The next day, Fluttershy was getting yet another dance lesson from Spike. This time, he was dressed in a basic T-shirt and black pants. She wore a green dress with a skirt so short that it barely covered her thighs and cut so low that if she bent the right way it would fall free.

“Okay, just like we practiced,” he told her.

“I did it!” she gasped. “I’m doing it!”

“She’s come such a long way in a short time,” Spike thought. “She’s still so shy, though. That reminds me, I’ve got to take Coco out for coffee sometime.”

“Nice!” Pinkie cheered. “Whoa, you two look rough,” she said to Twilight and Rainbow Dash as they rollerbladed into the ballroom.

“Discord had us hall-sitting until 2:00 A.M. last night,” Dash yawned. “What’d we miss?”

“Fluttershy doing some sweet quickstepping,” Pinkie replied.

“Did you see me?” Fluttershy asked as she brushed a lock of hair back from her eye. “Spike taught me to quickstep! Isn’t he the best?”

“I’ve seen better,” Twilight replied.

“Way to drag your butts out of bed,” Spike said to them. “Tough day at the tables yesterday?” he asked.

“Actually, yes,” Twilight answered. “Teaching tourists and amateurs how to play cards all day is harder than it looks.”

“Right,” Spike commented. “Card dealer is right up there with crab fisherman on the tough-job scale.”

“Hey, I’m an essential service!” Twilight snapped. “On call 24/7 and I never get a day off!”

“I could do your job in my sleep, wake up, do my job, and still kick your butt at the tables,” Spike countered.

“You talk about our butts a lot,” Dash observed. “I think you like them.”

“She does have a good butt,” Pinkie admitted.

“I could not care less about your butt,” Spike replied. “Oh, and before I forget...” He dipped a hand into one of his pants pockets, pulled out a wad of bills, and handed it to Rainbow Dash. “You won our little bet.”

“Thank you,” Dash said, almost shyly. “Wait... That’s a thousand bucks! The bet was only--!”

“Just take it,” Spike cut her off.

Rainbow Dash thanked him again as she rollerbladed back to the lobby. She jumped, did several spins in midair, and crashed into the Brothers’ statue.

“I’m hurt. I’m hurt!” she exclaimed as Zephyr Breeze and Bulk Biceps helped her to her feet.

“What? What hurts?” Twilight asked.

“My ankle!” Dash cried. “I think I broke my ankle! Aah! It really hurts!”

“Let’s see,”

Twilight removed Dash’s rollerblades and squeezed her right ankle.

“OWWWWWWWWWWWW!” she screamed.

“That’s definitely broken,” Twilight said.

---

Almost two hours later, Rarity was pacing the floor of the lobby while Coco worked the front desk.

“Hey, Rarity,” Spike said. “Twilight and Dash back from the E.R. yet?”

“No, and I can’t hide it from Discord much longer,” she replied.

“Hey, Concierge!” came the unmistakable voice of their boss. “Where is Sparkle?”

Twilight and Rainbow Dash came through the entrance doors a few seconds later, the latter on crutches and her right foot in a cast.

“Someone please tell me this is a joke,” Discord said.

“The doctor told me to take it easy for at least a week,” Dash told him, “which means I get a week off! I have a note.”

“Great!” Discord exclaimed after he’d skimmed it. “Who am I gonna find to clean rooms on short notice?”

“I’ll do it!” Twilight volunteered.

“Don’t you already have a job here?” Discord asked.

“Twilight can do it,” Spike told him. “She’s great at cleaning up other people’s messes.”

“No, because then I would have to find a replacement dealer,”

“I could do that,” Spike replied.

“No!” Discord stated.

“I’m bad at cleaning toilets, and I’m the Dragon Lands’ Blackjack Champion. You need me working the tables. At least give me a shot,”

Discord thought it over for a moment and then said, “Okay, you’re up. You’re the new maid,” he said to Twilight. “And you’re on sick leave until your ankle heals,” he told Dash. “Don’t make me regret this!” he told Spike.

---

When Fluttershy entered the staff locker room later that morning, she paused when she saw Spike buttoning up an emerald green vest with a bold design – the four card suits: red hearts and diamonds with black spades and clubs – and knotting an even darker green tie around his neck.

“Did you get fired?” she asked.

“Nope, I’m the new star dealer,” Spike replied.

“That’s great!” she squealed. “Isn’t it?”

“I can’t deal cards and teach people how to dance!” he exclaimed.

