A week later, school was out for the summer and the town was being decorated for a special event. Eric and Storm were busy getting several decorations placed and set up around the area while Starlight and Twilight were busy working together trying to set up a banner on top of town hall. Spike was overseeing everything as he looked at a long list which was dragging as he walked.

“Is the banner even?” Spike asked anxiously and then turned so Twinkleshine, who was in town for a visit and offered to help, “Are the flowers in place?” Twinkleshine used her magic to lift the flowers and place them into a wagon belonging to Berry Punch. Berry Punch smiled as she pulled the cart away.

“By which I mean ‘completely out of view’,” Spike said, “I’m pretty sure dragons don’t like flowers?”

“Maybe we should ask her?” Eric replied.

Spike walked over to a red crystal object that Storm setting up, “And what about the Ceremonial Dragon Fire Flame of Friendship? Is it still flaming?” Spike asked.

FWOOSH!

And as they looked inside, the flame erupted from the center of the pit.

Spike was simply knocked backwards with his front scales and body singed as he landed on his back. He quickly patted the soot off his body as he stood up.

Twilight then landed before Spike.

“Spike, everything looks great!” said Twilight, “You’re getting yourself worked up for no reason.”

“Listen to Mommy,” Eric remarked quietly to Spike. Storm snickered and quickly shushed him.

“I have lots of reasons,” Spike replied, “In fact, I wrote them down.” Spike then showed Twilight her own checklist. Starlight then walked up.

“You’ve been hanging around Twilight for too long,” said Starlight Glimmer. Twilight just smiled and chuckled nervously.

“The checklist is a habit we’ve all gotten from her,” Storm replied, “I use one everyday too!”

“I only use checklists when necessary,” Eric added, “What are you concerned about?”

“Reason number one: I invited Dragon Lord Ember to Ponyville today,” said Spike, “Reason two: Ember is a Dragon Lord is a dragon. Reason three: she’s coming to learn more about friendship.”

“Okay, the first reason is a big deal,” Eric pointed out, “The second reason is a bit redundant, but the point is made since ponies are still a little hesitant with meeting a dragon other then you face to face. The third reason is going to be an interesting challenge in of itself.” Spike just glared.

“According to Ember’s letters, the dragons are trying to be friends, but competing is in their nature, and it’s leading to more and more fights,” Twilight said.

“Can’t be anything worse than when Rainbow Dash and Applejack get competitive,” Eric pointed out.

“That is a good point,” Storm said.

“Which brings me to reason number four,” Spike replied, holding up his list, “The Dragon Lord wants my advice, and as the new official Equestrian friendship ambassador to the dragons, I can’t let her down.”

“When did he get that title?” Eric asked.

“I have no idea,” Storm replied bluntly, emphasizing he didn’t give that title to Spike.

“This isn’t a joke!” Spike snapped, “I just saying I’m taking this visit very seriously?!”

“Easy Spike, we know. We’ve got your back.” Storm said with Eric smiling and nodding in agreement.

“I know you feel a lot of pressure,” said Twilight, “But you’ve got this, Spike!” Spike smiled and then leaned forward worriedly.

“I...I just want things to be perfect,” said Spike.

“I know you do, Spike. But you can’t control how the day is going to go. All you can do is expect...the...unexpected?” Eric replied when he and Storm turned around as a familiar shadow appeared behind them. The figure then walked up and tapped Spike on the shoulder. Spike gasped when he turned around and saw who is was. Even Starlight and Twilight were in shock when they noticed a familiar changeling.

“Thorax!” Spike exclaimed, “You’re in Ponyville!”

“Of course I am, silly!” Thorax said, “You invited me. And I’m not one to back out of an invitation.”

“Say, what?!” Storm remarked.

“Hey, Storm!” said Thorax. Storm quickly recovered.

“Hey Thorax, good to see ya,” Storm greeted.

“Hey, Twilight! Hey, Starlight! Hi, Eric!” Thorax said to the two mares and boy as he waved at them.

“Hey!” Twilight said nervously.

“Hello!” Starlight replied in the same tone and at the same time as Twilight. They also waved hello at the same time.

“Hi, Thorax!” Eric greeted.

“Oooh! I can’t believe you did all this for me!” said Thorax as the view zoomed out to show the decorated surroundings, “Great banner! Love the stage!” He then noticed the fire pit, “What’s this flame thingy? Oh, it’s pretty!” Thorax smiled excitedly and bounced on his hooves before rushing off. Twilight walked up to Spike.

“You invited Thorax over to Ponyville on the same day as Ember?!” Twilight whispered.

“Apparently,” said Spike.

“Judging by the look on your face,” Storm added with Eric beside him, “You didn’t plan to do that.”

“Apparently,” Spike repeated rather sheepishly.

“That doesn’t seem like a good idea,” said Starlight, “How are you gonna entertain them both?”

“I have no idea,” Spike replied, whimpering as he began to panic.

“Like they always say,” Storm pointed out, “Whenever somepony wants perfection, anything that can go wrong, does go wrong.”

While nopony said anything, they all agreed with him.

After a few moments of silence, Storm decided to speak up, “How exactly did this happen? I recall giving you a calendar to help you avoid something like this.”

“I accidentally startled him when he was looking at it,” Eric said, “But he burned it to a crisp. I offered to get him a replacement, but he said he had everything he had written own in his head. Apparently not!”

“I completely forgot!” Spike interjected, “Thorax wrote and said he needed to talk, and I told him to come over. I didn’t realize it was the same day I invited Ember! What am I going to do?!” Spike’s teeth began to chatter as he started to panic once again. Twilight and Starlight looked at Spike worriedly.

“Come on, pull yourself together,” Eric said, trying to keep calm, “This could be a great opportunity to open the door of friendship between the changelings and the dragons. Alliances work best when everyone is on the same page.”

“Right you are, Eric,” Storm added.

“WHAT?!” Spike interjected in shock, “Are you crazy?!”

“Well, maybe they’ll like each other,” Starlight added with a sheepish smile on her face.

“Probably not,” said Spike, “Ember is tough and self-assured and intimidating. And Thorax...”

“Spike, I’m so glad you invited me!” said Thorax as he appeared behind him and hugged him happily, “You are one of my closest, nicest, most caring, and most understanding friends ever!” Spike just smiled nervously when Thorax noticed something in the distance, “Ooh! Is that ice in the shape of a dragon?” Thorax then rushed over to look at it, acting like a fan-boy as he did so.

