Everyone at the Flimflam Brothers’ Resort from the owners down to the parking valets was in a bad mood. Discord, in particular, was extra frustrated; so much that he had crushed a whole case of stress balls just to try and keep calm. At the moment, he was chewing out Rarity, Soarin and Zephyr Breeze. He looked like he would blow his top at any second.

“This is a copy of my job description,” he said as he held up a sheet of paper to them. “Do you see ‘supervising a staff full of babies who can’t think for themselves’ anywhere here? Do you?!”

“Dude, it’s not even ten o’clock,” Zephyr groaned as he rubbed his eyes.

“You mixed up the Coals’ and Slaws’ luggage!” Discord went on.

“Not my fault,” Zeph replied. “I couldn’t tell one from the other. They were both so big and heavy.”

“The luggage or the people?” Soarin inquired.

Discord finally went nuclear.

“You are nothing but a never-ending string of complaints, excuses, and wisecracks! That’s a strike for all three of you! Now, get to work! That is an order, NOT a suggestion! Move it! And what kind of a sorry display is that?!”

Meanwhile, in the Sweet Snacks Café...

“What’s the holdup?” Pinkie asked Chef le Grand. “Table Twenty-Two’s been waiting on a banana smoothie for half an hour.”

“Miss Pie!” the Flimflam Brothers called out.

“Is there a problem, sirs?” Pinkie asked after roller-skating to their table.

“Would you look at this?” Flam asked. “My muffin is bursting with blueberries and my brother’s barely has any! Does that seem right to you?”

“Uh... uh, no, no, sir,” she replied.

“Tell Chef le Grand in there that we want every muffin to have an equal amount of blueberries in it -- an equal amount!” Flim stated.

Pinkie did.

“This is nonsense! Equal blueberries?! Get out of my kitchen!”

And she skated back through the swinging doors, being pelted by the Chef’s muffins, as well as croissants, as she fled. Just then, Starlight Glimmer walked in, talking to Trixie on her cell phone.

“Yes, it’s hard!” she said as she finished buttoning up her uniform with her free hand. “My manager, Sunset, is sooo annoying. Oh, and Rarity wears way too much makeup. Did you know her eyelashes are false? But I won’t be here for much longer. I have a way out of this job...”

“Where have you been?” Pinkie asked. “Your tables are about to keel over from starvation!”

“Trying to avoid angry bellhops,” Starlight answered. “I need to talk to Flim and Flam.”

“I wouldn’t, if I were you,” Pinkie advised. “On an angry scale of one to ten, they’re a fifty this morning.”

“Oh, I’m just gonna suck up to them for a minute,” Starlight reassured her.

“Twilight!!” Flam yelled. “We need to talk to you NOW!!”

“Um, I think she’s hiding under a shelf in a supply closet,” Pinkie said.

And the Brothers went on the hunt for her as Starlight approached her father’s table. Sunburst and Stellar Flare had joined him for breakfast.

“Why’s everybody so upset?” Starlight asked.

“The list of the Top-10 Casino Resorts just came out,” Stellar Flare explained, showing her the morning newspaper. “And the Flimflam Brothers came in second.”

“Second?” Starlight asked.

“And guess who came in first,” Sunburst added.

Starlight gasped... then growled, “Impossibly Rich!”

“Ever since her driver beat the Brothers’ pick in the Las Pegasus Grand Prix,” Stellar Flare replied. “It’s too bad there isn’t a way to stick it to her.”

“I might have a way,” Starlight said. “The staff ballroom dancing contest is usually right after the Top 10, isn’t it?”

“Oh, don’t remind us, Pumpkin,” Firelight told his daughter. “In fact, that is the last thing any of us want to think about right now.”

“Don’t worry, Dad -- we are going to win it this year, and I’m gonna make sure of it. But first, duty calls!”

Then she ducked under the table.

“What are you doing?” Sunburst asked.

“This gum isn’t going to scrape itself!” she replied.

Her father, Sunburst and Stellar Flare all quickly pushed their chairs back and paid as they left.

The only room that seemed to be immune to all the negativity in the whole resort was the ballroom. Inside, Rainbow Dash was snacking on handfuls of little chocolates (the ones that were for decorating the guests’ pillows in their rooms. At least they were supposed to be) while Twilight sipped a strawberry smoothie.

“Mmm, mmm, mmm,” Dash hummed. “These are so good. Can you get addicted to pillow chocolates?”

“How many guys would do something like that on their day off?” Twilight asked. “He’s not even being paid.”

She was talking about Spike... again; more specifically, the fact that he had started streaming dance instruction videos to the hotel’s website as a way to strum up more business. That day, Spike was having Sunset Shimmer film him teaching a segment on hip-hop... and Fleur was his dance partner.

“Are you forced to offer some feeble excuse for not dancing?” he asked, looking into the camera. “Are you left holding the bags, the coats, and stuck with the check while everyone else enjoys themselves? Do you feel like a wallflower, alone in a world of dancers? Do you have two left feet?”

Spike stretched as he talked, then he started shaking his money-maker.

“See, the thing about hip-hop is that you don’t plan the dance, you just make up new moves as you go along with the music,” he went on. “You use steps you know, but don’t plan the order. So, the dance is a little new and different each time. That’s called improvising.”

He proceeded to demonstrate, earning a gasp from Sunset.

“Dancing is as easy as A, B, C or 1, 2, 3,” Spike said as he nodded to Vinyl Scratch, who nodded back and dropped the needle on her turntable.

Sunset gasped again. It was hard to believe it had been fifty years since that song was released, where it stayed at #1 for four weeks, and it was still popular.

“Stupendous!” she exclaimed.

Twilight and Rainbow Dash were soon joined by Spike’s mother, Celestia.

“Spike’s been obsessed with choreography,” she said. “Ever since he saw Barbara teach a blind man how to tango, he’s wanted to make a career out of it.”

“Aww, I think it’s cool,” said Twilight. “It’s like there’s more to him than just a cute smile, nice eyes, broad shoulders and perfect abs...”

“Watch it!” Celestia warned her. “That’s my son you’re drooling over!”

“Hey, she’s a total catch, too,” Rainbow Dash said about Twilight.

“Thanks,” Twilight replied.

Dash’s phone beeped and she saw a text message from Starlight Glimmer.

“She’s on her way down,” Dash said. “So, are you gonna hang out here on the sidelines until Spike notices you, or are you gonna walk up to him and say hi?” she asked Twilight.

Twilight wasn’t sure that she could. After everything that had transpired between her and Spike, she felt awkward and uncomfortable.

“Brock-brock-brock-brock-brock-brock-brock-brock-brock!” Dash clucked.

“Okay, okay!” Twilight said.

As they were talking, Fleur was having her own conversation with Spike.

“You know, Spike, if you were my boyfriend, I would spoil you,” she whispered into his ear as they danced. “I would love to spoil you. Take you places you’ve never been, show you things you’ve never seen. I would like you to... crème my brûlée.”

Spike blushed hard. Thankfully, the music stopped just as he saw Starlight enter the ballroom and he hip-hopped over to her. Soon, the ballroom became filled with people – as well as Spike, Fleur, Celestia, Sunset, Vinyl, Rainbow Dash, Starlight and Twilight – Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Soarin, Rarity, Coco Pommel, Cheese Sandwich and Zephyr Breeze joined them shortly after.

“What’re you all doing here?” Spike asked.

They all held up their phones, revealing the same text message from Starlight Glimmer.

“I wanted to see how the latest dance video is coming,” Starlight told him. “Also I need you all to do something for me.”

“What?” Zephyr groaned.

“Win the annual staff ballroom dancing contest next Saturday,” she said.

