Spike was glad that Rarity and Rainbow hadn't followed him when he stormed away for the second time, as it would have only lead to humiliation.

The dragon had only one way to get home, and that was to hang around in the disco hall until the party was over, and then ask a kindly-looking pegasus to give him a ride.

He sincerely hoped that Twilight wouldn't be back from Canterlot when he arrived at Golden Oaks because he really didn't feel like verbally going over that night's events again.

Once he had ensured that Rarity and Rainbow hadn't returned to the disco, he made his way in and leant against the drinks table.

Somepony had cleaned up his cake, he discovered as his eyes wandered to the vague spot of the incident. He sighed, his anger petering away.

He was upset. Sweet Celestia, his heart was shattering. He didn't understand it. Rarity - or the Rarity he knew, anyway - was always so considerate of others, so generous, so kind-hearted that it was almost unbelievable that she would...

Oh, who was he kidding: it was entirely believable. She had flirted with stallions in front of him numerous times, and it certainly wasn't the first dance she'd had. But what Spike couldn't fathom was why she would choose Rainbow Dash, of all mares - let alone ponies - to dance with?

He was sure Rainbow wasn't that great a dance partner, despite never dancing with her himself. However...judging from the snippet of their dance that he saw, this wasn't the case at all. Rarity was a bit nit-picky even at the best of times, and she had shown no look of discomfort or irritation on her face.

But how would Rainbow be able to accomplish that?

When he had been dancing with Rarity, he knew that he messed up in places and - though she had not acted verbally upon it - Rarity was had never been one for concealing immediate reactions and he could tell that it had annoyed her.

For a second, Spike thought that maybe Rarity had been telling the truth. He hadn't exactly let her finish her sentence; what if she had been teaching Rainbow how to dance?

But...why would she? Everyone knew that Dash wasn't into girly stuff, especially romance. That's why Spike liked her so much; she was into comic books and sport, just like he was.

It was so confusing that he wished he had asked more. Maybe then he wouldn't have had to hang around the party for a ride home. Maybe then he wouldn't have fallen out with the love of his life.

Maybe then he wouldn't have had to endure the feeling of his insides being ripped to shreds.

"Hey...Spike, isn't it?"

The dragon dragged his eyes up to see Spitfire looking at him, standing with Soarin' beside her. "Yeah, that's me."

"You okay, buddy?" Soarin' asked, taking a step forward.

"I'm fine."

"Cool. The party's over now though, so you might wanna go find Rainbow Dash - hey, where is she?"

Spike did not want to answer. Luckily, Spitfire piped up, "She and her friend...uh..."

"Rarity," Spike told her nonchalantly.

Spitfire nodded. "Yeah, Rarity...they left about an hour ago. Hey Spike, doesn't that mean you'll need a ride home?"

Spike smiled half-heartedly. "Well, if you're offering..."

"Great. Hop on." The Wonderbolts leader gestured to her back and flexed her wings.

Soarin' intervened. "Wait, baby, I thought we were going straight back to my place!"

"This little guy can't get home if I don't help him."

The pegasus stallion bit his lip. "I guess...but...at least let me carry him for you!"

Spitfire glared at him. "Soarin', I'm not some princessey damsel. I'm, like, twice as strong as you are."

Soarin' grumbled as she turned and walked out the door. "You're welcome to fly with us if you want," she called as Spike ran after her. Without need of looking back, she outstretched a wing for him to climb up. Then, she leapt into the sky.

In the dragon's second flight that evening he felt safer, despite the definite increase in speed. He saw Soarin' in his peripheral vision, flying a few meters behind them. He still looked a little annoyed.

It was next to no time before Spike spotted Ponyville's Town Hall. Spitfire spotted it too. "Where d'ya wanna go?" she yelled over the wind.

The dragon opened his mouth to say 'Golden Oaks Library', but shut it again to contemplate his choice of destination.

While he wished to see a friendly face, Spike did not want to see Twilight, for she was irritatingly perceptive at times and would most likely get him to tell her everything that happened, hence bringing him to tears again. He sort of wanted the whole night to be undone, which led him to his next option.