“Yeah, I see you point,” said Starlight bluntly, “They might not get each other.”

“Or worse, they’ll hate each other!” said Spike worriedly, “And if the leader of the changelings and the Dragon Lord get into a fight...” Spike gulped, “I could be responsible for starting a war that could ruin Equestria as we know it!” Spike then gasped as an animation appeared showing Thorax and the changelings were colored in shades of red while Ember and the dragons were in shades of blue. The changelings and dragons then clashed to the point the ground cracked and the entire land exploded.

Back in reality, Spike had gone rigid with a terrified look on his face.

“I’m sure that won’t happen. Now pull it together,” Twilight said walking up to the dragon. Spike managed to do so and noticed that Thorax was busy admiring the ice sculpture of Ember.

“I honestly think having them meet each other would be a good idea, Spike,” Storm said.

“I agree,” Eric replied.

“Not happening!” Spike interjected. Eric tried to protest, but Storm held him back and shook his head.

“Fine, we’ll do it your way,” Eric conceded with an eye roll, “We’ll help you keep them apart.”

“For now at least,” Storm said discreetly to his son.

“Thank you,” Spike replied before turning to Thorax, “So, heh, Thorax, heh, everything good with you?”

“Well, honestly, no,” Thorax replied, “Not really. I have indigestion. Not sure if it’s the new diet or stress. Or maybe it’s both.” Spike said. He did his best to listen but then noticed in the sky behind Thorax and a familiar blue dragon was approaching.

“Well, I’d think it’d be more from stress than your diet,” Eric suggested as Spike was starting to panic again.

“NO!” Spike yelped in shock, making Storm, Twilight, and Starlight look up in the sky.

“Yeah, it really could be both,” Thorax continued, “And it might be affecting my sleeping, too. I’m a real tosser and turner.”

Eric had seen Ember approaching and was currently trying to keep Thorax from seeing the blue dragon approaching behind him. Spike looked back at the two ponies.

“Uh-oh!” Twilight whimpered.

“Honey, we can deal with Thorax,” said Storm, “Eric and Starlight can handle Ember for now.”

“Sounds like you really need to unwind,” said Spike once he saw the royal couple approaching, “Uh, how about a, uh...a trip to the castle? Heh...you can’t miss that view!” Spike then got behind Thorax and began to push him forward as Storm and Twilight walked up.

“Yes, the castle! Storm and I will give you a personal tour!” said Twilight.

As the two ponies and changeling walked off, Thorax then looked back when he saw Spike wasn’t with them.

“Uh, aren’t you coming?” Thorax asked.

“Yeah, I’m just gonna...grab some ice cream for us and catch up. Heh-heh,” Spike replied nervously as the three of them walked off. It was at that moment, Ember made a firm landing on ground and stood confidently before Spike.

“Whoa!” said Eric, clearly impressed. Spike then looked around as six ponies in marching uniforms appeared with trumpets. Spike quickly gave them a thumbs up. The six ponies blew their trumpets...right into Ember’s face. Ember raised her claws to attack when Spike called for her attention. But Ember had managed to scare one of the ponies so bad that they ran off. Spike and Eric approached her.

“Dragon Lord Ember, as the official Equestrian friendship ambassador for the Dragon Lands and Ponyville,” Spike began, “I, Spike of Ponyville…”

“And I, Prince Eric Sparkle, the future Prince of Friendship,” Eric continued.

“Welcome you to...uh, Ponyville.” Spike finished, then added quietly to himself, “I gotta work on my official speech.”

“No kidding,” Eric remarked, getting a glare from Spike.

“Okay, thanks,” said Ember as Spike gave her a hug. Ember just chuckled uncomfortably and patted his head.

“Right, the hug thing,” Ember said. Eric rushed up.

“Good to meet you, Ember,” Eric greeted sticking his hand out.

“What are you doing?” Ember asked.

“It’s called a handshake or hoof shake in the case of ponies. It’s another way to greet someone,” Eric replied.

“Good to meet you too, Prince Eric,” Ember said, shaking his hand.

Ember then looked around the town and said, “This place has a lot of colors. In the Dragon Lands, everything’s just rocks or the color of ash.”

“What about molten lava?” Eric added.

“That too,” said Ember and then gave a big sneeze, sending a large fireball at the banner above town hall. The nearby ponies gasped in shock.

“That’s probably why,” said Ember. The surrounding ponies started running and screaming for their lives.

“Calm down, everypony,” Eric called out, “All she did was sneeze!” But pony would listen. Ember just looked most annoyed at all the panicking ponies as Spike and Eric smiled apologetically. The former also shrugged his shoulders.

“Hey, Twilight!” said Ember as she waved to...Starlight?! The lilac unicorn gave her a funny look and looked around.

“Actually, I’m Starlight,” the lilac unicorn replied, “Starlight Glimmer. Nice to meet you.” Starlight waved hello as Ember awkwardly returned the gesture.

“Oh, sorry,” said Ember, “I’m really gonna have to get used to these pony names. Lots of “-lights” and shiny things. So, where is Twilight and Storm?”

“They are at their castle,” Spike replied without thinking and then realized his mistake, “D’oh!” Spike covered his mouth.

“We should go visit them then,” Ember said, “Part of friendship is saying “hi” to your friends, right?”

“We, well, yeah, but...” Spike stammered nervously, but could only make funny sounds and his face turned deep red.

“You’re making weird noises,” Ember pointed out, “Do you have a stomachache?”

“I think I feel one coming on.” Spike replied, smiling timidly.

“Well, you know what us dragons say,” said Ember, “Push past the pain!”

“Good advice,” Eric said.

“Thanks,” Ember replied, “Now let’s go.” The blue dragon quickly walked off.

“Or we could stay here,” Spike suggested quickly and nervously.

“Or I could go without you,” Ember replied with a smirk and kept walking away.

“Follow me,” Eric said as he led the blue dragon to where the castle was located. Spike just leaned forward with face filled with dread. Starlight chuckled.

“Ah, I like her,” said Starlight with a smug smile on her face.

“Ohhh...” Spike whimpered as he rushed after Ember and Eric. Starlight just continued to smirk and then followed closely behind at a casual pace. It didn’t take them too long to reach the castle. Eric was about to open the door when Spike rushed ahead of him and opened it instead.

