//------------------------------//
// Disinherited// Story: A Delicate Balance// by JapaneseTeeth//------------------------------//

	I have far too much to do today!  Oh, well. That’s not so different from any other day.
	
	
Thy father all from thee, by his last will,
Gave to the poor; thou hast good title still. 

-- Disinherited,
John Donne
	
	“For the last time, Luna, we are not going to ring the palace bells just because Twilight and Applejack sent us an engagement notification!”  Celestia strode resolutely down the corridor, hoping that she could gain enough distance from her sister to end the conversation.  She headed for lower levels, where dozens of palace staff were pushing and pulling carts full of food and supplies. With luck, Luna would get caught behind one of them and Celestia would have a moment’s peace.  Unfortunately, like all younger sisters, Luna had long since mastered the art of keeping up with her elder sibling.
	
	“But she is your personal protégé! Your first and greatest pupil! Is this not a cause for celebration?”  She deftly sidestepped a rolling pallet of sacks of flour. “Surely you aren’t going to be so stingy as to not acknowledge the union of two Elements of Harmony?”
	
	“I do acknowledge it!” Celestia snapped as she zig-zagged between two mop buckets. “Just not with the bells!”
	
	“And why not?”  Despite a rapid succession of maids trotting between them, Luna managed to match her sister step for step. “Is that not what the bells are for?”
	
	“The bells are for national celebrations,” Celestia answered. “As wonderful as it is that Twilight and Applejack are engaged, it is not relevant to all of our subjects!”
	
	“And yet her brother’s wedding was?”
	
	“If you’ll recall, Twilight’s brother was marrying a princess.” Celestia hopped over a cider barrel that had escaped from the pony who had been rolling it.  “Besides, that was as much in celebration of the fact that we successfully repelled a changeling invasion.”
	
	“I may have remembered that more clearly if somepony would’ve woken me up,” Luna grumbled, nimbly dodging both the rogue barrel and the pony who chased after it. “I looked like a fool at the wedding reception. Everypony thought I had skipped out on the fighting on purpose and showed up at the reception for the cake!”
	
	“You did just show up for the cake!”
	
	“But I would’ve shown up earlier if somepony had called.” Luna followed Celestia around a corner. “Once the ceremony was rescheduled, you might have sent somepony to get me!”
	
	“I know, and I apologize.  I had just been blasted by that changeling queen, and I had to scramble enough to reorganize the city after the reception.” Celestia tried not to sound too testy.  She knew as well as anypony that she hadn’t exactly been at the top of her game for those few days, and she didn’t appreciate Luna reminding her of it. “All of that is beside the point.  This is not an appropriate occasion for bell-ringing!  Why do you want to ring them so badly, anyway?!”
	
	“First of all, because the bellmaster said that I could do the ringing myself.”
	
	“Really, Luna?” Celestia sighed as she watched a cake roll past.
	
	“It isn’t the only reason!” Luna snapped back. “You know how much I owe both Twilight and Applejack. If not for them, I would still be… you know.  They’ve not only saved Equestria, but they saved me. Honoring them with the bells is the very least I could do.”
	
	Celestia stopped.  Luna skidded into her with a grunt.  
	
	“Luna, how about we compromise?” Celestia smiled at her sister. “We’ll hold off on the bells for now, but when the day of their wedding comes, you may ring them as loudly as you want.”
	
	Luna returned the smile. “Yes, I could live with that.” She suddenly spun around and trotted hurriedly in the direction of the larder.  “Now, then.  I must go select an appropriate engagement gift.  I believe a cheese wheel is in order!”
	
	Now it was Celestia’s turn to chase after her sister. “Luna, you already sent them a cheese wheel, remember?”
	
	“Yes, but that was only because I misread the situation!  A cheese wheel is the traditional engagement gift, and their previous… thing was not truly an engagement. As such, now that the the proper declaration of intent to marry has been made, I must send the gift properly!”
	
	Celestia shook her head. Once Luna got going, there was no dissuading her.  “At the very least, send them a different type of cheese this time.”
	
	“Of course.  This time I intend on giving them a nice, sharp cheddar.”
	
	Celestia slowed to a trot and finally stopped, watching Luna disappear down the hallway. She smiled. “I suppose I should send Twilight and Applejack a letter of congratulations.”
	