“Is that all?” Soarin asked, as if he were expecting more.

“You’ll have to skip work without getting fired and practice every spare second you have,” Starlight added.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa... Whoa!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed. “When you say ‘dance’ you mean as in ‘together’? I don’t know if you know this about me, but I don’t slow dance, only break dance.”

“And if we did agree to help you, what’s in it for us?” Rarity asked.

“Other than spending time with Spike and possibly getting fired,” added Applejack.

“The Rich Family and the Flimflam Brothers are sworn enemies,” Starlight explained. “They’ve been competing at everything since Flim and Flam took over after Gladmane was brought down. Sports, social events, the stock market...” she listed them off. “Every year for the past six years, the Brothers have been Number One. That’s why Discord’s being such a dictator. They’re giving him the grind because he let us slip to Number Two.”

“This morning, he gave me a strike just for yawning!” Coco told them.

“The dude’s a workaholic,” Soarin said. “It’s a disease.”

“Hope I don’t catch it,” Zeph added.

“Yeah, I don’t think you need to worry about that,” Dash told him.

“So if we win, Discord will get off our cases?” Spike asked.

“You’ll be legends, and... Dad will let me out of this stupid job,” Starlight said. “So, are you in?”

“Definitely,” Spike replied. “I mean, if it means getting Discord off our backs, and promoting the hotel at the same time, how would you gals rather be seen, in smoking hot dresses or with your mouths full of pie?”

“On a skill level, I’m better at pie eating,” Applejack answered.

“I think this could be really cool,” Pinkie added.

“And having the staff show off their dance moves would surely bring in more guests,” Twilight went on.

“All right, just for argument’s sake, who would I be dancing with?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“Why, me, of course,” Zephyr smiled.

“No offense, darling, but you’re a groper and you smell like you haven’t showered in a week,” Rarity said.

“Yeah, thanks, but no thanks,” Rainbow Dash added.

“Fine, just get another partner,” Starlight said.

“Like who?” Dash asked.

“Oh, for Scorpan’s sake, I’ll do it,” Spike grunted.

“Spike, no,” said Sunset. “You’re working hard enough as it is.”

“I’ll have you know I am a three-time ballroom dancing champion,” Spike bragged. “In fact, my dance teacher told me that I was the best she’d ever had.”

“So, the dance teacher selling you lessons said you were a natural?” Dash asked. “Unheard of!”

Now, a normal guy would’ve said something along the lines of, “You think I can’t do it?”, or a sarcastic “All right.” But not Spike. For one thing, Spike was not a normal guy. He was a college graduate turned casino dealer and dance instructor. Instead of saying anything, he simply grabbed Fluttershy by her wrist, pulled her close to him, and started twirling her. She spun around him several times before he finally dipped her, leaving her breathless.

“I can also do the Hop, the Jump, the Twist, the Hustle, the Monkey, the Jerk, the Dog and the Disco Duck,” Spike said. “And I won’t be the only guy in this competition; I’m going to take Cheese, Soarin and Zeph here under my wing. The more teams we have competing, the greater our chances of winning.”

“So, what do you say, girls?” Starlight asked them. “Please?”

They slowly agreed, one by one.

“Fine, we’ll do it,” Rarity replied.

“Good. I’ll cover for you so you can start training,” Coco said.

“Wait a minute! If Coco’s going to fill in for Rarity, who’s gonna cover for me?” Rainbow Dash inquired.

“Don’t worry, I’ve got it covered,” Starlight replied.

“You’re gonna clean rooms?” Dash asked. “This just keeps getting better and better!”

As Twilight finished her afternoon shift in the casino, she thought back to when she and Rarity were in the staff locker room an hour ago. Spike had walked past her outside the changing stalls like she didn’t even exist.

“Twilight, darling, you can do so much better than Spike,” Rarity had said. “Move on! And besides, why do you care if he notices you? You’re pretty, you work at an exclusive casino-hotel and you’re a friend of mine. You can date anyone you want!”

“I know, but the one I want is Spike,” Twilight replied.

“Well, here’s a little advice: the fastest way to get a man’s attention is to make him jealous,”

Twilight was willing to give it a try, but she didn’t know to begin. That’s when she heard a commotion coming from one of the poker tables across the casino. She saw a battered young man in his late twenties, maybe early thirties, who had been on the wrong end of too many boxing gloves. He was tall—over six-five—with vivid orange hair and an athletic frame. His face was narrow and his eyes a little too close together.

He barely looked at his cards as the deal continued. He threw out his bets haphazardly, carrying on conversations with the other players while they tried to focus on their hands. Pretty soon the others dropped out until it dwindled down to him and one other player, who was also drawing into a full house.

Instead of folding, the guy pushed a large stack of chips into the center of the table. He smiled at the other player, daring him to match the bet, the very same way Spike had smiled at her that night when they played poker. His confidence was unnerving; Twilight could see the other player weakening with each passing second. Finally, he folded, unwilling to take the chance that his last card would give him the full house. The guy swooped up his winnings and began to stack them in neat little towers.

“That was pretty impressive,” she said.

“What that? It’s just pocket change,” he replied.

“I’m Twilight,” she introduced herself, “Twilight Sparkle.”

“Call me Garble,”

Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Soarin, Zephyr Breeze, Cheese Sandwich and Twilight assembled in the ballroom the next morning. They were about to start warming up when Discord burst through the double doors with Applejack right behind him.

“There had better be a really good explanation for why you’re not all at work!” he growled.

“They have to skip work so we can win the staff ballroom dance contest,” Spike explained.

“Let me think about that,” Discord said. “Hmm... No!”

“If we win, you’ll be the Brothers’ hero,” Spike said.

“Think of it as career advancement,” Rarity added.

Discord thought it over for another moment, and said, “Fine. But only on one condition: I want in!”

“You want to dance?” Spike asked.

“Yes. And my doctor suggested I get some exercise,” Discord added. “So, you got a partner for me?”

“I have just the woman,” Spike told him. “Twilight!”

“Why can’t I be your partner?” she asked.

“‘Cause he just said you’re with me, baby!” Discord answered. “And we are gonna dance till we’re blue in the face!”

And he swept Twilight into his arms, which wasn’t too difficult since he stood a whole foot taller than her.

“Next time, I’ll take out my lifts, you wear heels,” Discord said.

“I already am,” Twilight replied.

“All right, everyone else pair up,” Spike said.

“Cheese’s my partner!” Pinkie exclaimed.

So, Pinkie paired off with Cheese Sandwich, while Soarin paired off with Rainbow Dash and Spike took Rarity, leaving Fluttershy to dance with her brother, Zephyr Breeze.

“We have only five days to train, and we are not coming home without the trophy,” Spike told them. “So, let’s warm up with some basic Trust Exercises. Now, I wouldn’t blame any of you if you didn’t trust your partners at all; but if you can’t trust them to catch you when you’re falling, then this isn’t going to work.”

The trust fall—the tried and true mothod in which one person fell, relying on another person to catch them. This was necessary for the couples if they were going to dance together. The more they trusted one another, the stronger and more productive they would be. It was that simple. The men caught the women, no problem; but the women catching the men required a bit more effort.

“All right, now I want to go over what dance each couple will be doing,” Spike said. “Dash, Soarin, I would like you two to Samba. Twilight, Discord, I think you two should do the waltz. Pinkie and Cheese Sandwich are going to do a hip-hop dance, Zephyr’s dancing ballet with Fluttershy, and Rarity, you and I are doing the tango. You and your partner must move as one,” he said as he pulled a tabloid out of his back pocket and held it between Discord and Twilight. “You must hold her so closely that this magazine can not fall.”