“Hey!” Eric retorted but Spike ignored his protests as he opened the door and looking inside of the main foyer. He found the area empty.

“Good,” said Spike, “They’re not here.”

“What was that?” Ember asked since she had heard Spike’s mumbling.

“Uh, I...I said, “It’s all clean in here”!” said Spike, as Eric rolled his eyes, Even Ember gave Spike a funny look. Spike just sweated as he tried to find something else to say.

“Uh, you must be hungry from your travels,” Spike continued, “Please, I’d love to present you with an official friendship welcome banquet.” Ember then walked off as Spike nervously followed behind Ember. Eric just followed behind with a heavy sigh. Starlight was the only pony who kept calm as she closed the front door and followed the others to the dining room.

Once in the dining room, Spike, Eric, and Starlight were soon cringing as they watched Ember eat. One would think it might have to do with Ember’s table manners, but sadly they weren’t that lucky. What was so cringe worthy was the fact that Ember was eating the actual dish and not the food inside it. Unlike traditional china dishes, these dishes were made of the same material as the castle itself.

“So this is something friends do?” Ember as asked as she crunched loudly on a bowl, “I could get used to this.” She then took another bite out of the bowl and continued munching loudly. Eric’s eyes shifted quickly between Spike and Starlight.

“Should I tell her or do you want to say something?” Eric asked slowly.

“Actually, that’s not food,” said Starlight, but then Spike switched places with Eric, at his expense and nudged Starlight’s side.

“Dragons love gems!” Spike told Starlight quickly.

“Fine, but you’re telling Twilight and Storm what happened to their wall,” said Starlight.

“And all their dishes,” Eric added, “I can tell you right now that Daddy isn’t going to be happy when he sees that Ember ate the dining room.” Nearby, Ember was now taking bites out of the walls of the room and the columns.

“Just keep her here,” said Spike to Eric and Starlight and then looked over in Ember’s direction, “Okay, Yeah!” He quickly laughed, “Enjoy all the, uh...crystal...things.” Starlight looked annoyed while Eric was most indignant as Spike rushed off, but not without Ember noticing.

“Where are you going?” Ember asked, “I thought this was an official friendship banquet.” Spike quickly skidded to a stop.

“Just gotta use the little dragons’ room!” Spike replied, then quickly revved his feet and ran off.

Back in the library, Twilight was just holding a book with her magic as she sat in a comfy single chair that was actually big enough for two. Thorax was just watching and listening politely while Storm just stood nearby with a rather annoyed looking face.

“So this is my chair for fictional reads,” said Twilight and then shuffled about a bit trying to get comfortable on one side of the chair. Storm rolled his eyes and decided to sit on the other side of the chair since there was room for him.

“It also acts as our cuddle chair,” Storm added. “Since there is room for two.” Storm then nuzzled her cheek affectionately. Twilight smiled, but then noticed Thorax was smirking, making her feel rather embarrassed.

“Anyway,” said Twilight as she used her magic to shove Storm out of the chair.

“WAH! OOMPH!” Storm yelped from being shoved off the chair and landing on the floor. Twilight then hopped out of the chair, ignoring Storm’s glares, and sat on another chair made out of the castle crystal.

“This is my studying chair because the hard back keeps me awake,” said Twilight as she slammed her back against the chair, cringing uncomfortably and smiling to try and hide her discomfort. Thorax just smiled politely. Storm just shook his head and rolled his eyes.

Spike and Eric then entered the library room. Thorax blinked when he saw them.

“Oh, Spike! And Eric!” said Thorax, bouncing excitedly on his hooves as he rushed up to his two friends, “I’m so glad you’re here! Both of you!”

“Glad to be here,” Eric replied. Thorax than leaned over to the two of them.

“This castle visit is getting weird,” said Thorax discreetly to the two of them, “Twilight really likes chairs.” Spike looked to see Twilight was using her magic to float some chairs about and smiling sheepishly. Storm just sat nearby with his fore-hooves crossed and looking very, very annoyed.

“Oh, what happened to the ice cream?” Thorax asked.

“Uh, they ran out,” said Spike, “Heh. Hey, I’m really sorry, but I gotta borrow Twilight and Storm quickly.” Spike then rushed quickly grabbed Twilight and Storm.

“Aah!” Twilight yelped, making her drop the floating chairs.

“Yipe!” Storm yelped as well.

“Be right back!” said Spike as he pushed both of them out of the room.

“But we didn’t get to talk yet!” Thorax called out, but Spike was already gone and groaned.

It wasn’t long before Spike shoved both Twilight and Storm into the throne room. Eric reluctantly followed them.

“Ember’s here!” said Spike.

“We know. We saw you coming and had to distract Thorax by showing him chairs. Why did you bring Ember to the castle of all places?” Twilight asked.

“I don’t know,” said Spike as he turned around and started to panic, “Ember was asking for you, Thorax wants to talk to me, and your son keeps trying to get them to cross paths!”

“Because I think keeping them apart is ridiculous!” Eric protested, “The world isn’t going to explode if they meet each other. I think it would be a great friendship opportunity!”

“And I think you’re insane!” Spike retorted. Eric scoffed.

“Listen to him,” Eric remarked skeptically and annoyingly. Spike ignored him and zipped up to Twilight and Storm.

“We need to switch places!” said Spike, “They might be getting suspicious!”

“Well why don’t we just introduce them to each other?” Eric suggested.

“Not happening!” Spike snapped, making Eric groan and face-palm himself.

“Just take it easy, sport,” Storm said as he walked up to the boy and hugged him gently, “You know based on experience that sometimes the best you can do in these kind of situations is just be supportive and hope they see common sense before the worst can happen.” Eric raised an eyebrow at his dad.

“The worst always happens when ponies ignore you, and then you have to bail them out of it,” Eric replied. Storm chuckled.

“Well, sometimes the best lessons in life are the hard ones, and sometimes ponies with high anxiety have a very, very difficult time listening to reason.” Storm said.

“And to think Spike gives Mommy such a hard time for over-stressing about the worst,” Eric said.

“I can hear the both of you,” said Twilight annoyingly. Storm and Eric just gave Twilight sheepish smiles.