	
	
	Spike woke up with a groan.  He hadn’t slept well; his stomach churned like a washing machine.  Most of the night had found him rolling around in his bed.  Under normal circumstances he would blame his garlic-egg-ice-cream-chili-ruby waffles, but he couldn’t help but think that his little discussion with Twilight and Applejack factored into it somehow. Moving out? What had he been thinking talking about that?
	
	Sure, the notion had drifted through his mind once or twice, but a lot of thoughts came and went. He had taken that idea about as seriously as his plan to impress Rarity by fashioning a life-size statue of her out of crystal.  It had been perfect… for about five minutes, when all the cracks began to show. 
	
	It was true that he had to fend for himself on occasion, but that wasn’t the same thing.  Whenever Twilight went somewhere, she left behind a fridge full of food and a checklist of errands that had to be done.  And that stuff about him still being her assistant even if he didn’t live with her anymore… would that really work out?  
	
	She wouldn’t fire him; he knew that much.  But it would be different. It wouldn’t be a fact of life anymore. He wouldn’t wake up to find her taking notes at two in the morning, or have to stop dead in the middle grocery shopping to reorganize her checklist before she forgot.  It would be more of a job now; he’d show up at a set time, work for so many hours, and go home.  And his home wouldn’t be her home anymore.
	
	That was what twisted his gut.  They’d have their own homes.  Sure, he got the house to himself sometimes, but it was still their house, not his.  If I ever move out, we won’t be “us” anymore; it’ll be “me” and “them.”
	
	He shook his head and headed downstairs to find an antacid.  It was too early in the morning to worry about this.  Both Twilight and Applejack had said they were perfectly fine with him sticking around as long as he wanted, and even if they were moving in together, it wouldn’t be for quite a while.  Not like their relationship has been moving all that quickly.  I’ve got time to figure this—
	
	His stomach turned, and he belched out a scroll. 
	
	“Ugh…I wish I could tell when that’s about to happen,” he grumbled as he bent to pick up the letter.  It was from Celestia and Luna, written on the Royal Canterlot Letterhead.  No doubt it was a congratulatory note.  Twilight is gonna want to see this, he thought as he entered the kitchen. And it’s my job to deliver it as soon as possible.  I am her number one assistant after all.  He stopped as he saw a note on the kitchen table, next to a covered plate.
	
	Made you some chocolate chip pancakes as a thank you for helping me with the letters.  Enjoy. - T.S.
	
	P.S. Remind me to buy milk.
	
	P.P.S. Make sure you remember to water the plants.
	
	He lifted the cover and sniffed.  I guess that note’s not so urgent that I can’t grab some breakfast first.
	
	
	
	“Dear, dear!” Twilight Velvet nearly tumbled head over hooves as she barrelled into the kitchen where Night Light was eating his breakfast.  “Guess what just came in the mail?”
	
	He looked up from his fried eggs and hash browns to see his wife grinning widely at him.  He could also see that she was attempting and failing to hide a scroll behind her mane.
	
	“Bills?” he answered, with as straight a face as he could manage.
	
	“If they were bills, would I be smiling? Try again!”
	
	He shrugged and took a bite of hash browns.  “Tax refund?”
	
	“Oh, stop it!” She playfully bopped him over the head with the scroll. “It’s from Twilight!  She and Applejack are getting married!”
	
	“Oh.” He stared at her for a moment.  Then he turned back to his food. “It’s about time.”
	
	“That’s all you have to say?  Our little filly is getting married, and your response is ‘it’s about time’?”  She poked at him as he tried to eat one of his eggs. 
	
	“What, it’s not like it’s a surprise.”  He chuckled.  “Remember when we visited Ponyville?  I was half expecting one of them to pop the question right then!”
	
	“Not if she takes after you.” Velvet ruffled his mane. “Celestia knows you took your sweet time.”
	
	“You’re the one who’s always so picky about deadlines!” He replied with a laugh. “So what does the letter actually say?”
	
	“Read it for yourself,” she said, slapping him on the top of the head again.  “All I’m telling you is that she’s inviting us to visit her in town again, and we need to figure out a date and RSVP.” She set the scroll on the table. “I’m going to go find some quills.”
	
	“You want to write the letter now?  I have to get to work!”
	
	She stopped at the bottom of the stairs and rolled her eyes at him.  It was an expression she had to use often.  “You’re always late anyway because you stop at that coffee place every morning.  Skip that and you’ll get to work with time to spare!”
	
	“But I need my coffee!”
	
	“Then you can be late. You are the boss, after all.”
	
	He laughed. “Okay, okay! You win! There are some quills on my desk.”
	