He had spent so much time at Carousel Boutique in the past month the it felt like the more comforting place to go. Rarity and Rainbow would undoubtedly be there, so maybe he could talk things out with them - though he didn't particularly want to.

"Carousel Boutique," he decided, and immediately Spitfire curved perfectly down towards that building. Spike clung on for dear life as the rush of freezing wind made his eyes water.

She landed softly, to his immense relief. Once he hopped off, Spitfire trotted over to Soarin' - who had landed a few meters away - and pecked him on the cheek. "Bye," they said in unison then took off once more.

Spike turned round and forced his legs to move towards the door, though they protested otherwise. With a shaky claw, he took hold of the doorknob. Taking a deep breath, he turned it and stepped inside.

The lights were on, and it was a complete mess - probably from the CMC's late night CMCing. Presumably, they were now upstairs in bed, but - as for other two mares supposedly in this household - there was nopony -

Spike's hands slammed on the ground, the instinctual reflex of him falling. What he fell from, as he figured out, was...Sweetie Belle?!

"Girls! Girls! It's Spike!" she chirped, calling Apple Bloom and Scootaloo from their hiding places.

"What happened?!" Scoots asked.

"Did ya dance?!" Apple Bloom exclaimed.

Sweetie gasped. "Did you kiss?!"

Spike inhaled and exhaled shakily, clenching his teeth and forming firm fists with his hands. "Yes," he said to Apple Bloom, then he turned to Sweetie. "No."

"Aww, come on!" she whined, throwing her hooves in the air.

Spike furrowed his brow and crossed his arms. "Well, some of us nearly kissed," he mumbled to himself.

"What?!"

"Really?!"

"What stopped you?!"

Their voices were all so high-pitched from their clear hyper-activeness - probably a result of exhaustion - that Spike couldn't tell who had asked what.

"I never said it was me," he stated flatly.

"What?"

"Huh?"

"Wha'd'ya mean?"

His face crumpled, making his eyes squeeze shut to block out the tears their words accidentally provoked.

"Awww...guys, look he's heartbroken..." That voice had a country tinge; it belonged to Apple Bloom. She wrapped a hoof around his shoulders as he sank to his knees.

"Poor guy," said Scootaloo, joining in the hug.

"I never knew my sister liked mares," Sweetie thought aloud, following their lead.

"She doesn't," Spike snapped, bringing his face out of his palms. They flinched away from him, and he felt guilty. "Sorry." His voice was muffled because it was back in his hands. "You guys should go to bed," he added, but none of them seemed to notice.

"So...where is she now?" Sweetie wondered.

"Duh: at my sister's place," Scootaloo answer. "Hey, wait: why would you come back here? I mean...don'cha want to get...I dunno...some sort of revenge on her?"

"No," he grumbled. "And plus you guys need to be looked after, no matter what you say."

That earned a 'hmph' from all three of them. "Still...why would you want to?" Sweetie asked.

Spike replied in a voice so muffled-by-his-arms that even the acute hearing of a gossipy filly couldn't make it out.

"Sorry?"

He repeated himself. It was clearly the same thing again, and this time louder, but still might as well have been in a different language.

"Say again?"

"BECAUSE I LOVE HER!" Spike roared, the scales on his cheeks flushing red.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders' eyes widened. They just stood there, frozen and speechless, until Spike couldn't bear them staring any longer. "I thought I told you to go to bed!" he demanded, earning a simultaneous nod from them. They turned and ran upstairs without another word. Spike heard Sweetie's bedroom door slam, and he finally relaxed into...well, a waterfall of tears.

He wondered if he sounded stupid, like a child crushing after somepony they barely even know. True, at first he only liked Rarity because she was beautiful, but it hadn't been long before he saw that there was beauty on the inside, too.

And she wasn't perfect, either, which was awesome most of the time. She had mental breakdowns every so often.