“You got a thinner magazine?” Discord asked.

“This is creepy,” Zephyr thought as he danced with his sister. “But I can deal with it.”

“Follow my lead,” he told Fluttershy. “Not too close. Keep your arms locked. And loosen your elbows. Don’t look at your feet!”

“I told you -- wait until I’m ready!” Rainbow Dash shouted at Soarin.

“It’s not my fault you’re slow!” Soarin replied.

“I am not slow!” Dash stated.

“Okay,” Spike said, stepping between them, “the biggest mistake you two are making right now is you’re going for the big moves first. You’re not going to do that. You are going to work our way up to the Level 9 lifts.”

“What about Level Ten?” Dash asked.

“Do not even joke about that!” Spike stated. “No one does Level Ten lifts, not even the pros! Got it?”

Rainbow Dash and Soarin nodded.

“To win, we just need to execute a perfect Level 9, unless one or both of you wants to end up in the hospital... or the morgue,” Spike said.

“No, we’re down with that,” Dash replied quickly.

“Level 9 sounds good,” Soarin agreed.

“Okay,” Spike told them. “Begin again.”

After Spike got everyone else set up, he finally approached Rarity.

“All right, stand up straight. Now, you’re going to put one hand here,” he said, holding out his left hand. “And the other hand on my shoulder.”

“You mean touch you?” she asked.

Spike nodded. “And you’re going to lock your thumb under my armpit.”

“There’s not enough money in the world,”

“It’s called the tango. That’s how it’s done. We need to lock elbows,”

“I’m not locking any of my body parts with yours, elbows or otherwise,”

“Come on. You can do this,”

“I know. I just don’t want to,” she said. “All right, one hand here?”

“Mm-hmm,” he replied.

“And my thumb there,”

“That’s right. And the man, me, I put my hand here,” he said, placing it behind her shoulder. “Don’t laugh.”

“Well, don’t tickle me,” she replied.

“I’m not tickling you,”

“I’m ticklish there,”

“You’re ticklish in your upper back?”

“I’m ticklish in a lot of places I’m not telling you about,”

“All right, you’re going to feel pressure on your hand and you’re going to go against that,” Spike told her. “It’s like magnets pushing away from each other.”

“Oh, so dancing with you is based on repulsion,” Rarity said. “I am gonna be awesome at this.”

“You’re cute, you know that?” he asked sarcastically. “Ready?”

“Mm-hmm,” she nodded.

“I’m gonna move, and you’re gonna follow me,” he instructed.

They started moving, forward and back, and she mirrored him perfectly.

“How’d that feel?” he asked.

“Good. Really good,” Rarity admitted. “I mean, in a dancing sort of way.”

“See, the tango is about passion,” Spike told her as they continued to dance. “The man leads, and the woman follows, until the two become...” He dipped her. “...one.”

Rarity blinked in an attempt to free herself of Spike’s mesmerizing gaze.

“Okay, I think I need a drink,” she said.

“Yeah, me too,” he replied, pulling her to her feet.

“That was kind of--”

“I understand,”

Just then, Starlight burst in.

“Spike, amazing news!” she cried. “The Resort has been selected to host the competition this year! And it’s going to be televised live!”

The gang could not believe it; Spike was grinning from ear to ear.

“You all heard the lady!” he shouted. “Let’s dance!”

The rest of the day went smoothly... even for the Flimflam Brothers, who had found their newest “show” to watch on the security monitors.

“You know, brother of mine, I really think these kids have a chance of winning,” Flim said.

Flam agreed.

“Good job, everyone,” Spike said after they were done. “Keep practicing, and remember to hold your frame.”

Soarin and Zephyr Breeze rode the elevator up to the staff quarters while Twilight walked with Rainbow Dash to the garden out back.

“That was fun!” Soarin said. “Don’t Dash and I make a great team?”

“Oh, yes!” Zephyr Breeze said sarcastically. “Switch partners with me.”

“What? Why?”

“You can’t lead Rainbow Dash. She’s pushing you around like a mop!”

“And what’s wrong with Fluttershy?”

“Besides the fact that she’s my sister, she’s got noodle arms. It’s like dancing with spaghetti. I’ll never win with her,”

“Then why should I take her?”

“‘Cause you’ll never win with anyone,” Zephyr said.

“That is insulting!” Soarin replied. “And also true...”

“Look, if you won’t do it for me, do it for Spike and Starlight,”

“Fine, I’ll switch,”

“Thanks,”

Meanwhile, in the courtyard garden...

“Rainbow Dash, I’m in trouble,” Twilight said. “I can’t dance.”

“If you can’t dance, then why’d you agree to be in the contest?” Dash asked.

“Because if Rarity enters with Spike, they’re going to win!” she replied. “That means their names are going to be on the trophy... together. Touching...”

“So?”

“So, I’ve got to stop them! I can’t allow them to name-neck!”

A part of Rainbow Dash told herself that she was going to regret doing this, but she agreed to help Twilight with some basic dance techniques. Dash reached into her pocket, pulled out a little silver bell, and proceeded to tie it to a low branch on one of the trees.

“Who carries a bell around?” Twilight thought.

“Jump and ring the bell,” Dash told her.

“Why?”

“Just do it,”

Twilight did so.

“Again,” Dash said.

Twilight jumped again and Dash shook her head.

“Twilight, you have the energy of a bullet, but you lack precision and finesse,” she said. “You have little to no sense of rhythm. You are without balance, grace and charm. And you have the lightness of a depressed elephant.”

Dash picked up a watering can left behind by one of the gardeners and dumped out the contents, creating a big puddle beneath the branch.

“Now jump up, ring the bell, land, and do not splash the water,” she said.

“That’s impossible,” Twilight replied.

“I thought you wanted to learn how to dance,”

So, Twilight did as she was told. And she continued to practice until she could barely stand.

The next day started off well enough, with the pairs working on their routines for the contest while Applejack, Sunset and the Dazzlings watched.

“You’re really a lovely dancer, Twilight,” Discord complimented her.

“Thank you,” she replied indifferently. “Now, would you scrunch down a little, please?”

“Why don’t you scrunch up?” he asked.

Twilight growled in reply.

“Right, sorry,” He twirled Twilight, and when she came back around she sneezed into his chest. “Oh, gross!”

“Sorry,” she wheezed.

“I can’t afford to get sick before this competition!” he shouted. “I’m the one who has to carry this team.”

Across the room, Rainbow Dash and Zephyr Breeze were fighting each other at (literally) every turn while Soarin was having trouble trying to boost Fluttershy’s confidence.

“Dash, you’re leading again!” Zephyr grunted.

“I’m leading because you’re hesitating,” she replied.

“I’m hesitating because you keep criticizing me,” he countered.

“I’m criticizing you because you’re not doing it right!” she shouted.

“I’m not doing it right because you’re yelling at me!”

“You’re yelling!”

“Fluttershy, you need to hold your arms up,” Soarin said gently.

“I’m sorry, Soarin really I am,” she apologized for the twentieth time.

“Don’t worry,” he said. “One more time, ready, and... One...”

While this was happening, Spike was pacing the floor, waiting for Rarity to show up. When she finally did, the first thing she told him was, “All right, I’ve got half an hour.”

“Half an hour?” he asked. “You didn’t get the schedule? I said we need six to seven hours a day minimum for the rest of the week.”

“Yeah, now 29 minutes,” she said to him.

Instead of arguing further, Spike immediately placed his arms around Rarity and they went right into their routine: lunge, flick, flick, lunge, flick, flick, out, up, around, spin, and drop.

“How low can I go?” Rarity asked.

Spike pulled Rarity to her feet and said, “What the Tartarus was that?”