	“I knew you’d come around,” she said as she headed upstairs.
	
	Night Light unfurled the scroll and began to read.  Twilight had left home a long time ago.  She had left the house to become Princess Celestia’s personal student. She had left the city to become the hero of Equestria.  But even so, she had always been his little filly.  He blinked the tears out of his eyes and began searching for things to write that wouldn’t be cheesy.  He had never been good at serious moments.
	
	
	
	“I’m pretty sure it’s supposed to go the other way,” Sweetie Belle said. From her vantage point on the ground below the clubhouse, she had a full view of the tire swing.  What had started as a simple wheel-on-a-rope had quickly grown into a large system of pulleys with the intended purpose of allowing a pony to swing back and forth without the need for a push. 
	
	“I had it the other way before, and you said it was wrong!” Scootaloo answered from the clubhouse balcony. “I’m not going to pull the rope out unless we’re sure it’s in backwards!”
	
	“It is in backwards!” Sweetie Belle shook her head. “Maybe we should wait for Apple Bloom to get back with the drinks.  She’s the one who designed this contraption.  If we keep messing with it, we’ll just make it worse!”
	
	“Come on, Sweetie Belle!  This isn’t that complicated! All I need to do is pull this, and…” She grabbed one of the many ropes that stuck out of the pulleys and yanked. The device trembled for a moment, and the tire dropped to the ground.  The rope whipped through the pulleys and a moment later it lay in a tangled knot. “Okay, so maybe it’s a little complicated.”
	
	“Ugh.” Sweetie Belle stared resignedly at the mess. “Apple Bloom isn’t gonna be happy about that.”
	
	“Uh…” Scootaloo searched for a distraction and found one. “Hey, Spike!”
	
	“Hey, Scootaloo. Sweetie Belle,” Spike said as he approached the fillies.
	
	“What’s up?” Scootaloo asked quickly, before Spike could question her about the swing.
	
	“I’m trying to make a delivery.” Spike held up the letter from the princesses. “You haven’t seen Twilight, have you?”
	
	“Nope,” Sweetie Belle shook her head. “Have you tried the chocolate shop?”
	
	“That was the first place I looked.  She doesn’t usually start work this early, but I thought she might be trying to make up for the past few days off.”  He shrugged. “I thought she might have come over here to visit Applejack.”
	
	“Well, I haven’t seen either of them today,” Scootaloo said. “Maybe they went out for breakfast or something.  You know, because of that whole engagement thing.  Maybe Apple Bloom heard something about it.”
	
	“Heard somethin’ about what?” Apple Bloom emerged from the apple trees, dragging a cooler behind her. Then she saw the swing. “Gah! What happened to my swing-puller!”  She dropped the cooler and rushed over to the tangle of rope. “Y’all put the rope in the wrong way, didn’t you?”
	
	Scootaloo chuckled awkwardly. “Maybe.”
	
	“Just as well, I guess,” Apple Bloom said with a shrug. “I was gonna have to re-thread the rope through everything anyway.” She turned to Spike. “So what brings you around to Sweet Apple Acres?”
	
	“He’s looking for Twilight,” Sweetie Belle said. 
	
	“Twilight hasn’t gone to work yet, so I thought she might have come here,” Spike said. “You haven’t seen her, have you?”
	
	Apple Bloom shook her head. “Nope. Haven’t seen Applejack either. She was already out and about when I got up this mornin’.”
	
	“I guess you don’t have any idea where she might be?”
	
	“I got no clue. Sorry.” She shrugged. “She usually tells me when she’s gonna disappear someplace, but I guess things are a bit different now.”
	
	“You’re telling me,” Spike said with a sigh.  He could tell that this was going to be a long day.  Of course he’d have to run around town on the one day that his stomach was acting funny. Maybe he shouldn’t have eaten all the pancakes at once. “Sometimes it feels like Twilight’s barely ever at home.”
	
	“I know how that is,” Apple Bloom said as she gathered up the rope.  “Though it ain’t all bad. Sure, it kinda stinks not having Applejack around all the time, but it’s kinda nice not havin’ her lookin’ over our shoulders.”
	
	“Yeah, we’d never have been able to build this if she kept popping in!” Scootaloo waved at the swing system. “She’d be all like ‘Y’all are just gonna get yourselves all tangled up!’ or something.”
	
	“She might’ve had a point,” Sweetie Belle mumbled.
	