Spike couldn't remember exactly when he realised that he was in love with her. Acknowledging it had taken a long time; it was a slow progress. He hoped it was real, and yet...

A side of him hoped it wasn't. That way, he would be able to move on. That way, he would learn from his mistakes and be able to tell the difference next time.

That way, it would stop hurting.

"Discord?"

Fluttershy prayed that her voice wasn't as nervous-sounding as she thought it was. She could feel her heart thumping in her ears, and her throat. She was scared; oh Sweet Celestia she was terrified. She did not know at which point during the past few hours this idea had come to her, or indeed why it had come to her in the first place. Eventually, she had come to the decision to carry it out, and yet still she found it hard to maintain her stance of confidence.

The draconequus looked down at Fluttershy. He watched intently as she crossed the boarder between their sections and the messed-up gravity pulled her up to the ceiling. Discord caught her with one outstretched arm then rolled her onto his chest. She landed upright, making the nearness of their faces - or lips, Discord thought - was impossible to ignore.

For a few stunned, prolonged moments they held their gaze on each other. Then, Discord stuttered, "Wh-what is it, m-my dear?"

Fluttershy shook herself back to reality. "Hmm? Oh!" She inhaled deeply. So deeply, in fact, that she forgot to exhale until her lungs screamed at her. After that, she took another deep breath for good measure. This is it, she told herself. "Well...I couldn't help but notice that...I mean, I haven't eaten for a couple of weeks now, and..." She sighed at herself impatiently, already annoyed at her shyness. "First of all, will eating effect the way things work in here? I remember you telling me how your life is preserved for the duration of you captivity. Will resuming the eating aspect of survival effect that in any way?"

Discord failed to stifle a laugh. "How much have you rehearsed this, exactly?" As she blushed he rushed to amend his mistake. "Sorry. And no, to answer your question. You don't need to 'resume the aspects of survival', but it takes a while for your body to adjust, which is why aspects such as sleeping remain...like a sort of habit, if you will."

She nodded. "Okay." Her head didn't stop nodding. "Okay," she repeated, completely aware that she was making a fool of herself.

Discord stroked her mane. "Hey," he tilted her head up by the chin, "it's okay. What's the matter?"

She shook her head. It occurred to her that this action was a substitution for 'no' and not 'nothing' or 'it doesn't matter', which is what she actually meant. Replying 'no' to 'what's the matter?' wouldn't make sense.

Oh, but where's the fun in making sense?

This thought brought a smile to her lips, and she found the confidence to continue, "Would it be completely silly to ask if...if we could have a meal together? I miss the taste of real food, and..." Fluttershy gulped; she knew this part was going to be hard. Pausing for a few seconds to gather up her courage, she forced herself to finish, "And I would like to have a meal with you."

She sucked on her lips as she waited for an answer. Her teeth pressed hard against her gums, and it hurt, but this only made her bite harder. She could feel tears coming, even though there wasn't an immediate reason for them.

Discord arched and eyebrow at her. "Are you asking me on a date, Fluttershy?" he asked jokingly, even though he inwardly wished it was that.

The pegasus took a glance at him, and in that second she felt a strange but strong compulsion to be completely honest. She looked down, and suddenly there seemed like there was a reason to cry. After a moment of hesitation, looked at him with large, honest eyes, silently confessing 'yes'.

Discord caught on to that fact. He was so surprised that he was speechless, despite having a chaotic brain that constantly rushed with activity. In that moment, he could find not a single adequate word to vocalise.

His silence was all the answer she needed. Moments after her tears fell she sniffed and whimpered, "I'm sorry," then flew back down to her bed.

She stumbled in the air when the gravity changed, removing the last speck of dignity she had - one she hadn't even known was there.

Discord was still stunned. Somewhere in his brain, he was thrilled, but he barely acknowledged that over his sheer surprise.

As much as he loved it when she was assertive, he never would've thought she'd ever have the courage to make so bold a move. It wasn't usually the mare who made a move, even if that mare wasn't held back by frantic worries or an overpowering shy attitude. Coming from Fluttershy, of all mares, was particularly remarkable. He grinned: this pegasus never stopped amazing him.

