Spike was merrily walking back to the main part of Ponyville from Fluttershy’s home. He was two for two on his cuddle conquest, and he hoped his streak would continue so that he could finish seeing the rest of his friends by the end of the day, leaving him with plenty of time to prepare for Twilight and Starlight’s return tomorrow.

Then again, it was only going to get harder from now on. For the most part, Applejack and Fluttershy were easy to cuddle with. The rest of his friends were going to be more difficult in one way or another.

Speaking of, Spike stopped walking, taking a moment to look up. Ever since he had left the castle, he had been scanning the skies for one of his more elusive friends.

Rainbow Dash was probably the hardest to locate among all of his friends due to her ability to fly and urge to not stay in one place for too long, unless she was napping. Even though Fluttershy could also fly, she preferred to stay on the ground and near her home and animals. Rainbow, however, spent almost all of her time in the air, and Spike did not have the ability to search every cloud for the prismatic pegasus. He looked for rainbow trails, clouds exploding, or deafening snores, but so far, there had been no signs of Rainbow.

Spike sighed and resumed his walk back to town.

After a while, as Spike was reaching the end of the grassy fields that separated Ponyville’s farms and the main town, he heard a faint whining sound. Stopping underneath a tree, he looked around for the source of the noise that was steadily growing louder. To his surprise, the growing racket sounded like a pony screaming, a scream that was vaguely familiar.

Then the tree exploded… sort of. Spike’s heart, as well as the rest of his body, leapt when something crashed into the branches above him. He barely had time to crouch and cover his head before it started to rain leaves and twigs.

When the haze of foliage cleared up, Spike looked up and saw a familiar groaning pegasus slumped over one of the bigger branches.

“Whoa, you okay there, Rainbow?” Spike shouted.

“Ow ow ow ow ow…” was all Rainbow replied with as she stirred and twitched, oblivious to Spike’s call.

“Rainbow, you alright?” Spike shouted again amongst Rainbow’s moans.

“Huh? What?” Rainbow’s gaze finally looked down at the dragon. “Oh, hey, Spike.”

“You need me to help or call somepony? That looked like a rough landing.”

“Na, it’s cool. It’s just a scratch. Give me a few minutes.”

Spike slowly nodded, keeping an eye on the pegasus. He watched as Rainbow began to stretch out her legs and limbs, only to wince when he heard the sound of bones popping.

“Ooh, I’m going to feel that tomorrow…” Rainbow moaned.

Another series of pops immediately followed.

“And that…”

Ever more pops and crackings filled the air.

“Those too…”

“Just a scratch, huh?” Spike remarked with a raised eyebrow.

Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Fine, a few scratches, but nothing that’s going to keep me down, so stop worrying.”

Rainbow stood up on the branch and then jumped off. As she flapped her wings a few times to slow her fall, she grunted a few times. When she landed next to Spike, she groaned and gingerly flexed her feathery appendages.

“You going to be okay?” Spike asked with a concerned frown.

“Yeah, I’ll be alright. Just need a little down time, and I’ll be back in the air in no time.”

“What were you doing that made you crash anyway?”

An eager grin appeared on Rainbow’s face. “Oh, I was just trying to perfect this new trick I’ve been working on. It’s where I fly around in a bunch of loops while spinning really fast and then I suddenly rocket off this way and then…” Rainbow sat down to continue explaining her trick by adding her hooves and even some helpful sound effects.

Tuning out the riveting details of Rainbow’s presentation, Spike merely nodded until the pegasus stopped talking and then asked, “So what went wrong?”

Rainbow let out a single nervous chuckle and rubbed the back of her head. “Well, I kind of lost track of how long I have been going at it, and I guess I was due for a break. One of my wings cramped up in the middle of the trick, and I lost control.”

“Yeah, that definitely sounds like you. At least your crash makes things easier for me. I was looking for you.”

“Oh? What’s up?”

“You remember my dragon code, right?”

“Sure do. It was pretty cool you were able to build that rock tower, but wasn’t it totally awesome when I knocked it down?!”

“So awesome! If you ever do it again, can I watch?”

Rainbow bit her lip. “Uh, yeah, if I ever do it again…”

“Cool, thanks! Anyway, getting back on track, I found some new stuff about the noble dragon code, and it wants me to do something for you.”

A big grin sprouted on Rainbow’s face. “Oh sweet, does this mean you’re going to follow me around and do whatever I say?! Because I got a bunch of chores that need to be done, like this funky smell in my—”

“Uh, no, sorry, none of that, Rainbow,” Spike interrupted. “What I want to do is cuddle with you.”

Rainbow blinked. “Cuddle with me?” She blinked several times more times before collapsing to the ground in laughter. “Bahahaha, that’s a good one, Spike!”

Spike rolled his eyes. With a sigh, he folded his arms across his chest and patiently watched the laughing pegasus rolling on the ground.