“Come on, you taught me how to quickstep this morning,”

“That’s different. You’re no pressure. What if I get so exhausted from both jobs that I drop a girl during a dip?”

“This was the job you came here for. You’re a natural,” Fluttershy told him. “Or maybe Twilight’s just a much better dealer than you are...”

“In her dreams,” Spike scoffed. “There is nothing that she can do that I can’t! Except give birth and fake an orgasm, I’ll give her that.”

“Exactly,” Fluttershy said. “Hence...”

“Did she just use reverse psychology on me?” Spike thought. “Damn, she’s good!”

“Okay, okay. I can teach ballroom dancing and deal cards, too,” he smiled. “Thanks, Fluttershy. From now on, your lessons are always on the house.”

“Thank you!” she cried as she hugged him tightly, pressing her breasts into his chest as she did so.

Meanwhile, up on the staff floor, Soarin was helping Rainbow Dash get settled for her recuperation.

“Are you going to be okay?” he asked her.

“I got everything I could need: food, pillows, the entire Daring Do collection... I am in paradise!”

She kicked back on the couch and sighed.

“It’s good to be me,” she added to herself after Soarin was gone.

---

Spike’s first Blackjack game that afternoon was with two familiar faces.

“Bonjour, Fleur. Hello, Fancy Pants,” he greeted them. “How are you?”

“Oh, same as always: I move, I breathe. I seem to feel the thrill of life along the keel,” Fancy Pants replied.

“You sound like a ferryboat,” Spike commented.

“Men like you and me are not ferryboats, Spike, we are sloops. Very manly sloops,” Fancy said. “Wherever we go, people stare at us in dumb admiration.”

“Yeah, and what happens when they speak?” Spike asked as Fancy Pants laid 20 hundred dollar bills on the felt. “Changing two thousand!” he announced before counting out 20 black chips for him. “Don’t worry. I bring good luck. I always bring good luck.”

Spike winked at Fleur as he dealt her two cards: the Ace of Hearts and the King of Diamonds.

“A natural Blackjack,” he told her. “Congratulations, Mademoiselle, that’s very lucky.”

Fleur grinned at her good fortune. “I’m impressed. For a new dealer, you’re doing surprisingly well.”

“You’re too kind,” Spike replied.

He dealt Fancy Pants the Queen of Hearts and the Seven of Spades. He hit and got the Three of Diamonds for a twenty.

“Now, that’s what I’m talking about!” Fancy Pants let out.

“Congrats,” Spike said before signaling Fluttershy as she passed by his table. “A round of drinks for our guests,” he said to her.

She nodded as each took a vodka martini off her tray. After tipping Fluttershy a fifty, Fleur turned to face Spike again.

“So, where are you from?” Spike asked her as he dealt the cards. Fancy got a king, Fleur a queen. “I mean originally. Califoalnia?”

Fleur pretended not to smile, but Spike could tell by the goosebumps on her arms that she was impressed. She had grown up in Southern Califoalnia and, as Spike had guessed, made her living off of her looks as an Applewood starlet.

“What gave me away?” she asked. “I’ve got to get out of town once in a while, especially on the weekends. I get enough of the industry during the week.”

The next set of cards came out. Fancy drew a nine for a solid nineteen. Fleur drew another queen, a strong twenty. Spike had a six showing.

“You work in Applewood?” Spike inquired.

“Oui,” she answered. “Count this up for me. I want to split.”

She grabbed a handful of chips and pushed them across the felt. She set a second pile next to the first and split the two queens. Then Spike turned his head over one shoulder and called, rather loudly, “Splitting tens!”

Sassy Saddles looked over from across the pit. She looked at Fleur, nodded to Spike, and then he proceeded with the deal. His heart thudded as he dealt. Splitting tens was an unconventional move—and usually, an extremely stupid one. Unless the count was high and the dealer’s card was low. Then it was extremely profitable. Fleur drew another face card on her first hand and a seven on her second. Spike flipped over a ten, and then drew a queen, to bust.

Fleur and Fancy both won.

“Being an actress must be tough,” Spike commented.

“I’m not an actress, Chérie, I am a star,” Fleur said as she gave him a wink.

Fleur hit on a sixteen against Spike’s two. Luckily, she got a two for an eighteen to win the hand. Another time she doubled on an eight, managing to draw an ace. Toward the end of the shoe, she began raising her bets, taking advantage of her hot streak of good hands. As for Fancy Pants, he tossed chips into the betting circle with seeming abandon, keeping his bets around two hundred, but every now and then he jumped up to five hundred, and once laid down a thousand after drawing three hands of face cards.