	“If you two hadn’t tangled everything up, that wouldn’t be a problem,” Apple Bloom said. “You want a cider, Spike?”
	
	He eyed the bottle. It was tempting. Then his stomach rumbled. “I think I’ll pass,” he said reluctantly. “I just finished breakfast.”
	
	“Alright, suit yourself.  If you see my sister, can you tell her I was lookin’ for her?”
	
	“Sure.  I’ll—” Spike’s face contorted.
	
	“Spike?” Apple Bloom tilted her head. “Are you oka—” She ducked as he horked up a scroll.
	
	He coughed as he recovered the letter. “Hey, it’s from Mom and Dad.  Twilight’s really gonna want to see that!”  He cleared his throat.  “You know what, I think I’m gonna take you up on that cider.”
	
	
	
	“Twiley is getting married! This is awesome!” 
	
	Cadance watched her husband bounce around the room like a colt on his way to a Sapphire Shores concert.  It was an exceedingly goofy display, hardly fitting of the Prince of the Crystal Empire.  Then again, if he actually acted like a storybook prince, she probably wouldn’t have married him in the first place.  Traditional knights in shining armor tended to be a little boring.  Thankfully, her husband didn’t live up to his name in that particular way.
	
	“Really? That’s great!” She hadn’t had a great deal of time to get to know Twilight’s friends, but from what little time they had spent together, she could tell that Applejack would be a good match.  Not to mention that Applejack was a spectacular cook, if her contributions to the wedding reception were any indication.  Twilight would probably put on a few pounds by the next time Cadance saw her.  “What does the letter say?”
	
	“Read it yourself.  There are some extras on the table.” He nodded at his desk, where half a dozen additional scrolls sat in a pile. “Apparently she sent some extras. Didn’t want it to get lost in the mail.”
	
	Cadance chuckled.  One invitation gets tossed into lava by teenage dragons, and you never hear the end of it. “She’s never going to let that go, is she?”  She picked up one of the letters and began to read. “I hope we’ll be able to make it.  It’s not exactly easy to take a break from running a country.”
	
	“Well, according to this, if we do make it we’re responsible for repelling any changeling invasions.”  He put the letter down. “So, what do you think our chances of being able to make it to her wedding actually are? You know, seriously. Twilight would be crushed if we don’t make it.”
	
	“Right now, I really have no idea.  We don’t know when or where it’ll be.  I wouldn’t get your hopes up, though.” She watched sadly as his face fell. “It’s unfortunate, I know.  We’ll have to hope that by the time the wedding actually rolls around, the Crystal ponies will be ready to handle things for themselves for a few days.  How’s the Crystal Guard training coming along?”
	
	“Better than it was.  They’re good at jousting and the organizational system is mostly set up.  They still need to work on their archery, though.” He scratched at a piercing in his ear that hadn’t been there a week ago.  “A few more months and they’ll have it down.  What about you?”
	
	“I’m still trying to get them to understand that they don’t need me to personally approve of everything.”
	
	“Isn’t it good that they want you to approve, though?”
	
	“For important things, yes,” Cadance answered. “I just wish they could get their work done without having to check with me every ten minutes.  Just this afternoon, my secretary wanted to get my permission to take a new quill from the supply closet. I just wish they would actually do the things I assign them without having to check in with me every time. I wouldn’t make them department heads if I didn’t trust them to handle things themselves!” 
	
	Shining nodded. “I had that same problem with some of my officers, at first. I got around it by giving them an official order not to bother me unless it was an emergency.”
	
	“I’ll have to try that.” 
	
	“Well, the good news is that Twiley probably isn’t going to rush things, so we’ll have some more time to whip everypony into shape before we go.”  He put a foreleg around his wife. “I just hope that their day goes smoother than ours did.”
	
	“I guess if we really want to make sure that her special day is changeling-free, you can go down there on patrol.  Even if we both can’t go, I know it would mean the world to her if you were there.”
	
	“She would still miss you,” Shining Armor said. “I can just hear her: ‘You mean you came down here on vacation and left Cadance to run the Crystal Empire alone?!’ She’d probably take the next train up here to get you.”
	
	Cadance pondered the idea for a moment. “Well, it would save me the trouble of having to go all the way to Ponyville.”  She laughed. “Maybe we should just offer to let Twilight get married here!”
	
	“And subject her to all of our subjects pestering her about everything?”  Shining Armor asked.
	