“Sorry, Mommy,” Eric replied, “But when you get stressed, you do ignore Daddy when he tries to help you.” Twilight just sighed.

“I’m getting better with that,” Twilight snorted, “Anyway, all we have to do is make both Thorax and Ember feel special and keep them apart for a few more hours. We can do this.”

Spike noticed that his top scales were glowing from front to back.

“Dah?! What’s happening?!” Spike exclaimed in shock and whimpered nervously.

“I never seen a dragon do that before,” Eric said.

“But I have a good guess why Spike’s scales are doing that,” Storm as he pointed a fore-hoof toward Eric’s bandana.

“Huh?” Eric exclaimed and looked back. He gasped.

“My CMC bandana is glowing!” Eric said when he looked at his bandana and saw it glowing.

“I think it’s the map,” said Twilight, “It’s calling…both of you. The group then looked at the map.

There above Ponyville was an image of Spike’s head and Eric’s bandana cutie mark.

“Apparently, you two also have to solve a friendship problem!” said Twilight.

“Well that’s gonna complicate things,” Eric remarked. Spike just looked more dramatic than ever.

“The map is calling me and Eric?!” Spike remarked.

“Oh, amazing!” said Twilight, “My baby boy and you? The map is really reaching out!” Eric smiled, but Twilight noticed that Spike was giving her a very bitter look.

“Not a good time?” said Twilight sheepishly, “I get it.”

Just then, Starlight entered the room.

“Spike, are you here?” Starlight called out, “Ember’s eaten all of Twilight and Storm’s decorations, and—”

“Ember did WHAT?!” Storm interjected and gave Spike a glare. Spike just gave a squeaky sheepish smile. Starlight soon realized her mistake.

“—Oh! Hey, Twilight! Hey, Storm!” said Starlight in a casual tone with a chuckle and then gasped when she saw the map, Spike, and Eric, “Glowing map…” She gulped, “…glowing spikes…glowing bandana…That’s not good.”

“I know!” Spike snapped, jumping into the air, sweating as his scales kept glowing.

“At least your friendship problem is in Ponyville? Heh,” Starlight pointed out.

“If that is true…” said Eric as he pondered aloud.

“Ember and Thorax are NOT the friendship problem,” Spike protested. Eric groaned.

“Alright then,” Eric said in a calm tone, “If you believe somepony else needs our help and not Ember and Thorax, then let’s go find out where they are and take care of it. I’m sure Mommy, Daddy, and Starlight can handle things…right?”

“Okey-dokey,” Storm said with a light hoof pump.

“Okay, okay, you’re right, Eric. To pull this off, we’re gonna need all three of your help. You three need to keep Ember and Thorax separate while I get ice cream.” Spike said slowly.

“Ice cream?!” Eric remarked with a raised eyebrow.

“You mean ‘find the friendship problem’,” Twilight pointed out with a skeptical look on her face. Storm and Starlight were also glaring at him.

“Yeeeees!” said Spike timidly, “Go easy on me. I’m under a lot of pressure.” Spike then rushed off.

It didn’t take long before Spike and Eric were back in town.

“Friendship problem?” Spike called out as ponies were just walking about the area, “Anypony gotta friendship problem here?” He then rushed over two random ponies, “Any problems to solve?” The two ponies were too disturbed to answer. Eric just rolled his eyes and followed behind Spike with a long face.

“Friendship problems?” Spike asked as he popped out of bush before a pony that was digging up a hole. The pony was so startled that they jumped right into the nearby hole. Eric just walked up to the bush and said nothing. Another mare was about to get some apples when Spike popped out of the apple pile.

“Friendship problems!” Spike shouted, scaring the pony away. Spike then opened a window and found two ponies at a table.

“Anypony got friendship problems here?” Spike asked, but after a few seconds heard no reply, “No? Okay.” Spike then walked off until he nearly bumped into Eric, who as giving him a very blunt and annoyed look.

“It’s NOT Ember and Thorax!” Spike protested.

“Fine,” Eric said plainly, “But if I may interject…”

“Like I can stop you,” Spike remarked sarcastically.

“Mommy taught me that you can’t just find a friendship problem. It often takes just being at the right place at the right time or the problem will come to you.” Eric said.

“That is the most…logical thing I’ve heard you say today,” Spike replied, rather impressed, “But…we’re short on time. How can we make the problem come to us faster?”

“I don’t think that…” Eric tried to explain when some loud voices interrupted them. They noticed that Lyra and Bonbon were having a bit of a disagreement.

“Well, I think vanilla strawberry cream is overused!” Lyra grunted.

“Hmph,” Bonbon huffed indignantly.

“Yes! Fighting!” Spike shouted with a fist pump, getting Lyra and Bonbon’s attention as well as glares from both ponies. Spike quickly recomposed himself.

“Uh, I mean, what seems to be the problem?” Spike asked.

“What’s seems to be the trouble?” Eric asked, “My mommy taught me a lot on how to solve disagreements.”

Lyra and Bonbon just exchanged looks with each other. They were tempted to ask them not to get involved, but conceded to letting the little dragon and boy help them out.

Back at the castle, Ember was still eating the dining room walls.

“Mmm. Mmm,” said Ember, “I’m stuffed.” She then burped loudly to make her point. It was at that moment Twilight and Storm entered the room.

“Ember, there you are!” said Twilight.

“We’ve been looking all over for you,” Storm added. Twilight then rushed over to give Ember a hug.

“Okay, right,” said Ember uncomfortably, “More pony hugs.” Storm chuckled.

“Same as ever I see,” Storm said as he extended his fore-hoof for a hoof-bump. Ember chuckled as she returned the hoof-bump.

“I met your son and I must say that he’s pretty cool,” said Ember, “Between you and me, Spike might be everything I’m looking for in a mate.” Twilight just smiled sheepishly and looked away.

“How’s your trip to Ponyville so far?” Twilight asked.

“Well, I’m certainly learning a lot about friendship,” Ember replied, “I had no idea it was polite to decorate your walls in your friends’ favorite foods!” Storm and Twilight looked around to see all the chewed up walls and missing dishes.

“Oh, my,” Twilight said with a nervous laugh.

“Ah…ah…ah…ah…ah…” Storm stuttered, deeply shocked.

“Keep it together, dear,” Twilight murmured, “We can fix it later.” Twilight just smiled sheepishly to Ember as Storm shook his head, burbling as he composed himself.