Suddenly, he remembered what his answer was, and he leapt up from his bed.

Fluttershy was annoyed at herself for getting snot and tears all over the soft cotton pillow Discord had made for her. Of course, she was mostly upset because of what she had done, but realising this mare her weep harder.

Why hadn't she been able to deny it, like any smart pony would've? She had known right away that it was a joke, so...why hasn't she just laughed? She always - well, almost always - laughed at his jokes.

The worst part was that she couldn't hide away. There was no way she couldn't face him, and she figured he would eventually face her inst -

She heard a bang that caused her to jump. The mare spun round to see Discord lying in a heap on the floor. "Ow," he beamed once he saw he had her attention.

With an unceremonious sniff, Fluttershy stopped her tears and running nose and looked at the draconequus in mild confusion.

He stood up and strode towards her, and for a moment of blind peril she thought he was going to slap her.

However, this was not the case as he leant down, placed his paw tenderly onto her cheek and kissed her softly on the lips.

When he pulled away, he sat next to her and stared into her wide, bewildered eyes. He wrapped his arms around her shoulder and gently pulled her towards him. She closed her eyes as her wet cheek came in contact with his soft, brown chest. She could hear the wondrous sound of his breath and feel the intermittent beating of his heart, which was...strangely fast.

At first she wondered why, but then she remembered the taste of his lips on hers and allowed hope to flutter into her heart. "Apology not accepted," he stated firmly.

Fluttershy sat up slightly. "Huh?"

He explained, "You said 'sorry'. I can't accept your apology."

Discord grinned in hope that she had caught on, but the slight tilt of her head showed him he needed to elaborate further. "You said you wanted to have a meal with me. Then, you apologised for it without waiting for an answer. That was incredibly rude of you, you know. Which is why I can't accept your apology."

"Whu..." Fluttershy was still confused. She loved it when he spoke cryptically, but now it was just downright annoying. "W-what do you -"

"And also, you had absolutely nothing to apologise for."

The pegasus wiped her eyes and sniffed again. "B-b...but I asked you...I mean, you obviously didn't -"

"Oh, come now, do you honestly think I was going to say no?" He looked her in the eye. "Fluttershy, I love you. I keep telling you this. What, do you have a sieve for a brain or something?" The aforementioned object appeared on her head. The weight of the handle pulled it down over half of her face. "Nice hat. But I told you...what was it, three hours ago?"

"More like three seconds," she murmured to herself, but he heard nonetheless.

"Exactly!"

"But Discord...you said before that...that you meant it..." Another tear fell down her cheek. "In the friendship sort of way."

"What did you tell me before? It was something like...oh: 'friends don't kiss friends'." He promptly pecked her on the lips again. "I only realised it properly when I...well, when I joked about it being a date."

Fluttershy laughed - a real, genuine laugh. "There we are, happy faces all round!" Discord exclaimed, beaming.

There was silence for a few seconds. Not an awkward one, just an empty one.

"I love you, Discord."

The draconequus' ears perked up, like he was hearing his yet-to-be-favourite song in all of the world for the first time. He looked down and saw she was looking up at him, almost like she was expecting...

Oh.

Discord couldn't help but wait a few more seconds though; he waited until she showed even the smallest sign of disappointment, then, "I love you too, silly." He ruffled her mane and kissed her, slowly. "However," he added, drawing his head back slightly, "can you remind me to never again kiss you when you have snot on your face?" He handed her a hankie. "It's kinda disgusting."

Fluttershy gave a bashful giggle and blew her nose. After drying her entire face, Discord sent it back out of existence. "Better?" he asked.

She smiled, then kissed him on the nose. "Much better."

Twilight's hooves became shakier and shakier as she neared the door of the room where Sunset Shimmer was being held.

Memories from the previous night were playing out in her mind's eye. She had been so stunned, so lost for words. Twilight had definitely been surprised that there was another pony in her room when she awoke, and really quite alarmed when she discovered the reason why.