Rainbow’s chortling started to die down, but when she saw the deadpan expression Spike was giving her, her joy instantly evaporated. “Oh, you’re being serious. My bad.”

Spike shrugged. “It’s cool. To be honest, I pretty much expected a response like that. I know you don’t like sappy stuff the same way you don’t like doing that pampering stuff they do at the spa.”

“Right… Hate those spa stuff…” Rainbow replied, turning her head away.

“Are you blushing?” Spike asked curiously.

“N-no! I-it’s just from all the flying I just did!”

“Uh, okay?”

“Anyway… You really weren’t kidding about you cuddling me for some dragon code thing?”

Spike nodded. “It’s all true. I’m supposed to cuddle with my close friends. It lets me show my appreciation for how awesome all of you are by doing it in a way we would both enjoy.”

“Well, I guess that sounds cool and all, but you said it yourself, that sort of stuff isn’t really my thing,” Rainbow replied, rubbing the back of her neck with a hoof. “Sorry, dude.”

“You sure? I know it’s not really your thing, but it’s actually really awesome. Trust me. I was wary of it at first, but after trying it with Fluttershy and Applejack, it’s got to be one of the best things ever.”

“Fluttershy and Applejack, huh?” Rainbow took a moment to rub her chin in thought. “Ehh… Sorry, Spike, but my answer is still no. I got a reputation to keep.”

Spike gave a huge sigh of disappointment. “Well, it was worth a shot.”

“Maybe you can think of something else that we can do,” Rainbow suggested. She moved closer and used her forehoof to ruffle the spines on Spike’s head. “Thanks for understanding, Spike.”

With their close proximity, Spike’s eyes were soon drawn to Rainbow’s wings and noticed that they were twitching and fidgeting. “Hey, is something wrong with your wings?”

Rainbow sighed and slowly opened then closed her wings, wincing the entire time. “Yeah, they’re really sore. I guess it’s from my intense workout and the crash. I’m probably going to be grounded for the rest of the day, which is going to suck.”

“Then how about a wing massage instead of a cuddle?”

Rainbow gave him an unsure frown. “Uh, I’m not sure that’s a good idea. Wings are pretty sensitive, and you can actually make things worse if you don’t know what you’re doing.”

“I know that. That’s why I read up a bunch of stuff on wing care.”

“Wait? Really? Why would you do that? Getting a headstart for when you finally grow your own?”

Spike scoffed. “No… Of course not!” Receiving a raised eyebrow from Rainbow, he sighed. “Okay, maybe a little bit, but the main reason was because Twilight became an alicorn. Neither of us knew much about wing care, so we read up on it. I picked up some wing massage techniques when she was complaining about all the flight training you put her through.”

“What?! My training program was perfectly fine!”

“Says the pegasus who crashed from working on a trick too much,” Spike added with a grin.

Rainbow frowned, glaring at Spike for a few moments before letting out a huff. “Fine, you might have a point, but it’s not all of my fault. You got to admit that the egghead really needs to get out more.”

Spike chuckled. “No arguments here. So, how about that wing massage? A good one can probably get you up and flying a lot sooner.”

“Well, I guess that’s true… Alright fine. I’m still not sure if you can handle me, but I guess I’ll give you a chance.” Rainbow lowered her head so that her muzzle was close to Spike’s face, and she poked the dragon’s stomach with a forehoof. “And you’re not going to say a word about this to anypony, got it?”

After Spike agreed to keep their upcoming time together a secret and at Rainbow’s request, they walked to a larger tree in the distance and off the path.

Away from prying eyes, Rainbow sat on her haunches behind the tree. As she slowly unfurled her wings, she said, “Might as well get right to it. The faster we do this, the less likely somepony might stumble upon us.”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m on it.” Spike hurried to stand behind Rainbow. “You want to lay down? You’ll be more comfortable.”

“Na, I’m cool. Oh, and Spike?” Rainbow turned her head to look back at him and gave a small smile. “Thanks.”

Spike smiled back. “No problem, Rainbow.” He raised his claws towards Rainbow’s wings. “I’m going to start now, so go ahead and relax.”

After receiving a nod and watching Rainbow take a deep breath, Spike gently put both of his claws on Rainbow’s left wing and applied a small amount of pressure. He promptly felt Rainbow flinch, and it was accompanied by a grunt. Halting the massage, he asked, “You okay, Rainbow?”

“Yeah, it’s just the soreness. Nothing new. Keep going.”

Spike resumed the massage by slowly running his claws up and down the length of the wing, periodically squeezing lightly. Rainbow continued to twitch and groan, but as Spike worked out the tension and could feel the muscles start to relax, Rainbow’s noises of discomfort shifted to moans of contentment.