“Right,” said Storm.

“Where’d Spike and Starlight go?” Ember asked, “I feel like I’m being avoided.” Ember snorted and began to pout. Storm winced.

“Nooooo,” said Twilight, “They’re just making sure everything is perfect for your welcome party later.”

“We had a welcome party?” Storm asked since Spike said he only had a grand entrance for Ember. Twilight replied by nudging him hard in his knee, making Storm wince painfully as he glared at his wife and rubbed it.

“In the meantime, how about we show you around town?” Twilight suggested.

“Sounds good,” said Ember, “I can’t exactly learn about friendship if I don’t make new friends.” Ember then left the room as Twilight and Storm smiled and then sighed together once the blue dragon was a safe distance away.

“Maybe we should just introduce Ember to Thorax before we have to deal with any more damage,” Storm suggested.

Meanwhile, Thorax was trying to get comfy in one of the cushy chairs and then sighed sadly. It was then the doors opened and closed to reveal Starlight.

“Oh!” Thorax jumped since Starlight had closed the door a little too firmly.

“Uh, hey, Thorax,” said Starlight, “Um, Twilight, Storm, Eric, and Spike had some boring official paperwork to deal with, so looks like you and I get to hang out. What would you like to do?”

“But I wanted to talk with Spike, and Eric too,” said Thorax, “He said he’d be right back and I figured Eric would be back also.”

“Oh, you will, with one or the other or even both,” said Starlight, “But first, how about we grab a bite to eat?” Thorax then rubbed his belly.

“Huh. Well, you know, now that you’ve said it,” said Thorax, “I am a little hungry. Is there a dining room in the castle?” Starlight cringed.

“NO!” Starlight snapped, then Thorax looked at her curiously, “I mean, yeah, but that’s castle food. If you want the good stuff, we gotta go to town.” Thorax just smiled and walked past Starlight as he headed out of the room.

“Phew!” said Starlight as she wiped her brow and headed after Thorax.

Back in town, Spike and Eric were chatting with Lyra and Bonbon. His lecture seemed to have settled the quarrel between the two ponies.

“…and that’s why you should never let cupcake flavors get in the way of your friendship,” Spike concluded with Eric behind him. Lyra and Bonbon, however, were rather impressed with what they had to say.

“Huh, I guess I never thought of it that way,” said Lyra, “Thanks, Spike!”

“Thank you as well, Eric,” Bonbon added.

The two ponies walked off as Spike looked up at his scales, but nothing happened.

“Oh, come on! Glow!” Spike shouted as he squatted down.

“Something tells me Lyra and Bonbon’s argument wasn’t the problem we were meant to solve, ‘cause my bandana isn’t glowing and it was too easy,” Eric said.

“Spike! Eric!” Thorax called out from a table he and Starlight were sitting at since they had just finished lunch, “There you two are! Uh, done with your boring paperwork I see.” Thorax then sipped his tea. Spike and Eric had some blank looks until they noticed Starlight smiling at them.

“Uh-huh. Uh-huh,” Starlight murmured, laughing nervously and hinting at them to play along.

“Yep,” said Spike with a laugh as he and Eric walked up to them, “We’re done with whatever Starlight says we were doing.

“Thorax wanted to get out of the castle,” Starlight explained, “I thought coming to town was a really, reallygood idea.”

“Well, maybe now we can talk,” Thorax said.

“Uh, sssssure,” said Spike as he looked behind himself and sat down.

“I’ll leave you guys to it,” said Starlight as she excused herself and went to find Twilight and Storm.

“First of all, I wanted to thank you for having me over,” said Thorax to Spike specifically, “I’m in a bit of a leadership pickle, and I could use some advice.”

“Well, I definitely want to help you as quickly as possible,” Spike replied uneasily.

“Here’s my problem,” said Thorax, “There’s this renegade group of changelings who still feed off of love and are loyal to Glacio.”

“I thought you said you dealt with those changelings already,” Eric asked.

“I thought I could, but it’s not as easy as I thought it would be,” said Thorax, “Even though I said, “Hey let’s not do that anymore,” they say, “Hey, this is how we’ve been doing things for hundreds of years…” As Thorax kept speaking, the scene crossfaded to emphasize that Thorax was rambling on and on. Eric was the only one actually listening, giving nods here and there and sharing any input on Thorax’s situation. While Spike was listening, he seemed to be getting more uneasy, agitated, and downright impatient as the conversation dragged on.

“but it’s like they don’t want to, even though I’m the leader and I have to…” Thorax continued as his words seemed to fade out of Spike’s mind.

In another part of town Ember, Twilight, and Storm were just walking around. While Ember enjoyed the sites, Twilight and Storm were also secretly keeping an eye out for Starlight, Spike, Eric, and especially Thorax. Other ponies were gathering around Ember, chattering with interest to each other at the sight of the blue dragon.

“Looks like you’re getting rather popular around here Ember,” Storm told the blue dragon.

“Hello, I am Ember, daughter of Torch, winner of the Gauntlet of Fire, and lord of all dragons!” the blue dragon told the crowd and then breathed a huge flame from her mouth. Unfortunately, this frightened the crowd of ponies and sent them screaming and running away.

“Usually when I do that, the dragons are eager to meet me,” Ember told the couple.

“That’s not how ponies make friends,” Twilight replied.

“You don’t need to show your strength to prove yourself to ponies (usually),” Storm said, muttering the last word under his breath, “The trick is just being friendly and approachable. Keep in mind, most ponies are still intimidated by dragons because all they ever wanted to do was attack them and steal their loot. Showing off your fire-power can give ponies the wrong impression.”

“Ah, I get it,” said Ember with a smirk.

“Good,” Storm replied as Twilight smiled back. Ember then walked ahead and found Ditzy about to eat her favorite treat, a muffin. Ember quickly snatched the muffin out of Ditzy’s hooves.

“This is a weird friendship thing you ponies do, right?” Ember asked as she smeared the muffin all over a nearby wall. Ditzy was stunned and disturbed as Ember just smirked and wiggled her eyebrows at her. Ditzy just nervously back away. Ember looked very confused.

“Okay…why would you think doing that was a good idea?” said Storm, “You can’t exactly do that with gems!”

“It made sense in my head,” Ember replied honestly.

“Uh, you guys are in town, too?” Starlight Glimmer remarked.