By the end of it, both Fleur and Fancy Pants had made over fourteen thousand dollars—in under an hour. Most of it was stacked in front of Fleur, but at least five hundred dollars of pure profit was in front of Fancy. And it hadn’t been simple luck. Spike had tracked his shuffle so that they would win.

Overall, it had been a very lucrative afternoon.

“Well, that went well,” Fancy said, sipping his martini, amazed.

“See? I always bring good luck,” Spike said.

Fluttershy watched in awe as Fleur wrote something on a cocktail napkin and stuck it in Spike’s vest pocket. When Fleur left the casino, Spike felt like all the extra oxygen that was pumped in had been sucked out instead.

---

Upstairs, Rainbow Dash called her brother after she played through the whole campaign of the latest Order and Overpower game on her laptop.

“Yo, bro, what, are you too busy working to take a call? Sucker! Call me back, okay?” She hung up. “Okay, I am officially bored.”

After reading through half a dozen Daring Do books, and beating all of the video games, Dash decided to head out and see how her friends were doing. Her first stop was the front desk.

“So, what’s happening?” she asked Rarity. “What’s the 411 for tonight?”

“I’m not sure,” Rarity replied. “Here you go, Madame -- your room key and your spa card. Enjoy your stay.”

“So, this is what you do all day, huh?” Dash inquired. “Looks fun... If you want, I could hang out and greet guests or something.”

“I thought you were enjoying your time off,” Rarity said.

“Yeah, but I felt bad depriving the world of a Rainbow,” Dash replied. “I got great people skills.”

“I’m not sure having one of our maids walking around in a cast is good for P.R.,” Rarity answered. “Maybe... someone else could use your help.”

“Yeah, that’s... cool. I-I’ll go see what’s not cookin’ in the sushi bar,”

She hobbled on her crutches to X Sushi, where Starlight was helping Sunset lay out the cutlery for dinner.

“So, how’s Sunset treating you?” Dash asked as she sat down at the table Starlight was setting.

“If the fish tank was bigger, I would have drowned myself in it by now,” Starlight replied.

“Yeah, I wouldn’t want to work here, either,” Dash said as she tried to prop her casted leg up onto the table, spilling a pitcher of water as she did so.

“Dash, I just finished setting this one!” Starlight exclaimed.

“Sorry. I-I’ll clean it up,”

“No! Not my origami napkins!” Sunset shouted. “Those birds took me half an hour to fold!”

“I can fold these for you. See?”

“She said a ‘bird,’ not a ‘turd,’” Starlight said.

“Dash, do you mind if we hang out after our shifts?” Sunset asked. “I want to finish resetting so I can get a dance lesson in with Spike.”

“Yeah, no problem,” Dash replied. “I should probably check on him, anyway. He’s probably dying by now without Twilight working the tables.”

She gave them one last smile and hobbled away.

“I kind of feel sorry for Dash,” Sunset said.

“I don’t,” Starlight replied. “I’d kill for a day off!”

Then she started wondering how much a broken ankle really hurt.

Rainbow Dash entered the ballroom just in time to see Spike towel off as Discord handed him two guest evaluation sheets.

“Not bad,” Discord told him as he left.

“Hey, substitute dealer,” Dash said. “Drop any girls while dancing yet?”

“Not so far,” Spike replied as he dried his neck with the towel. “And dealing’s actually been really fun.”

“So, what’d you get?” Dash asked. “Six? Seven?”

“Try two tens!” he replied, showing her the sheets. “Oh yeah, oh yeah, who’s the boss? Come on!”

“I don’t think Twilight’s ever gotten a ten since you arrived,” Dash said.

“That’s because she sucks and I rule,” Spike said as he twirled away.

---

The next day, Spike was double booked for dance lessons with everyone from elderly couples to young girls that barely came up to his chest (some of which didn’t want to let him go). Fluttershy, trying to be considerate, canceled her lessons after she commented on how exhausted Spike looked afterward. He also dealt Blackjack for four hours in the casino. He slept well that night, but his muscles ached like he’d been dancing for eight solid hours.