“Look, if we’re going to be on TV, I need to show all of my strengths,” she replied. “I may not be the best at precision, but I am the best at pizzazz.”

“That’s not what we’re doing here! Now, let’s do it again,”

But before they could start again, Vinyl started playing Samba music.

“Our turn,” Rainbow Dash said.

“We are not done!” Rarity snapped at her.

“Well, Zeph and I need to practice our Samba,” Dash replied.

“No, Spike and I need to practice, since we’re the only ones with a chance of winning!” Rarity shouted.

“I beg to differ,” Twilight butted in. “I think Discord and I stand a pretty good chance.”

“Would you all stop?” Spike shouted.

“You know what? This isn’t even about dancing anymore,” Twilight said. “It’s about control.”

“What?” Spike asked her.

“Look, you put up with a lot,” Twilight told him, “and the one time you’re put in a position where you actually know something, you just want to run the whole thing.”

“Or maybe it’s about someone who likes to call the shots at everything, including the exact color of stripes in their toothpaste!” Spike replied. “And now you’re involved in a situation where someone else knows more about it than you do! You’re a control freak!”

“HEY!!” a new voice joined in.

They all turned to face the ballroom doors. It was Starlight Glimmer. She was flanked by two familiar individuals—Garble and Suri Polomare—and she did not look happy.

“I did not slave over the entire twelfth floor all morning so that you could spend it bickering!” she shouted. “Please tell me you at least learned a few lifts.”

“Well, duh,” Zeph replied. “Come on -- let’s show her number seven,” he said to Dash.

The group watched Zephyr as he placed his hands on Rainbow Dash’s waist and launched her into the air. When she came back down, her foot landed right on his crotch, causing him to fall onto his back and drop her. Dash quickly got to her feet as Zephyr Breeze held his damaged area with both hands.

“Seriously, you have no idea how much this hurts,” he groaned.

“Oh, suck it up,” Dash told him. “You’re such a wimp.”

“You wanna see a grown man really cry?” Garble asked Starlight.

She gave him a confused look.

“Hey, Drake!” he called out. “You don’t get rich if you don’t take risks!”

Spike, who had his back to Garble, froze. He was hoping, praying that he was wrong. And that he wouldn’t have to see that face, or hear that phrase, again. Then he slowly straightened before turning around to face him.

“Well look what the wind blew in,” he said.

“What, that’s it? No tearful greeting?” Garble chuckled.

“Dragons’ Law: never show surprise, never lose your cool,” Spike replied.

“I can’t believe they actually hired you here,” Garble added.

“Spike, this is your competition from Rich Casino and Resort,” Starlight said. “Our former coworker, Suri Polomare and--”

“Garble Chan,” Spike growled.

Twilight’s mouth fell open for a second.

“You two know each other?” she asked.

“Oh, we go way back,” Garble stated.

“All the way to the first time I kicked your tail at Lava Surfing Sectionals,” Spike said, smiling for the first time since Garble entered the ballroom. “It’s nice to see that some things never change. Are you still dying your hair and shaving with a Brillo pad?”

“Two years we haven’t seen each other and we just flow into the old act,” Garble commented. “I taught this ungrateful punk everything he knows.”

“I doubt that,” said Rainbow Dash.

“Don’t waste your loyalty on him,” Garble warned her. “He’ll dump you after Hearts and Hooves Day.”

“What the Tartarus are you doing here?” Spike asked him.

“This kid used to be the best, second only to me,” Garble said, ignoring the question. “It’s his downfall.”

“I don’t see how being good at something can be your downfall,” Rainbow Dash replied.

“I grant you, it’s not an easy concept to grasp,” Garble said. “Now take our hero, here. I haven’t seen him for a while and I’ve never been in this place before, but I will bet my bottom dollar that he’s got some kind of success manual in his back pocket. You see, Spike’s a believer. Always has been, always will be. He doesn’t realize the doors are shut to people like us.”

“Well, maybe he wants to open those doors,” said Applejack.

“Then he has to steal the keys, sweetheart,” Garble replied.

“Something even you have been unable to do,” Spike countered.

“There are two types of people in this world: workers and hustlers,” Garble said. “The hustlers never work and the workers never hustle. And you, my old friend, are a worker. Faust knows, I tried to beat that instinct out of him, but it’s in his blood. Is he or isn’t he a great teacher?” he asked the room full of people.

“The best,” Fluttershy replied.

“See? They love you,”

Spike briefly averted his eyes and smiled tightly.

“So, you traded in your surfboard for a pair of dance shoes?” he asked his rival. “Ladies, get ready for Cirque de So Lame!”

“Oh, really?” Garble retorted. “Is this lame?”

Garble grabbed Suri around the waist and hoisted her over his head. Then he held her, one-handed, under her thigh, while she stretched out both of her arms and stuck one leg out behind her while she tucked her other leg underneath her.

“Wow -- the One-Arm Falcon,” Dash breathed.

It was a tandem surfers’ move, not a dance move, but it was still impressive.

“Whatever,” Spike scoffed. “I warm up with the One-Arm Falcon.”

“You what?!” Dash, Rarity, Twilight and Starlight asked.

“You do?” asked Sunset, Fluttershy, Pinkie and Applejack.

“Spike, that’s a Level Three lift. Rarity’s not ready for moves like that,” Dash said. “I’m not ready for that.”

“I’m gonna take you down like last year’s Hearth’s Warming Tree,” Garble told Spike after he let Suri down.

“We’ll see about that, Mr. Lucky-To-Get-An-Erection-On-His-Birthday-If-The-Wind-Is-Just-Right,” Spike stated.

“Are you looking to start something here, bro?” Garble asked, getting all up in Spike’s face.

“He’s not your bro!” Dash snapped. “I got your back, dude,” she told Spike.

“Who’s got yours, Rainbow Hair?” Garble asked.

“Who you calling ‘Rainbow Hair’, Chicken Legs?” Dash quickly countered.

Spike and Garble grinded their teeth together as they glared into each other’s eyes, both trying to get the other to back down. It wasn’t until Spike clenched his fists (cracking his knuckles as he did so), and Garble punched his fist into his open palm, that Twilight finally stepped in.

“Whoa! Guys come on!” she said as she moved between Spike and Garble.

“Just get out,” Spike growled at Garble.

“Fine,” Garble replied. “But remember, it takes two to tango. Feel free to send that trophy over early, if you want. Later!”

He and Suri turned and walked out of the ballroom, and Garble smacked Suri hard on the ass, earning an audible yelp from her.

Spike let out a heavy sigh before facing his students.

“Well, don’t just stand around!” he shouted. “Keep practicing!”

A minute hadn’t even gone by when everyone started coming apart.

“Ow! You stepped on me again!” Dash hissed at Zephyr.

“I stepped on you because your foot’s not supposed to be there!” Zeph gritted through his teeth, trying hard not to yell.

“That’s where you led me!”

“It’d be easier to lead a donkey!”

“Don’t talk to her that way!” Fluttershy exclaimed.

“Oh, and I suppose it’s my fault that she pushes me around like a bulldozer!” Zeph added.

Everyone stopped and gasped. Then Rainbow Dash marched out of the ballroom with Fluttershy right behind her.

“Wait, girls, he didn’t mean that!” Soarin said.

He shot a hateful glare at Zephyr before following them. Cheese Sandwich, Pinkie and Rarity followed suit, and Twilight followed them.

Pinkie was trying extra hard to leave Twilight behind when she asked, “Are you okay?”

“Twilight, as your first real friend, I feel I should tell you that was not cool what you did,” Pinkie stated.

“What do you--?” Twilight began.