“What are you talking about?” Ember replied, “You’ve been with me this whole time.” Starlight raised an eyebrow at the blue dragon.

“No, I’m Starlight,” the lilac unicorn replied. Ember looked back to see Twilight giving her skeptical look. Storm was also giving Ember a similar look.

“Can you really not tell them apart?” Storm asked with interest. Ember looked at Twilight and Starlight.

“Riiiight,” Ember said slowly, “I’m sorry, but you can’t blame me. You both look and act so much alike.”

“What?!” Starlight and Twilight exclaimed at the same time, both of them giving Ember the stink eye. Storm snickered loudly. Now Starlight and Twilight were glaring at him.

“Uh, I can see the similarities in personalities, but they do not look the same,” Storm said.

As the argument continued between Ember and the three ponies, back at the café, Thorax was still talking about his situation. Eric was the only one taking what he had to say seriously. Spike was getting too antsy to listen.

“…and they said to me they just keep saying the same thing,” Thorax continued.

“Talk about a bunch of stubborn mules,” Eric remarked, “I’m sure you can be a great leader. You just gotta believe in yourself.”

“Maybe,” said Thorax, not exactly feeling convinced, “You know, I think my leadership problem started in childhood. I must’ve been three when…” Thorax’s talking seemed to fade out as Spike looked more anxious than ever, the fact he could see the shadow of the sun moving across his tea cup meant Thorax was just talking on and on. Like before, Eric was the only one really listening.

“…three’s a different story, a-and you’ve definitely gotta hear it,” said Thorax, “But the story about my brother was when I was two…or was I one?”

“Take your time,” Eric said gently, “We’re not rushing you.” Spike’s jaw literally hit the floor as a silent but strained squeak left his mouth. He wanted Thorax to wrap things up as soon as possible! It was then Spike noticed two ponies about to take a seat in the same chair before glaring angrily at each other.

“This is my seat!” shouted the stallion named Crusoe Palm, “I saw it first!”

“Well, I got here first!” said the mare named Rainbow Stars.

“Thorax, uh, excuse me for a second,” said Spike as he got off his seat, took it with him, and walked over to the angry ponies. Crusoe Palm and Rainbow Stars were growling at each other until Spike pushed them apart while standing on his seat.

“Ponies, please!” said Spike, “If I may, I think I can help solve this friendship problem.” He then hopped off the seat as the two ponies gave each other the stink eyes. In the distance Thorax and Eric watched with interest, but the latter rolled his eyes.

“Here we go again,” Eric muttered. Spike then brought over two seats and put them side by side of each other.

“You two should sit together,” Spike suggested, “You both like the same place, you both ordered muffins, you’re both ponies. I think if you made a little effort, you’d find—Whoa!” Spike was cut off and knocked out of the way. Crusoe Palm and Rainbow Stars sat together with their back pressed against each other and smiled. Spike smiled for a job well done.

“Okay, that had to have done it,” said Spike as he looked at his scales, “Come on, spikes. Glow!” Spike strained and grunted to make his scales glow, but nothing happened. He then sighed in defeat as Eric walked up and shook his head at him.

“Hey, that was really great advice,” said Thorax, “So what do you think I should do?”

“Yeah, Spike, what do you think Thorax should do to solve his leadership issues?” Eric asked in a sarcastic tone. Spike gave him a glare as he struggled to find an answer.

“Uh, actually, I, uh…” Spike stuttered, but before he could find his words, he saw Twilight, Starlight and Storm with Ember. He could see that Storm and Ember were having a rather heated conversation, “…need a minute…alone…to, uh, really come up with great advice!”

“Seriously?” Eric remarked. Spike gave the boy the stink eye.

“We’ll be right back,” said Spike.

“What do you mean we?” Eric remarked.

“GRRR!” Spike growled in rage, looking fit to explode as he got into his face.

“Alright, calm down,” said Eric, pushing Spike back as she turned to Thorax, “We’ll be back as soon as we can.” Then the dragon and boy rushed off before Thorax could reply.

“Great. No problem. Leave me again. It’s fine,” said Thorax with a long sigh and face-planted the table.

Back with Storm, Starlight, Twilight, and Ember, the stallion and dragon were still bickering.

“I’m just saying, they’re both purple ponies with purple hair,” Ember explained to Storm. Twilight and Starlight glared.

“You both have cutie marks with sparkly things,” Ember continued as she pointed to both their flanks. Starlight chuckled humorlessly.

“Mine’s more of a glimmer. Heh,” Starlight remarked.

“How is that different?” Ember retorted.

“You’re generalizing my wife and her former student,” Storm remarked as he walked up to his wife, “My wife’s coat is a natural shade of purple with darker colored mane with even trimmed bangs and a lovely streak of magenta in the middle, and she’s pregnant.” He then walked up to Starlight, “Starlight is more of a lighter purple, her mane is lighter than my wife’s fur with a light blue streak in the middle and her bangs curl cutely around her horn. And their cutie marks are different. Starlight’s cutie mark is a type of sparkly object, but Twilight’s is a star,” Ember just snorted as Spike and Eric arrived.

“Oh, good, Spike,” said Ember, “Can you please tell these three I’m right? Twilight and Starlight both look very similar.” Twilight, Starlight, and Storm were most indignant, especially Storm since Ember had completely disregarded everything he had just told her.

“Uh…We’ll y’know, one thing friends do is let something go when it’s upsetting somepony else,” Spike said sheepishly.

“But I’m right,” Ember said indignantly with her arms crossed, “Besides, who are you to be telling me about friendship?” Ember snorted angrily as she got in Spike’s face, “I’ve barely seen you all day!”

“Uh, well, I’ve seen you,” Spike stuttered.

“ARE YOU CALLING ME A LIAR?!” Ember yelled, her voice knocking Spike down and a few feet away. Spike cowered back fearfully. Then there was trouble. Thorax was actually not too far away and had seen everything.

“Hey! NO one yells at my friend!” Thorax said angrily before transforming into a large black bear. He gave a loud bear growl as he beat his chest, then charged, and landed between Spike and Ember.

“Uh-oh,” Eric said fearfully.

“Spike, get away from the bear!” Ember shouted.

“This can’t be good,” Storm said worriedly as Twilight and Starlight cringed. Twilight was the first to recover.