“Ohhhh maaaan… That’s the stuff…”

Spike snickered. He was both pleased and amused at the way Rainbow was turning into putty in his claws. “Still think I can’t give a wing massage?”

“Just shut up and keep rubbing,” Rainbow replied, which was shortly followed by another satisfied moan.

Spike continued working the length of Rainbow’s left wing with the same technique, adding small amounts of pressure over time. Bit by bit, he could feel his work loosen Rainbow’s muscles until it reached a point where there was no more he could do and moved on to the right wing.

And the cycle begin anew as Rainbow started with her grunts and flinches before they slowly descended into the incoherent noises of one satisfied pegasus.

Eventually, Spike finished working the right wing as well, leaving him with the last part of the massage. He moved one claw to each side of Rainbow’s back. Using the tips of each digit and making sure they would not scratch, he pressed down where the base of the wings merged with Rainbow’s body.

Rainbow let out a loud, elongated, and borderline-inappropriate moan before falling forward onto her stomach with a dopey smile on her face that ponies only used when they were in mindblowing bliss.

Spike had to restrain himself from not bursting out in laughter. He knew Twilight liked it when he did this technique, but her responses were nowhere near as dramatic as Rainbow’s. Kneeling down to compensate for the new position, he proceeded to knead and rub the last of Rainbow’s wing sores.

“There, all done,” Spike said after he finally finished with the massage and got back on his feet.

“Dude…” Rainbow flipped over on her back so that she could look at Spike, her blissful smile still present. “That… was… awesome… And those claws of yours… awesome… You’re awesome…”

“Twilight was right. We really need to get you a dictionary or thesaurus,” Spike replied, grinning over both his quip and the praise he received.

“Yeah, yeah, really funny.” Rainbow sat back up and looked back at her wings as she slowly moved and flexed them. “Man, my wings feel great! You’re awesome!”

Spike chuckled. “So I heard. What are you going to do now?”

“My wings are still a bit sore, but it’s loads better after you helped out. I’ll probably take it easy, maybe a nap, and then see if I’ll be better later and be able to squeeze in some more practice.”

“Well, good luck with that. I’ll leave you be and try out Pinkie and Rarity before the day is over.”

“Wait, anything I can do to help or something else you need?” Rainbow asked. “I kind of owe you for the awesome massage.”

Spike smiled and merely waved it off with a claw. “No worries. It was for my dragon code, even if we didn’t get to cuddle. I’ll catch you later, Rainbow.”

Spike started making his way back towards the path, but he was once again stopped by Rainbow crying out, “Wait, Spike!”

“Yeah, Rainbow?” Spike asked, turning his head back at the pegasus.

“Do you…” Rainbow sighed and looked away before continuing in a lower voice that Spike could barely hear. “Do you still want to cuddle?”

“Seriously?” Spike asked wide-eyed. “But I thought you said—”

“Yes, I know what I said, but I also know your dragon code thingy is important to you. Even after I turned you down, you still treated me to a great massage. I wouldn’t be much of a friend if I wasn’t willing to risk a bit of my coolness for my friends, especially after they just did me a solid.”

“Well, that would be great if we could cuddle,” Spike remarked, walking back to Rainbow with a slowly-growing smile on his face. “But are you sure you want to do this?”

“Of course I do,” Rainbow replied with a grin, only for it to fade a second later as she swiveled her head around. “But, uh, let’s just keep it short.”

Spike’s smile faded. Rainbow had good intentions, but she was still not really into the cuddling idea. She was just suggesting to cuddle out of obligation. While Spike would like to continue his cuddling streak, he also did not want to force his friend’s hoof.

“Look, Rainbow,” Spike said. “I know you’re still worried about ponies seeing you do sappy stuff, so don’t worry about cuddling. The wing massage was sort of like a cuddle, so that has got to be worth some points at least, right?”

“Some points is not all the points,” Rainbow pointed out with a frown. “You deserve the full deal.”

“Really, Rainbow, it’s alright. Besides, I have a feeling your cuddles wouldn’t be as great like Fluttershy's and Applejack's.”

Before Spike knew it, Rainbow was right in front of him and glaring down at him. Her eyes had shrunk into tiny balls, and her lips were pursed upwards in a very angry frown.

“What do you mean I wouldn’t be as great?!” Rainbow demanded.

“I, uh, er…” Spike nervously tapped his claws together, and his eyes frequently glanced at the ground. “What I meant was that it might be possible you wouldn’t be a good cuddler since you don’t really seem into it.”

“I’m awesome at everything, including cuddling!” Rainbow declared. “Well, okay, I can get Fluttershy being a better cuddler, but I’m definitely better than Applejack!”

“Um, well, I guess that’s a possibility,” Spike said, trying his best to scoot away without Rainbow noticing. “Even though Applejack has a lot of cuddling experience with Apple Bloom and—” He clapped a claw over his mouth when he realized he was just fanning the flames of Rainbow’s competitiveness.