Meanwhile, Twilight had to not only mop, vacuum, make beds and scrub toilets, she also had to clean food stains off the walls and check every battery in every smoke detector in every suite... via the tried and true “tongue test.” Unfortunately, her hair got stuck in the vacuum cleaner, all the sheet-tucking wreaked havoc on her cuticles, her tongue went numb from licking the batteries, and she had to deal with any and all floaters that came with the toilets.

Then one morning, Rainbow Dash awoke to find Spike standing over her. He, Soarin, and the girls had come by to check on her.

“Hey, gang,” Dash yawned, “ready for another day of tourists and oldies?”

“Dash, it’s been three days and you’ve barely left this suite,” Spike said.

“That’s because this is where all the fun is,” she replied.

“And Twilight, don’t you miss your job at all?” Rarity asked.

“It’s teaching kids how to bluff,” Twilight scoffed. “I mean, it’s not like a busload of movie stars just checked in looking for both card and dance lessons.”

Just then, Zephyr Breeze burst into the room, out of breath.

“Spike!” he panted. “A busload of female acrobats, swimsuit and lingerie models just checked in, and they need Blackjack and dance lessons!”

“Female acrobats?” Applejack asked.

“Swimsuit models?” asked Sunset.

“Lingerie models?” Fluttershy repeated.

“Female acrobats, swimsuit and lingerie models?” Rainbow Dash echoed.

“Who need Blackjack lessons?” Twilight asked.

“Who need dance lessons?” asked Pinkie.

“Who need Blackjack and dance lessons?” Rarity inquired.

“Female acrobats, swimsuit and lingerie models who need both Blackjack and dance lessons?!” Spike reiterated.

“That’s what I’m telling you!!” Zephyr shouted.

Spike suddenly felt like he was on Cloud Nine. His entire life had been leading up to the day when he was supposed to teach swimsuit and lingerie models how to dance.

“You’re probably right,” he said to Twilight and Rainbow Dash. “Sitting here, on your butt and/or cleaning rooms is way more fun.”

“You need help with all those women?” Zephyr asked.

“I think I can handle it,” Spike said calmly as he headed for the elevator.

“I have to see this,” Rarity said.

“Me too,” Sunset added.

“I’m down with that,” Soarin joined in.

“As much as I would love to,” said Starlight, “I have to get to work.”

And they followed Spike, leaving Rainbow Dash and Twilight alone in the room.

“I never thought I’d say this,” Dash told Twilight, “but Spike has the best job in the world.”

“He has my job, too!” Twilight said angrily. “And I’m getting it back!”

---

Discord found all of his key employees in the lobby, ogling the swimsuit and lingerie models and the female acrobats. They were all fully-clothed, save for the lead acrobat, Trapeze Star, who wore a purple sequined leotard.

“Wow! For someone on duty, you’re sure doing nothing!” Discord said.

“Just, uh, checking on our dance instructor-slash-dealer,” Sunset replied.

“And you guys are...?” Discord asked.

“Helping,” Soarin and Zephyr Breeze answered.

“Uh-huh,” Discord said.

Spike swaggered up to the throng of beautiful women.

“Okay ladies, are ready to dance?” he asked them.

“Yeah, we’re ready, coach,” Trapeze Star replied.

“‘Coach’ -- I like the sound of that,” Spike said. “Okay, let’s start by strutting right past those guys over there.”

Discord found himself staring along with Soarin and Zephyr Breeze as Spike, the models and the acrobats paraded past them. They followed them into the ballroom and watched them warm-up before dancing freestyle to “Footloose.”

“Well, that settles it,” Discord said. “Spike is the new permanent top dealer.”

“He is?” Fluttershy gasped. “That is so awesome!”

“And Twilight is the newest maid,” Discord added.

“Where’s Rainbow Dash going?” Fluttershy asked.

“Oh, that’s easy,” he replied as he left. “She’s fired.”

“That’s so unfair!” Fluttershy exclaimed. “Can’t you find her another job,” she asked Rarity, “at the front desk, maybe?”

“Front desk requires -- how can I put this delicately? A bigger brain,” Rarity replied. “And all the other positions are filled. There’s only one place for her, and if she can’t stand on her own two feet, she can’t clean rooms.”

“But Twilight can still deal cards,” Fluttershy said. “Can you get Discord to make the rounds in the casino a bit early so he can see it?”

“I guess so, but--”

“Perfect! You’re the best, Rarity!”

Fluttershy hugged Rarity and marched up to Spike.

“This should be interesting,” Rarity told herself.