“Actually, the bear is a changeling,” Twilight explained, “And he’s quite gentle.”

“Not anymore!” Thorax shouted and gave a loud roar.

“Thorax please calm down!” Eric pleaded but Ember gave a roar of her own and used Flamethrower at Thorax. Thorax used his giant bear paw to block the oncoming flames to avoid any damage. Then Thorax and Ember charged at each other, making Spike scream.

“My worst fears are happening!” Spike cried out as Eric cringed fearfully. Thorax and Ember were able to engage in battle when…

“NOOOOOOOO!” Spike shouted, making Thorax and Ember stand down.

“Back away, Spike and Eric!” Thorax warned, “I’m not gonna let this dragon harm a scale on your back, or a hair on Eric.”

“You back away!” Ember shouted, “I’m not gonna you harm them.” Ember then blinked at what she had said and what Thorax had said, “Wait. Did you say you’re not gonna let me harm Spike and Eric?”

“Yeah!” Thorax replied sternly.

“But that’s what I’m doing?” Ember replied.

“Uh, what?” Thorax said confused.

“Yeah, what?” Ember replied in the same confused tone.

“Equestria as we know it is over!” Spike said in a panicked tone as he lay frontside first on the ground with his eyes closed, “The war that pits changeling against dragon is about to begin! And it’s all my fault! My title of Equestria’s friendship ambassador is a lie—!”

“Will you pull yourself together and open your eyes!” Eric snapped. Spike did open his eyes and saw Thorax and Ember giving him blank looks.

“Oh. Hey. You guys aren’t fighting?” Spike asked casually and in surprise.

“Why would we be fighting?” Ember asked.

“Because I accidentally invited you both over to Ponyville on the same day?” Spike replied. Ember and Thorax looked at each other.

“So what?” Ember and Thorax said together.

“I’ve been asking myself that all day,” Eric remarked to himself sarcastically. Thorax heard him.

“Wait, that friend you were trying to tell me about,” said Thorax, “It was Ember you were trying to have me meet, wasn’t it?” Eric nodded sadly. Thorax then turned to Spike.

“Why didn’t you let me meet Ember?” Thorax asked Spike.

“And why didn’t you let me meet Thorax?” Ember asked in a stern tone.

“I…was trying to keep you apart because I didn’t think you’d get along,” Spike admitted honestly. Thorax and Ember shared skeptical looks with each other.

“Oh. I get it,” said Ember, “You thought he wouldn’t like me because I’m a dragon and I’m bad at friendship?”

“No, no, of course not!” said Spike in his defense, “But—Wait. Isn’t that why you’re here?”

“I can say I’m bad at friendship,” Ember retorted angrily, “You or Eric can’t say it about me! You know what? I don’t wanna talk about it.”

“Wait, please!” Spike called out, but it was too late. Ember had flown off. Spike just sighed and then turned to Thorax, “I’m sorry.”

“No, no, it’s cool,” said Thorax before a bitter look appeared on her face, “You thought I would be too soft, and someone like Ember would never respect me. Just like my own changelings. At least Eric thought Ember would’ve wanted to be my friend!”

“No, that’s not it!” Spike called out but Thorax was already flying away, “Thorax, wait!” Once again, Spike was too late and soon Thorax was out of sight.

“Oh, no…What have I done?” Spike asked as he held his head. He then saw Eric approach him.

“Spike…” said Eric in a firm tone.

“I don’t want to hear a word out of you!” Spike shouted angrily, but he soon regretted it when he saw Eric began to cry, “Oh great…Eric…I didn’t mean…”

“You make me feel so worthless!” Eric sobbed, “I’m not trying to make you feel dumb on purpose! I’m not trying to prove you wrong! I’m not trying to say I’m better than you or smarter than you! All I wanted to do was help you! This could’ve been avoided if you just listened to me! But you didn’t, you kept brushing me off. I know I’m just a boy, but I didn’t think that meant my feelings and opinions had no value!” Eric began to cry louder. Spike felt even worse as he noticed that Storm and Starlight were giving him sad and disappointed looks, while Twilight was calming Eric down.

Just outside of town, Thorax was just sitting before a small pond, chucking rocks into the water and looking rather glum. He wasn’t alone for long as Ember arrived.

“Why are you still here?” Ember asked. Thorax sighed.

“Because I’m having trouble leading my pack,” Thorax replied honestly, “so I don’t really wanna go home.”

“Wait, you’re in charge?” Ember asked and then chuckled, “Oh, boy. You need to be more assertive.”

“Well, that’s my problem,” Thorax replied, “I don’t know how! I tried asking them to please follow my directions. I even offered a prize, and then—” Thorax was cut off when Ember put a finger over his lips.

“Shhh! Stop talking,” Ember said quickly. Thorax just blinked.

“That’s how you do it,” said Ember as she backed away.

“Whoa! That just gave my chills,” said Thorax, clearly impressed.

“I know you have it in you,” Ember told the changeling, “You turned into a bear to defend Spike and Eric.”

“Huh, I guess I can be tough when I’m defending my friends,” said Thorax, “But when I’m just enforcing my rules, I-I feel unsure of myself.”

“There’s nothing to be unsure of,” Ember replied, “You’re the leader for a reason. Make a decision and let it be known that the decision is final. And if that doesn’t work, turn into a bear.”

“Oh, well, that’s good advice,” Thorax replied.

“I know it is,” said Ember smugly.

“So what’s your deal?” Thorax asked the blue dragon, “Why do you think you’re so bad at friendship?”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Ember replied firmly as she turned away from Thorax.

“Oh you have to!” said Thorax, “How else are you gonna solve your problems?”

“Through feats of strength and fire duels, of course,” Ember answered as she tossed a large rock into the air, used Flamethrower to make the rock explode into tiny pieces.

“Uh, how does that help?” Thorax asked, feeling rather confused. Ember landed firmly on top of a rock.

“Crushing another dragon in competition establishes my dominance and makes me feel great,” Ember boasted and posed to prove her point.

“Right, but, uh, how do you think they feel?” Thorax asked.

“Humiliated! Ashamed!” Ember said confidently before her tone grew sheepish, “They’d probably wanna run away and bury themselves under a rock and…never come out. They’re probably sad. Kinda low. Definitely not happy.” Ember didn’t hide the fact she now felt rather glum.