“She means spending time with Garble,” Rarity cut her off. “When I suggested that you try to make Spike jealous, that is not what I meant!”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know Spike and Garble were rivals. I didn’t mean for them to almost come to blows. It won’t happen again,”

“That’s not the point, darling!” Rarity told her.

And she and Pinkie took off toward the elevator bank, passing Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash on their way.

“Way to go, Sparkle,” Dash said as she went after them.

Fluttershy was the only one left at Twilight’s side.

“I can’t spend the rest of the summer with everyone hating me!” she said. “I have to make this right!”

“What are you going to do?” Fluttershy asked.

“The only thing I can do,” Twilight replied. “Drop out of the contest.”

Back in the ballroom, Zephyr Breeze held his hands against his head as the Dazzlings were about to head to the Midnight Lounge. Never in all of his life had he felt more like a jerk. He was wishing that he hadn’t said what he said to Rainbow Dash, and if he the chance to take it back, he would.

“I have to find another partner,” he said.

“What you need to do is apologize,” Sunset replied.

“We would be happy to do it, but we’re ineligible,” Adagio said. “Plus I need both arms to dry my hair.”

“Coco can barely dance on her own,” Sonata added.

“And Sassy doesn’t dance at all,” Aria finished.

“For the love of Faust, are there literally no other female employees at this entire hotel who can dance?!” Zephyr shouted.

He eventually left, as did Sunset and the Dazzlings, leaving Spike alone with Vinyl Scratch.

Spike didn’t fall to his knees; it was more like a baseball catcher’s crouch he was in by the time everyone else had gone. Not only had Garble come back into his life, but Suri as well, and worse, they were both working for Impossibly Rich.

What Spike knew of the Rich Family was all fact; their wake was strewn with wreckage. Spike knew about every bombing, shotgun blast, dynamited car, and other loud incident that always seemed to claim the lives or good health of Impossibly Rich’s associates but never her. Impossibly Rich had been named in court as responsible for breaking up eight Applewood marriages. There were scores of other shattered romances, marriages, business partnerships, long-standing friendships, and other pleasant associations that were rumored to have been blown to bits by Impossibly Rich. She had a talent for bringing troubles with her wherever she went.

Now, looking back, it seemed to Spike that this served as both a sign for what he had been though (as well as what he had dragged his coworkers into) and a sign for things to come.

How else could he explain the things that had happened to him?

Things had not been done to him; he had done things.

“We have to make things happen,” is what he told Celestia.

And he was suffering the consequences of those things that he had done.

He orchestrated Suri getting fired, so she went to work for the competition; worse, it was Flim and Flam’s arch rival. And Spike knew from personal experience that almost all of Impossibly Rich’s employees were incredible dancers. It was simple cause and effect.

Vinyl walked around her turntables toward him. She wished she could tell Spike just how sorry she was that everyone had walked out like that. She wished she could offer some kind words. But all she could give him was a look and a kind-hearted smile as she took off her rose-tinted sunglasses to look at him.

She didn’t say anything, but Spike was starting to show the strain of it all. He was feeling it too, as he reached into his back pocket, brought out a small silver flask, uncapped the top, and took a generous swig from it.

“When the Tartarus did I start carrying this around?” Spike thought.

As much as Spike hated to admit it (to anyone, or himself), he had been an alcoholic. He was still an alcoholic, probably always would be. He had been an emotional alcoholic just as much as he had been a physical one. It had nothing to do with willpower, or the morality of drinking, or the weakness or strength of his character. There was a switch that was broken somewhere inside, or a breaker with a circuit that didn’t work.

Spike whirled around and almost screamed as he was broken from his thoughts by a voice.

“Spike!” it called to him.

It was Applejack.

“You’ll never guess what happened,” she said. “Cheese Sandwich threw up, so he and Pinkie can’t be in the competition... Are you okay?”

“I’ve decided I’m going for the Level 10 lift,” he said.

“Didn’t you say those were dangerous?” Applejack asked.

“I have to! It’s the only way to beat them!”

“Spike, I’m getting the feeling that this isn’t just about you wanting to beat Garble,” she told him. “What’s really going on?”

“Applejack, I don’t want to talk about it, okay?” he snapped.

“Wow. Some woman must have really done a number on you,” she said.

“Why does it always have to be a woman?” Spike replied.

“Well, it doesn’t. Your friend, Garble, couldn’t have done it to you,”

Spike glared at Applejack.

“Let me tell you something about me and Garble! We grew up together! I looked up to him like an older brother! As much as anyone, I loved him and trusted him. Until the day he made a move on the woman I was dating...”

Spike first met Garble nearly eighteen years ago, but when Spike was adopted, they rarely crossed paths. It was thirteen years later that they ran into each other, when they were working at the same college pub. Garble was too much the typical jock. A boxer and surfer at heart, he was a fierce athlete, but also lazy: content with C’s and the occasional B. He could be calm and cool, even in the classroom; but when the right set of competitive stimuli was applied, he could become a juggernaut. Take away all the scar tissue, the broken nose, the bulbous ears, the caveman bone structure, and one would still find a nasty face on Garble, tough and nasty. Spike was familiar with the type. His own athletic abilities would have opened other doors. Well, Spike caught Garble kissing the girl he (Spike) had been dating, and he confronted Garble.

“If anything I did you a favor,” Garble told him, “took her off your hands before she twisted your mind.”

Spike’s lip twitched as he gave Garble a final, furious glare. He punched Garble in the teeth and Garble fell to the floor, smashing bottles of liquor as he went down.

“Get up!” Spike shouted. “Get up!”

“Can’t take the truth, huh?”

“Bullshit! It was nothing but taking a cheap shot at me! Where I come from you don’t do that to your friends!”

Garble got up and held one of the broken bottles to Spike’s throat.

“Clearly, you forgot the rules. No brawling in here!” he growled. “That includes the help!”

“I don’t care. I don’t work here anymore,” Spike stated. “You wanna cut me, go ahead. Cut me! Come on!!”

Spike even leaned into the broken end of the bottle.

“Coward!” he spat at Garble.

Spike then scraped his own neck against the broken glass, drawing his own blood and earning a loud gasp from everyone in the bar. Then he headed for the exit while the stunned patrons watched.

“You’ll thank me for this one day,” Garble told Spike before he wiped his own blood from his mouth with the back of his hand.

“The Tartarus I will!” Spike yelled back at him.

Spike rubbed the scar on his neck as Vinyl and Applejack stood in silent disbelief.

“Garble always told me ‘you don’t get rich if you don’t take risks’,” he said mildly. “The last guy who fed him that line was a jeweler. He wanted Garble to short-circuit a burglar alarm so he could rob his own store. He got half a million dollars, and Garble got one to five. That snapped the last thread that was holding me up. After that, the only way I could keep myself sane was to keep my anger locked up. But today... right now, things are different. Suddenly, everything’s changed. The feelings I locked up are fighting to get back out. The anger he put in me, the loss, the rage, the frustration, the desire for revenge! This contest is my chance to make Garble suffer like I have... just for a moment.”

“That thing that happens with your eyes,” Applejack said. “When they go from white to red in a second...”

Spike nodded shamefully.

“Spike, I am so sorry,” she said.

Then Spike put the flask back in his pocket and asked Applejack, “Would you like to learn how to dance?”

“What?” she asked.

“I’m offering you my services, free of charge. What do you say?”

Now, Applejack was speechless. No one had ever asked her to dance before and Spike could see the reluctance in her eyes. She was afraid.

“May I have this dance?” he asked her.

She slowly nodded and he led her out onto the dance floor.

“You can do this,” he told her. “Left, right, left... turn and step. Look at me, not at your feet. Now put your hand on my shoulder.”