“Great job, ladies,” Spike told the models and acrobats. “Fluttershy, thanks again for the pep talk the other day. You were right -- this is my dream job.”

“That’s great, but you have to quit,” Fluttershy said. “Discord is this close to giving you Twilight’s job and giving her Rainbow Dash’s job permanently!”

“Let me get this straight,” Spike replied. “I get to be the dance instructor and the new star dealer, Twilight’s stuck as a maid, and Rainbow Dash goes home? What’s the downside?”

“Spike, please!” Fluttershy whimpered.

“Oh, all right, all right!” he exclaimed. And then he sighed. “I can’t believe I’m saying this... I’ll help them get their jobs back. But I am only doing it for Rainbow Dash, not Twilight, just Dash!”

“Yay!” Fluttershy cried.

---

Later that afternoon, Rarity convinced Discord to make his rounds in the casino earlier than usual. She had told him something urgent had come up that required his immediate attention.

“All right, what is so important that it couldn’t wait?” he asked.

Rarity pointed to the Blackjack area, to Twilight Sparkle’s table. Spike and the girls (Rainbow Dash included, her cast off) joined them after Spike completed his dance session with the models. They watched as Twilight swept up the losses of three players.

“Not bad for an egghead,” Spike complimented.

“She’s a legend!” Pinkie stated.

“I don’t need the rest of my sick leave, sir,” Rainbow Dash told Discord. “I can return to work immediately.”

“And I can return to dealing cards,” added Twilight.

“Oh, we don’t need you anymore,” Discord said to Dash. “You’re fired.”

“What?” Dash asked. “But I can walk again!”

“We have a new maid and a new star dealer,” Discord replied.

“No, you don’t,” Spike said. “I quit.”

“What do you mean you quit?” Discord asked.

“I’m sorry, but Twilight was right, teaching tourists how to play cards is pretty bleak,” Spike lied. “I’ll just stick to dance instructing, Twilight can work the tables again, and Dash can go back to housekeeping.”

“Whoa! Spike taking another one for the team,” the girls thought.

“Suit yourself,” Discord said, “oh, wait -- the housekeeping position’s already been filled. Oh, well. Safe trip home,” he told Twilight.

“What? Now you’re firing me?” she shouted.

“Technically, it’s downsizing,” Discord replied smugly. “And just when I thought the Brothers should have given you the housekeeping job. I mean it. You did a really good job cleaning.”

“That’s so unfair!” Fluttershy cried. “Rainbow Dash, she just saved your job! Say something!”

“You can’t fire me!” Twilight shouted. “Please, I’m begging you! Is there anything I can do?”

“Listen, I hire you back, that puts us over our staff quota, which hurts our overall budget, and you know who gets penalized for it? Me!”

“If you’re gonna fire anyone, fire me, not them!” Spike told him.

“I can’t fire you!” Discord replied. “You’re the only semi-decent employee I’ve got!”

“Either everyone stays or I go,” Spike stated.

“Even Twilight?” Discord asked.

“Even Twilight,” Spike repeated.

“Come on, man! At least attempt to be reasonable!”

“Nope, all or nothing,” Spike said, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

“Fine, you can all have your old jobs back!” Discord said.

“Yay!” Fluttershy cheered.

---

Rainbow Dash knocked on the door to Spike’s suite later that night. He opened it, wearing a dark blue bathrobe.

“I wanted to thank you for saving my job,” she said. “That was pretty cool of you. So, got a full day ahead of you tomorrow?”

“Nah, I’m skipping it,” he replied. “I was on my feet all day. So, you’re back in housekeeping?”

“It’s not that bad,” She gave him a smile. “I get free movies, tons of grindage from the minibars...”

“How’s the ankle?”

“A little better, it’s probably never gonna be the same again but I can still pull a three-sixty,”

“If you call what you do a three-sixty,” he said.

Rainbow Dash opened her mouth to speak, but she was cut off by a voice calling Spike’s name from his bedroom door.

“Yeah, Star?” he answered it.

Dash looked over and saw Trapeze Star, wearing one of Spike’s shirts, leaning against the doorframe.

“Are you coming back to bed?” she asked him.

“I’ll be right there, babe,” he murmured softly.

Trapeze Star smiled as she disappeared back into the bedroom and Spike turned to face Dash again before closing the door on her with a smile.

“No! Way!” she breathed.

Next Chapter: Nightmares Estimated time remaining: 18 Hours, 7 Minutes