“That’s because that kind of competition can divide you,” Thorax explained, “And it doesn’t get to the heart of the issue. Talking about your feelings does.” Ember gave a loud sneeze, shooting flames out of her mouth as she did so.

“Ugh! I think I’m allergic to feelings,” Ember groaned.

“You know you don’t have to be sappy,” Thorax pointed out, “or huggy-feely about it! But you should let your friends know how you feel. If you need someone that will help you feel more comfortable doing so, talk to Storm. You can be as sappy and touchy feely as you want and he’ll make sure you don’t feel silly about it.”

“I…think I can manage without speaking to Storm, and I know where we can start.” Ember said, then flew off.

“Where?” said Thorax before he figured it out, “Ohhhh. Spike. Hah. I got there.” Thorax just smirked to himself.

Back in town, Twilight, Starlight, and Storm were busy cleaning up the area, including the banner that burned up earlier. Spike and Eric were just sweeping up the grounds.

“I think they’re gone. They probably never want to see me again,” Spike said sadly.

At that very moment, Ember and Thorax landed firmly before Spike.

“Or they want to see you now,” Starlight replied in the background since she had been listening in. Spike gulped and Starlight smiled nervously as she and Storm walked away. Eric stood in front of the purple dragon.

“Don’t be too mad at him,” said Eric, “He’s got an anxiety problem and it made him think worst-case scenario.”

“Eric, we want to speak to Spike,” said Ember, “At least you tried to introduce us to each other.” Thorax nodded in agreement. Eric just sighed and backed away so Spike was facing Ember and Thorax alone.

“Guess what, Spike,” Ember said firmly.

“I know,” said Spike sadly, “I’m so sorry.”

“Let me talk about this!” Ember yelled and then found it very difficult to speak up, “I…feel…mad.” Ember strained so much that her face turned purple and she was sweating heavily before letting out a long sigh.

“Okaaaay…That’s a good first attempt,” said Thorax slowly, “Now maybe try to be more specific?” He gave her an encouraging smile. Ember stretched her arms, fanned herself since she was feeling a little sweaty again before trying to speak again.

“I’m…” Ember struggled to say before sighing, “upset!”

“You have every right to be,” Spike replied.

“I know I do,” said Ember, getting into Spike’s face, “And I know I need to tell you how I feel because my friend Thorax said it would make me feel better. And it does!” Ember flew away a few feet before stopping and then smiled smugly.

“Yeah! And I have no problem telling you what you did was wrong because my friend Ember is helping me be more assertive!” Thorax added also getting into his face. Spike then fell down.

“Whoa,” said Spike in shock.

“Nice,” said Ember impressively.

“Ha-ha!” said Ember and Thorax together as they shared a high-hoof/claw.

Spike stood up to speak to the changeling and dragon.

“You guys should be mad at me,” said Spike, “I was so worried about how it could go wrong, I didn’t even think about how it could go right.” Spike sighed sadly, “Can you forgive me?” Spike got down on his knees and pleaded to them. Ember and Thorax exchange nods.

“I really do feel better,” said Ember, “So, yeah. I’m good.”

“Hah. Me, too,” said Thorax, then smirked as he grabbed Spike, Eric, and Ember and pulled them in for a group hug. Ember groaned and rolled her eyes.

“Again?” Ember remarked.

“Come on, admit it, you like hugs,” Eric teased.

“Oh shut your mouth!” Ember retorted annoyingly. Spike and Eric laughed.

Suddenly, Spike and Eric heard the sound of shimmering and chiming. Spike looked up to see his scales were glowing and Eric found his bandana was glowing as well.

“No way! It’s finally happening!” said Spike, “I solved a friendship problem!”

“Ahem,” Eric said indignantly.

“Sorry, I meant we solved a friendship problem,” Spike replied.

“Actually, you created the friendship problem by not trusting your friends,” said Starlight as she, Twilight, and Storm walked up.

“And not trusting in Eric,” Storm added.

“Yeah, but then I solved it by learning my lesson,” said Spike in a smug tone, “And by realizing that Eric was only trying to help me and getting upset because I ignored him. I should’ve trusted him when he suggested they meet. And I should have told my two friends about each other immediately instead of assuming they wouldn’t get along.”

“Aw, he does have a brain after all,” Eric teased and hugged him tightly.

“Good job, Spike,” said Twilight, “And good job to you too, Eric.”

“Why me? I didn’t exactly help Spike realize the truth sooner,” Eric said

“But you did help Ember open up so she could be completely honest with Spike,” Storm replied, “You’re ability to empathize and understand others almost rivals my own skills. I’m so very proud of you.”

“Thanks Daddy,” Eric in a humble tone before rushing up to Twilight and Storm so they could give him a hug. Spike then joined the hug along with Starlight. Thorax was rather touched at the sight while Ember felt rather skeptical.

“Is this another part of friendship?” Ember asked, “Telling each other what you’ve learned all the time.” Spike, Twilight, Eric, Starlight, and Storm all giggled to each other.

“Yeah, pretty much,” said Starlight.

“Yup,” said Spike.

“It’s the cool thing to do around here,” Eric said smugly, “It’s what all the hardcore ponies do.” All but Ember laughed. The blue dragon rolled her eyes, but smirked afterward.

A little later that day, some balloons floated past the foreground so Spike was standing in front of town hall with Eric at his right side. In front of him were Ember and Thorax. The foreground had a bunch of ponies who were chattering with each other until Eric whistled to get their attention.

“So, as a show of unity, I present the Dragon Fire Flame of Friendship to both Dragon Lord Ember and Thorax, leader of the changeling pack!” Spike announced, “May the flame of friendship burn for eternity.” The ponies all cheered. Eric clapped happily. Storm, Starlight and Twilight exchanged smiled with each other before each mare leaned against Storm’s side so he could hold them both. Then suddenly…

ACHOO!

WHOOOOOOSH!

Ember sneezed, sending a fireball at a nearby ice statue, and melting it into water. The ponies all gasped as Ember recovered.

“You should have more things made of rocks,” Ember suggested.

“Correction, we need more things made of rock that you’re not gonna eat and destroy!” Eric said.

“Ha! Ha! Ha!” Ember remarked sarcastically, but she, along with the others all laughed.

Next Chapter: Chapter 5: Campfire Tales Estimated time remaining: 2 Hours, 12 Minutes