But - even though the room had been uncomfortably warm at the time - that hadn't been the reason why she had been speechless, nor why she had been blushing.

If she allowed herself to be inwardly honest, she could admit that she had found Sunset...rather pretty. Even in the dark, she could see the striking red and the lightning bolt yellow rocketing through her mane. And her eyes, the brightest of turquoise, had practically drowned Twilight in their sheer beauty.

The alicorn shook her head, desperately reminding herself that her mind had been foggy and her vision clouded at that time. She couldn't allow herself to be distracted by these things, or she wouldn't be able to connect with Sunset in the way she wished.

Gulping, she raised a hoof to the door and knocked. "Sunset? Mind if I come in?"

The unicorn inside snapped her resting eyes open; it had been a long, long time since anyone had bothered to ask her permission of something, at least...not without cowering before her with terrified eyes. She recognised the voice as Twilight's, and became intrigued as to why the princess was being so polite.

Scowling at herself, she replied, "Yeah, whatever."

Twilight took a deep breath and stepped inside. Her eyes immediately locked on Sunset's, which - though they were half-lidded and bored-looking - were already focused on the alicorn. She put a hoof to her face after several eternal seconds of staring, murmuring, "Oh, for crying out loud..."

"What, were you expecting a different Sunset to be trapped in here?" she snapped in reply.

Twilight looked up again. Nope, it hadn't been her foggy mind and clouded vision; Sunset was beautiful. It annoyed her that the unicorn was supposedly evil, and that she was physically attracted to -

"You do a heck of a lot of blank staring," Sunset commented sharply, crossing her hooves and leaning against the wall.

Twilight shook herself out of her thoughts. "So...you went to CSGU?"

"Yeah. I'll have you know that I was top-of-the-class..." She lowered her voice, "Well, before you came along, that is."

"I beg your pardon?" Twilight frowned. "Sorry, do you mean to say I...'stole your spotlight', as it were?"

Sunset looked at her wearily. "Oh, what do you think? You were Celestia's favourite from the moment she saw you."

Twilight coughed awkwardly. "W-well, that was because...sh-she could sense that I was..."

"That you were connected to the Elements, that your magic held great potential, yadda yadda...don't you think I've heard that all before?" Sunset retorted. "You were a complete legend throughout the school. Nopony hadn't heard of you."

Twilight blushed sheepishly. "R-really?"

Sunset laughed harshly. "Oh, don't go all blushy and modest. Honestly, you are so darn spoilt..."

"I am not spoilt," Twilight protested. "You completely abandoned your studies before you even got a chance to know me, am I right?" Sunset narrowed her eyes at the princess. "You have no idea what I was like, only heard the drift of a rumour."

The unicorn rolled her eyes.

"You may not believe me, and frankly I don't expect you will, but I hated being the Princess' favourite. I hated the nonstop attention that was thrown at me whenever I left my apartment -"

"Your ever-so-special apartment in Canterlot Castle," Sunset interjected.

"Yes, that. I hated how much special treatment I got, because I kinda just wanted to be normal."

Sunset scoffed, "Yeah right."

"I wish I wasn't a princess," Twilight continued, unfazed by the unicorn's disbelief. "Heck, I would give these up in a heartbeat." She gestured to her wings.

"Mind giving 'em to me?" Sunset asked blandly, not expecting an answer.

But, alas, she got one, "I would if I could. You seem like you would enjoy having them far more than I do. But I can't. Even if I knew a spell that would enable me to do so, I can't. Because, unlike me, you aren't worthy of them." Sunset glared at her. "I don't view myself worthy of them either. But I trust the Princesses, and if they think I'm worthy then I trust that opinion."

"And you're telling me all this because...you what, want me to feel guilty about my actions and join 'the good side'? Dream on, Sunshine."

"Nope." Twilight shook her head. "Sunset, have you ever had an incredible amount of authority thrust upon you without your permission?"