She did so, and he put his hand on the small of her back.

“Left, right, left, turn, eye contact in the turn, and step,” he continued. “One more time, left, right, left, turn, and step. You’re doing it.”

“I am?”

“You’re doing great!”

Applejack found herself smiling as Spike nodded to Vinyl and said, “I’ve got a Little Dirt on My Boots.”

Vinyl nodded back and dropped the needle as Spike and Applejack continued their dance. Applejack thought back to the days of her youth, working outdoors all day, as the sounds of the fiddle and the steel guitar washed over her. She had always wanted to go out and hang with her friends after a shower, but nobody ever asked her to dance.

They finished with one final left, right, left, turn, and instead of stepping, Spike dipped her. He brought Applejack back up, and when the song ended, her head came to rest on his chest. She could hear his heart beat. And as her head was resting on his chest, he slid his hand from her lower back and up to her shoulder.

“Perfect,” he whispered.

“I never thought you were this graceful,” she whispered. “You really are an amazing dancer.”

Spike smiled in reply.

“Any time you want a dance lesson, my door’s always open,” he said.

“I still can’t believe that you’re going to compete even after everything that’s happened this week,” she replied.

“I’m the only one left,” he told her. “I have to do this.”

“Well, see ya later, I guess,”

“You’re not even going to come to support me?” he asked.

“I’m sorry, Sugah, but a bunch of people trying to show each other up at a dance contest is not my idea of a good time,”

“That’s too bad,” he said. “It really won’t be the same without you.”

Applejack was about to walk out the doors when Spike called out to her. She turned back to face him and he said, “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t tell anybody what I just told you.”

“I promise,” she said.

“Thanks,” he smiled again. “And for the record, you were good.”

The night before the dance competition, Starlight found Zephyr and Soarin shooting hoops in the indoor basketball court.

“I can’t believe you guys!” Starlight shouted at them when she walked onto the court. “You just quit?”

“We didn’t quit. The ‘ladies’ let us go,” Zephyr replied. “We just don’t mesh: we’re sane and they’re nuts.”

“I was counting on you guys!”

“What are we supposed to do?” Zeph demanded. “Huh?!”

“I don’t know, act like adults and apologize? Be men?”

“Why do men always have to be the bigger person?” he asked.

“You say you’re sorry and they’ll jump at it. And you will have scored major points for taking the high road,” Starlight said. “And if you don’t, there’s only one other option...”

She whispered it to them.

“Two dudes?!” Soarin shouted.

“Yeah, I’m not doing that,” Zephyr stated.

“Come on, guys, I don’t see the big deal,” Starlight said.

“I am not dancing with another dude!” Zephyr Breeze said. “We’d have to touch each other!”

“And, besides, it’s not even legal,” Soarin went on. “Is it?”

“I have read the competition’s rule book from cover to cover, and there’s nothing in it that says that the pair has to be a guy and a girl -- just two dancers,”

“But we’re two dudes!” Zephyr shouted.

“And it’s just one little contest,” she replied.

“But he’s a dude!” Soarin repeated.

“Fine, don’t dance together! Let me down, let the bosses down, let us all down!” she told them.

“And even if we did, one of us would have to be the girl!” Soarin said.

“We’re two bros,” Zeph said. “I thought we just established that.”

“I mean, one of us would have to lead, and lift, the other -- the girl,” Soarin explained. “And I’m definitely the dude.”

“Why are you the dude?” Zeph asked him.

“You could never sustain my bulk on those girly shoulders of yours,”

“My hair is much more masculine,”

“Says who?”

Soarin and Zephyr’s argument went on and on and Starlight left them to duke it out. Meanwhile, up on the third floor, Spike knocked on Rarity’s door and she let him in.

“Yes?” she asked.

“I just wanted to say I may have let my high standards get in the way,” he said, “so I’m sorry and I’m willing to be your dance partner again.”

“Well, I appreciate you trying to apologize, and I may have gone a little far myself,” she admitted. “But when you left, I got a new dance partner.”

“It’s only been three days!”

“Yes, well, I called in a few favors and I got lucky. I got David Hasselhoof! Turns out, he’s in Las Pegasus and he can come over and dance with me at the competition tomorrow,”

“I see,” Spike said as he turned to leave. “Question: did he win that year he was on Dance, Equestria Dance? No, I don’t think he did.”

The night of the dance competition finally arrived. Spike, wearing a black tuxedo, moved through the crowd, trying to reach the dressing room just off the ballroom. Unfortunately, he didn’t have time to do his hair so it was a mess.

He saw the Dazzlings, in bright purple dresses with shiny sequins that reflected on the audience’s faces, on a platform that had been set up for them to sing from. Sunset Shimmer was with them. She wore a strapless, backless magenta evening dress slit up her right leg to the top of her thigh, with long, over the elbow purple silk gloves. And Vinyl Scratch, in a black skin tight bodysuit and white long coat stood behind her turntables. Spike also saw two trophies, a big gold one and a smaller silver one, resting on the judges’ table.

Then he spotted Impossibly Rich’s table, right next to Flim and Flam’s, on the edge of the dance floor. Five women in identical maroon uniforms stood near it. They looked like characters right out of a bad anime—a bad anime about girls at a prep school—a real charming bunch. Then he looked at the Rich Family themselves. They were just as he remembered them: people who needed everything on a grand scale to be comfortable; money, pleasure, notoriety and sex. Ever since Stinkin’ Rich starting selling Zap Apple Jam, he had left his mark on the business world; there were men and women, even large corporations, who had never been the same because they had become involved in a deal with the Richs.

Stinkin’ Rich’s grandson, Filthy Rich, was only the second most appealing-looking one of his whole family. The first thing Spike noticed about him was his skin. It was a deep tar-pit brown, like he had spent every day on the beach outside of Horseolulu. The blue suit he was wearing cost more than most men earned in two years; the red silk tie alone was worth no less than five thousand dollars. And his dark gray (almost black) hair was polished with some expensive goo that Spike could smell from the other side of the ballroom. Filthy’s wife, Spoiled Rich (née Spoiled Milk) was as unattractive as they came—with strong opal eyes, dark hair, pink skin, and the worst nose job Spike had ever seen—whereas their casino manager, Abacus Cinch, was (as kindly Spike could describe) a cougar.

Of the three Richs present, Impossibly Rich was the biggest in every respect. She was the tallest; she had the most magnificent body, and the biggest sexual appetite of the trio. Her son and daughter-in-law, Filthy and Spoiled, were not weak by comparison; but whenever Impossibly Rich was around, they disappeared into her shadow. With her long hair, a blue dress with a plunging neckline, a white fox stole, and a necklace with five 30 karat diamonds that dangled just above her big fake boobs, Impossibly Rich sure didn’t look like anybody’s grandmother.

“Grandma’s had some work done,” Spike thought as he looked her over.

A beautiful lady, Spike begrudgingly admitted, even Impossibly Rich’s worst enemy (and there was a great rivalry among the women of Applewood to prove their right to that title) had to admit that she was beautiful.

She stared at Spike like he was a small boy and she was the lady of the house whose window he had broken. And Spike glared back at her like the person he knew she was: the kind of woman who looked down on everyone else like they were something unpleasant she’d accidently stepped on in a dark alley.

In the dressing room, the Flimflam Resort’s former teams/competitors stood on opposite sides, as far from each other as possible. Soarin wore a blue blazer with silver buttons, whereas Zephyr Breeze had thrown together a polo shirt and khakis. Soarin’s right arm was in a sling and Zephyr was also wearing shades—their argument the night before had escalated into a fistfight—because Zeph had dislocated Soarin’s shoulder right after Soarin socked Zeph in the eyes.