“Oh yeah?! I’ll show you!” Rainbow quickly tossed Spike onto her back with her head and then rushed back to their spot behind the tree. “I’m going to cuddle you so hard! I’m going all cuddlepocalypse on your scaly butt! That’ll show you who's the best cuddler!”

Before Spike could protest, Rainbow bucked him off her, launching him straight up into the air. He yowled when gravity took over and started to pull him down. He closed his eyes, waiting for the moment he made a baby dragon-sized hole in the grass, but instead of slamming into the hard, unforgiving ground, his back landed on something soft.

“Huh? What?” Spike opened his eyes and looked around to see that he was now lying on Rainbow’s stomach, who had the upper half of her body lying against the tree. He moved to get up, but Rainbow’s forehooves quickly wrapped around his body, pressing him back into the soft pony coat and locking his arms to his sides.

“You’re not going anywhere until you get the best cuddling you ever received,” Rainbow explained. She shifted her hind legs to cover Spike’s legs, further trapping the dragon in her embrace. “Whether you like it or not.”

Spike gulped and nodded, resigning himself to whatever cuddly fate Rainbow had in store for him. He felt Rainbow’s grip tighten around his whole body. It was firm, but not uncomfortably so. Once his fears for the overzealous pegasus had faded away, he actually found the position he was in to be quite pleasant. With all four of Rainbow’s legs curled around him, he felt safe. Well, as safe as he would feel when he was being held by a hot-headed pegasus.

“You want me to do anything for you while we’re like this, Rainbow?” Spike asked.

“No, you’re being cuddled. You’re just going to lay there and take it.”

Spike shrugged and relaxed, allowing himself to sink deeper into Rainbow’s cuddle. He certainly had no complaints to be able to take a passive role this time around. Cuddling with his friends had been rewarding, but it had also been quite tiring.

He had to admit that he did not expect Rainbow’s cuddling prowess, given all the reluctance she had been exhibiting earlier. However, with how snug and comfortable he was in Rainbow’s hooves, he had to say the pegasus was certainly giving Fluttershy and Applejack a run for their bits.

And then Rainbow stepped up her game.

Spike let out a silent “Whoa” when Rainbow’s wings stretched out to her sides and converged on him. They could not completely cover him, but the parts the soft feathers could reach felt like they were draped by a warm blanket.

Between feeling the calming movements of Rainbow’s breathing upon his back and the cozy feathers and soft hair around the other parts of his body, Spike was finding it hard to describe how fantastic he was feeling, something that has been occurring quite often today.

Then again, a good cuddle was worth a thousand words. Or at least, that’s what his cuddle-addled brain was telling him at the moment.

Glancing up, Spike could see the stern, determined face that Rainbow was wearing earlier had melted away into a small, lazy smile, a sign that the pegasus was indeed enjoying their cuddle session.

“So, uh, sorry if I got a bit carried away earlier,” Rainbow finally spoke, breaking their cuddling silence.

“A bit?” Spike repeated with a chuckle. “I knew you were competitive, but I didn’t think it would extend to cuddling.”

“Hey, an awesome pony like me has to be good at all sorts of stuff.”

“Well, you certainly got me convinced that you’re an awesome cuddler. Sorry, that I assumed that you weren’t.”

Rainbow shrugged. “Eh, guess I can sort of see how you thought that. Just don’t forget I’m naturally awesome at everything, and we’ll call it even.”

Spike snorted with laughter. “Yeah, sure. I’ll try to keep that in mind.”

Rainbow moved one of her forehooves up to Spike’s head and gave him a noogie. “You better!”

“Alright, alright, I will!” Spike cried out as he squirmed and giggled.

After they settled back down and cuddled for a few more minutes, Spike checked the sun’s position and reluctantly noted that it was time for him to end his cuddle session with Rainbow. “Looks like I should be heading out now. I still got to try Pinkie and Rarity before I got to go home and get ready for Twilight and Starlight’s return.”

“Oh, right,” Rainbow replied, disappointment evident in her short reply. She paused for a few seconds before adding, “Gotta admit that this was pretty nice.”

“Told you cuddling was awesome.”

“Yeah, yeah…”

Spike smirked when he could practically hear the eye roll in Rainbow’s voice. When he tried to get up, he found that Rainbow’s hooves were still locked tightly around him. Looking up at Rainbow’s face with a raised eyebrow, he asked, “Uh, Rainbow, you mind letting me go?”

“Oh, uh, right. I guess I could, but, uh…” Rainbow blushed. “Could we maybe have five more minutes?”

Spike let out an amused sigh and then laid his head back on Rainbow. “Alright, five more minutes.”

It would be quite a bit more than five minutes before Rainbow finally let Spike go, along with yet another promise to not mention their activities together to anypony.