Sunset paused and cocked her head. "Kinda. Back in my world I'm top of the school, and sometimes it's tough to maintain that properly. What's it to you, anyway?"

Twilight frowned, avoiding the question. "'Your world'? What in Equestria - or outside of Equestria - do you mean?!"

"What, didn't Celestia ever tell you about the mirror portal?" Twilight shook her head, eyes wide with confused curiosity. "Huh. Odd. Hey, guess that means she trusted me with a secret she didn't trust you with," Sunset teased.

"Or maybe she just didn't want a repeat of what happened with you," Twilight snapped, beginning to get fed up of Sunset's attitude.

"Oooo, kitten's got claws." The unicorn smirked, seeing Twilight's annoyance increase as she poked her in the muzzle. "Awww, can wittle Sparky-Warky not handle some verbal fire?"

The alicorn cleared her throat. "Do you have any friends?" she asked bitterly.

There was a stunned silence.

"No," Sunset decided, her cocky tone nowhere to be found.

"I wonder why that is," Twilight replied sarcastically with a roll of her eyes. "Can't have anything to do with the fact you're a thief, or you've got a sharp, mindless tongue."

"Hey!" Sunset furrowed her brow. "It's not my fault that insults are the only way to get any sort of respect from teenagers."

"Respect isn't the same as fear," Twilight explained softly. "Have you..." She gulped. "Have you ever had friends?"

"Of course I have!" Sunset laughed. "What kind of person hasn't?!"

Twilight smiled sheepishly. "For the longest time, I had no friends...well, aside form my assistant Spike. It was only when I moved to Ponyville three years ago that I met the other five Elements of Harmony and my best friends in the entire world." Twilight's eyes wandered, but then focused back on Sunset. "What about you? When did you become friendless?"

"Oh, ages ago," Sunset replied grimly, "but my boyfriend broke up with me last summer. He was the last thing close to a friend I had."

"Oh." Twilight touched the unicorn's hoof comfortingly. "Do you...do you miss him?"

Sunset tore her hoof away and spat, "No, of course not," as if it was the most preposterous suggestion in the world. She rubbed her hoof, as if Twilight's touch had hurt her somehow. The alicorn figured it wasn't actually the physical touch.

"I was planning to break up with him soon, anyway," Sunset added in further defence, not wanting the purple princess to pry any further.

"Might I ask...why?"

She scowled. "I dunno, I was bored of him. And plus I didn't want him to get in the way of my plan - why am I telling you this?!" she demanded suddenly, causing Twilight to jump. "Who are you, some sort of psychiatrist?!"

The alicorn shook her head hastily. "No, Sunset...I-I was just trying to -"

"Since when are alicorns so nosy?! You lot think so darn highly of yourselves! Do you think everypony's business is yours too just because of your gosh darn wings, and gosh darn horn?! Who the heck do you think you are?!"

"I only wanted to -"

"I don't want to speak to you. Get out." When she didn't move, Sunset hollered, "NOW!" Twilight scampered for the door like a hurt puppy.

However, as she emerged from the room, she smirked. She had found a weak spot in Sunset, one that she figured would be the only way to connect with her further.

From what Celestia had too her beforehoof, she knew that Sunset had always had a bit of an attitude about her, but was overall a rather sweet mare. Twilight was determined to penetrate through her arrogant act and see who Sunset was inside.

She decided to leave the unicorn a day to calm down, and then she would return and see if there was any change in Sunset. If not, then she would only try and try again.

Twilight's patience varied, and often she was very impatient, but she felt as if Sunset was worth it.

Beautiful ponies tended to have that effect on the alicorn.

Author's Notes:

Woooo! They finally get together! I bet y'all are partying, wherever you are. Seriously though, it's been SO DANG HARD not to make them kiss in these last few chapters. Now I can write full-on Fluttercord Fluff in these chapters to come
Random thought: A blatant title for the middle (Fluttercord) section in this chapter: 'Fluttershy Breaks The Conventions Of Romance Like An Absolute Boss.' If you want, you can name the other two sections or rename the Fluttercord one. Up to you!