Applejack wore a strapless emerald green dress with open-toed white heels and her blonde hair was done up away from her face. Discord wore a blue suit with a red tie (a cheap knockoff version of Filthy Rich’s suit), Rainbow Dash wore a light blue toga-like gown, Fluttershy wore a strapless yellow ball gown with a big skirt and petticoats, Starlight wore a simple, form-fitting purple dress, and Pinkie (in pink) was adding more feathers to Rarity’s ensemble.

“Ow!” Rarity cried. “You stabbed me in the back with your fingernails!”

“Well, now you know how Spike feels...” Pinkie remarked, “to be stabbed in the back... to be betrayed... by someone he trusted!”

“Look, I feel bad, okay? But I got David Hasselhoof!”

Coco Pommel ran in, shouting, “We don’t have David Hasselhoof!”

“What?!” Rarity screamed.

“Keep calm,” Coco said. “Mister Hasselhoof is stuck in traffic and is somewhat delayed. And by ‘somewhat’ I mean a flat tire. But he swears he’ll be here in time.”

“What if he’s not?” Rarity asked.

“He will be here!” Coco replied.

“But what if he’s not?!” Rarity repeated.

“Everything’s going to be okay,” Coco said. “If Hasselhoof doesn’t show, we’ve got Discord standing by. And please stop worrying. You’re molting!”

Twilight, in a purple dress and dark sunglasses, walked in a minute later.

“Sorry I’m late,” she said, all stuffed up.

“Twilight, what’s wrong with your voice?” Starlight asked.

“What do you mean?” she asked, trying to play dumb.

“You’re sick!” Discord stated while pointing a finger at her.

“No, I’m not,” she said with a cough. “Okay, you got me.”

Discord couldn’t believe his own rotten luck. Twilight was sick and now even he didn’t have a partner.

Spike walked in literally one second later.

“Nice outfit, Mrs. Peacock,” he said at Rarity.

“Spike, I’m so glad you’re here!” she said. “Look, I’m sorry. You’re a really great dancer. And I need your help--”

“I’m fine,” he cut her off. “You traded up. I would’ve done the same thing... if I was you.”

“Spike, wait!” Rarity cried. “I’m sorry for what I said. You were right. Twilight is a control freak. She was bothered by what you said, we all were, and we were bothered that you know so much more about this than we do, but you were just trying to help.”

Twilight sneezed so loud that Rarity (forgetting that Soarin’s arm was in a sling) jumped into Soarin’s arms and she hit the floor.

“Rarity!” Coco screamed. “Are you hurt?”

“No, I’m all right,” she said, standing up. “Never better... Oh! Oh, I could be better!” she cried.

“Sit down, sit down!” Dash told her. “Oh, that knee’s starting to swell up.”

“This is disaster!” Starlight shouted. “The Brothers are counting on us, and now our best dancer doesn’t have a partner!”

“Twilight’s sick, Soarin’s in a sling, Zephyr Breeze is blind, and Rarity may have broken bones!” Discord exclaimed. “What are we going to do now?”

“Oh, Spike’s going to dance tonight!” Rarity stated. “And he’s going to dance with Applejack.”

“Wait, what?” Applejack and Spike asked.

“We’re doomed,” Discord said.

“You know the steps, don’t you?” Rarity asked Spike.

“Know? I live them!” he answered.

“And you’ve been dancing with him on the side,” Rarity told Applejack. “Don’t deny it!”

“I’m not dancing!” Applejack stated.

“We have a chance to make history here,” Starlight told her. “Come on. Take one for the team... for me.”

“No,” AJ avowed.

“Come on! With your elbow grease and Spike’s know how, you make the perfect team!”

“No,” she repeated.

“Applejack, you have to do it,” Starlight said. “We need to win this contest. I’ll do whatever you want!”

“No!” she said again.

“Then do this for me,” Spike said.

“Please?” Starlight begged. “There is literally no one else. Please, please, pretty please? Please, please, please? Please?!”

“All right, all right, I’ll do it!” Applejack replied. “But only once, and I won’t enjoy it!”

“Thank you!” Starlight shrieked. “You are the best!”

“And,” Spike added, “if we win, and you get back into your father’s penthouse, you have to let Applejack and I come up and use his 102-inch TV anytime we want.”

“Deal,” she said.

“With popcorn,” Spike added. “And pizza and pop and a nice meat and cheese platter.”

“Anything else?” Starlight asked.

“Yes,” Applejack said. “Spike and I get to be together.”

“You got it,”

“Just with each other,” AJ elaborated, “which means ‘alone’, as in ‘nobody bothers us.’”

“Yes, yes, we all promise to not spy on you and Spike if you decide to make out on my father’s couch,” Starlight said.

“Not what I was going for, but okay,” Applejack replied.

“All right, fine,” Spike added.

“Yes! Now get out there and kick some Impossibly Rich butt!” Starlight declared. “I’m going to tell Sassy that there’s been a slight change.”

And she darted off.

Discord pulled Spike and Applejack aside.

“I don’t care what you two have to do,” he told them, “but you better come off that dance floor winners or don’t come back at all. Got it? Win this contest!!”

Applejack didn’t feel even close to okay. She was supposed to dance in front of over a hundred people, and Faust knew how many more watching on TV.

“No pressure,” she thought.

Spike held her hand and gave her a reassuring smile.

“We can do this,” he told her. “Just pretend you’re dancing like we did before -- no crowds, no competition, just you and me.”

“I don’t usually dance with a guy’s hand on my butt,” she shared with him, “but okay. Let’s decimate this dance floor.”

The lights in the ballroom dimmed as Spike and Applejack stood next to Garble and Suri while Sassy Saddles spoke into the microphone. Garble was wearing a tight red shirt with a plunging neckline, even tighter black pants, a black cape, and a mask that covered half his face; Suri wore a maroon dress, symbolizing her newfound loyalty to Impossibly Rich, and sensible blue heels.

“Welcome to the Annual Staff Ballroom Dancing Competition between Impossibly Rich’s and Flimflam Brothers’ Resort!” Sassy announced. “The contest consists of a single round with a total score out of thirty.”

“That is one hot blonde,” Flim said.

“I think that’s Applejack,” said Flam.

“That’s Applejack?” Flim echoed.

“Hope you brought your silver polish,” Spike said to Garble.

“Your head of security dancing with a neophyte... What kind of operation are you running?” Impossibly Rich asked the Brothers.

“One that’s going to stomp you into the ground, Rich,” Discord answered. “Stomp them into the ground!” he told Spike and Applejack.

“First up -- for the Impossibly Rich Casino and Resort: Suri Polomare and Garble Chan!” Sassy shouted.

Applejack squeezed Spike’s hand again as Garble and Suri made their way out on to the dance floor. They started nose to nose. Then they started executing perfect steps. About a minute into the dance he accidently tripped Suri forcing her to do the splits. Garble grabbed her hands when she held her arms over her head, and he pulled her to her feet. Then when he dipped her, she kicked him in the jaw.

The judges, three women wearing stern expressions (including Miss Harshwhinny, the head of the Flimflam Brothers’ Human Resources department, and judge number three), wrote notes as they viewed the performance. After three minutes had gone by, Suri kicked Garble square in the nuts, forcing him to his knees (for a brief moment), and they finished with her wrapping one of her legs around his back.

The judges displayed their scores: an eight, a seven, and a nine from Miss Harshwhinny. That was going to be tough to beat.

“And now, ladies and gentlemen -- dancing for the Flimflam Brothers’ Casino Resort: Spike Drake and Applejack Smith,” Sassy said.

