it is, I was ready to close the door until Twilight placed a hoof on me. "Thank you Jeffrie, for looking after Spike through these past months."

"You're welcome."

Burying the hatchet, the two of us went our separate ways; Twilight going back to her treehouse with Spike, and myself taking a seat on the couch. Since one of my friends is still in the shower, and the other one is off trying make a move on a cowgirl, I let my body slouch as I contemplate what just happened. A whole lot of my gut tells me that I might've made the wrong choice in letting Spike return to Twilight, that her heartwarming speech was probably about as sincere as a politician's. But beneath all that doubt, a small flicker of hope was assuring me that perhaps Twilight will stay true to her word and change for the better...I hope.