Applejack could feel Spike’s body heat radiating through his tuxedo as he led her out on to the dance floor.

“Do you trust me?” he whispered to her.

“With my life,” she replied.

“Then just follow my lead,”

Applejack nestled closer to Spike, and he felt her soft breasts press through her dress, into his chest.

“This may have been a big mistake,” Soarin said.

“Oh, just tell me when it’s over!” Discord bawled as he buried his face into his hands.

The Dazzlings nodded to Sunset as she placed a hand on the microphone.

“G Minor,” she told Vinyl. “Give me a G Minor.”

Vinyl nodded as she chose a record from her collection and Sunset began to sing, “Holding Out For A Hero.”

When Spike spun Applejack around, the women in the audience glanced down and saw that Spike was pitching a more than noticeable tent, but he didn’t care. Applejack’s face ran hot as Spike moved his hands to her legs and hoisted her off the ground, balancing her so that her back was pressed against his chest. Then he gently set her back down again.

“Oh, my--!” Pinkie gasped from the crowd. “They’re amazing!”

“How is he lifting her?” Starlight thought. “Her legs alone must weigh at least--”

“Did she just touch his ass?!” Twilight asked.

“Wow! They are really good!” Dash stated.

“Yeah, if you wanna dance that way,” Zephyr commented (even though he couldn’t see).

“I would love to dance that way!” Fluttershy told them.

After about one minute, the Dazzlings started crooning in time with Sunset’s words. Meanwhile, out on the dance floor, Spike and Applejack were continuing their conversation.

“Spike, this is a side of you I’ve never seen before,” she whispered.

“There’s a lot about me that no one knows,” he whispered back. “And this may sound pathetic, but you’re my first real dance.”

“What? But all your dance lessons, all those times you taught--”

“Are just that,” he said. “I’ve never had anyone to dance with before... Not like this.”

“I’m your first?” she asked.

Spike flushed a bit as he led her into a spin before he grabbed a rose from a nearby vase and he held it between his teeth. As Spike and Applejack danced, she felt safe in his arms. Like he wanted her to know there was no reason to be afraid. They shared smiles as they continued to move together. Spike twirled the rose between his teeth before letting it fall to the floor as he dipped her. Applejack picked up the rose and held it between her teeth, and Spike lifted her to her feet again. The rose exchanged lips several times for the next minute before Spike finally threw it over the crowd and Fleur picked it out of the air, held it under her nose, and sniffed it.

Spike dipped Applejack one last time as Sunset’s song finished, and the ballroom went quiet. There were five seconds of uncomfortable silence. Then everyone applauded at their performance, everyone except Twilight Sparkle.

“That should have been my song!” she cursed under her breath. “The masses should be cheering for me!”

“Spike Drake and Applejack Smith!” Sassy Saddles cheered. “Now if the judges have regained their collective composure, let’s see what they have to say. That’s a nine! And a nine,” Miss Harshwhinny grabbed the second judge’s ten card and held it up with her own. “And a ten... No! A thousand and ten! That’s the highest score in the history of dance!”

Spike and Applejack embraced as the audience cheered, Discord hugged the Flimflam Brothers, and Miss Harswhinny handed Spike the gold trophy. A girl from the crowd ran up to Spike with a camera, he winked at her and she fainted.

“Spike, Applejack, I have never seen moves like that!” Rainbow Dash squealed. “That was so awesome!!”

“We did it!” Starlight exclaimed. “We won!”

“You really pulled it off!” Firelight told his daugther. “And you even took over a housekeeping job in addition to your waitress duties to get it done!”

“So, do you I think I’m ready to--” Starlight began.

“No,” he cut her off.

Starlight hung her head. So close.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t catch you, Rarity,” Soarin apologized. “As soon as you have the use of both legs again, I promise I’m gonna take you out for dinner.”

Applejack looked at Spike and asked, “You okay?”

“I’m getting better,” he smiled. And he was getting better. “Thank you.”

They shared another faint smile as Spike turned toward the ballroom doors and left, trying to outrun the crowd.

Spike returned to his suite and immediately locked the door behind him. He had just finished taking off his tuxedo when he heard a knock at the door. It was a soft knock, but it was a knock nonetheless. He walked to the door, looked through the peephole and saw Fleur in a pink bathrobe standing out in the hall. He unlocked and opened the door.

He meant to say something, but any and all words died on his lips as he saw the passion blazing in her eyes. She all but forced her way in and her hot kisses were covering his mouth, cheeks and forehead. She pulled back to shut the door. Then she grabbed the back of Spike’s head before kissing him again, forcing him to walk back towards his bedroom. Spike was hard in an instant and Fleur felt him brush against her hip.

“Ooh la la,” she murmured. She gingerly bit his ear before adding, “Voulez-vous coucher avec moi?”

Fleur didn’t give Spike a chance to respond as she pulled the top of her robe open just above the tie, so that her breasts were encircled by the fabric on both sides. She untied her robe and it dropped to the floor. Then she pulled the knotted string in her nightgown and it fell to her ankles. Spike almost passed out from the shock and candor of her ease of undress. She wore high-cut, virgin white panties with three little fleur de lis (one gold, two violet) patterned on the front, and when Spike tried to reach for them, Fleur grabbed his hand and brought it to her mouth. She drew one of his fingers into her mouth, then a second, and then she plunged her mouth down and sucked hard at them up to his knuckles.

“Mon Cher...” she breathed as she put a hand on Spike’s shoulder.

Then she forced him to sit on the edge of his bed. She knelt between his legs, forcing his knees apart. She tugged his black briefs down and his cock stood straight up.

“Oh!” she exclaimed. “Vous n’êtes pas une petite Crêpes Suzette. Vous êtes un roi!”

Fleur drooled as she gently wrapped one hand around the base, then her other hand around the shaft, on top of the first. The head was still visible, and she bit her lip. She kissed the tip, and then took it into her mouth.

“Shhhh,” she said, briefly looking up, and then returning with gusto to the task at hand.

She removed her top hand and took him so deeply that her lips kissed the top of the hand at the base of Spike’s throbbing erection. Then she started pumping, taking more and more into her mouth, deeper and more lustfully, until she gasped, finally coming up for air. Then, seeing the expression on Spike’s face, she cooed, realizing he was close.

She licked his entire cock before gently climbing atop him. She pushed down on his chest, forcing him onto his back. Unfortunately, this caused her to slip off his lap and onto the carpet.

“You know what they say,” she said huskily. “Once you are thrown by the horse, you must get right back on and ride!”

She slipped off her panties and straddled Spike again, and his back arched as he balled the sheets into great fistfuls with his hands.

“Giddy-up, my little pony of love!” she screamed.

When Fleur had finally worked herself into a rhythm, Spike snaked his hands around her body and he slipped a finger up her derrière. And when he did so, she squeezed hard around his cock and she completely lost control. He shot grand hot bursts into her and she took every last drop as he rotated his finger around inside her and held her steady with his other hand. When she finished convulsing, she fell forward onto Spike’s chest with his cock still deep inside her.

“C’était fantastique,” she breathed.

Meanwhile, a trio of college girls stood before the Flimflam Brothers, in their office, ready to unveil their latest piece of technology.

“You mean it?” Flim asked.

“It’s ready after all this time?” Flam added.

The three coeds nodded as they stepped aside and showed the Brothers their creation.

“The ship is finally leaving port and it’s your time to shine... Sweetie Bot!”

Next time, the Flimflam Brothers reopen a casino originally designed to fly into the sky. Meanwhile, back on the ground, Spike, Chrysalis and Feather Bangs square off against Filthy Rich’s daughter in a game of Blind Man’s Bluff.