	Cadance thought for a moment, then shook her head violently. “No! The stress would drive her crazy!  It would be the Smartypants Incident all over again!”
	
	“Smartypants Incident?” Shining raised his eyebrow. “What Smartypants Incident?”
	
	“Celestia never told you?” Cadance grinned. “Oh, you’ve got to hear this, Twilight was—” She was interrupted by a knock on the door of their chambers.  She sighed. “Yes?”
	
	Her secretary poked her head in. “I’m sorry to bother you, Princess, but we just wanted to make sure you approve of the new wallpaper pattern for the public bathroom next to the entryway on the first floor of the offices.”
	
	Cadance looked away just long enough to roll her eyes. “I’ll be right there.” The secretary bowed graciously and retreated into the hallway. “I’ll have to have a talk with them. Wish me luck.”
	
	Shining Armor kissed her on the cheek as she straightened her hair. “I’m sure they’ll figure it out eventually.”
	
	“I hope so. It would be wonderful if we could get be there for Twilight.  After everything our wedding put her through, I think we owe her.”  She headed to the door.  “This shouldn’t take long, but it probably will.  I’ll be back for dinner, okay?”
	
	“Sure. Just promise you’ll tell me about this Smartypants thing when you get back, okay?”
	
	She winked. “Of course.”
	
	
	
	Spike sniffed the air.  It smelled like ketchup and fried onions. If Twilight and Applejack had gone out for breakfast, Hayburger was as likely as anyplace else.  Granted, it was even more likely that they weren’t here, but at least he could get a milkshake for his trouble.  Find them or not, this would be his last stop for the day.  As he walked through the door, he was so wrapped up in whether to order strawberry or chocolate that he barely even noticed the pony who stood directly in his path.
	
	“Oof!” He stumbled backward. “Sorry!” He blinked a few times before realizing who he had run into. “Cheerilee.”
	
	“It’s okay, Spike,” she answered in a cheery voice.  Spike couldn’t help but notice the enormous coffee cup she was holding. That went a long way toward explaining why she was seemed so upbeat. “What brings you to Hayburger?  I thought Twilight said that she made pancakes for you.”
	
	“You saw Twilight? I’ve actually been looking for her. Do you know where she is?”
	
	“Unfortunately, I do not,” she said, shaking her head. “I crossed paths with her as she was leaving the library.  I don’t know where she was going.”
	
	“Figures,” Spike grumbled.  Of course his search would be fruitless. Twilight had probably gone back to the library.  Chances were that at this very moment she was wondering where he had gone.  “I thought she’d want to see these.” He held up the scrolls. “Letters from the Princesses and from her parents.”
	
	“Congratulations, right?” She pranced in place. “It’s so exciting!  Can you believe that Twilight is really getting married?! Isn’t it wonderful?”
	
	“Yeah, it really is,” Spike said.  He wanted to sound excited, but after a few days of hearing about little else, he didn’t have any enthusiasm left to give.  
	
	“Maybe this will finally get Big Macintosh to get a move on!” she said with a laugh. “He can’t let his little sister get ahead of him.”
	
	“If you’re so anxious to get married, why don’t you just ask him?”
	
	“Oh, I’ve been tempted to,” she said. “But I think it’s better to let him go at his own pace.  Even if his own pace is a bit slow.  He knows that I’m ready, so if he hasn’t asked yet it must mean that he’s not.  And if there’s anything dealing with my students has taught me, it’s how to be patient.”
	
	Spike couldn’t help but chuckle at that. “I guess you’d have to be.”
	
	“Besides, to be perfectly honest, I’m already busy enough without having to deal with an engagement on top of everything.”
	
	“You’d be surprised by how much work it is.” Spike cracked his knuckles. “Do you know how many announcement notes I had to write? I’m lucky that my claws didn’t fall off.”
	
	“I got the note this morning,” she said. “It was very nice.  How are you holding up?”
	
	“Huh? Me?” He had expected another question about the happy couple.
	
	“Well, with everything going on with Twilight and Applejack, your routine must have been thrown off a bit.”
	
	Understatement of the year, Spike thought. “You could say that.” He shrugged. “It has been pretty hectic.  Still, this is nothing compared to helping Twilight cram for her final exams, so I think I’ll be okay.”
	
	“I’m glad to hear that, Spike.  I’m sure Twilight and Applejack really appreciate your help.  Give them my regards when you find them.”
	
	“I w—” Spike coughed, but there was no letter. “Huh, I could’ve sworn that that was another letter coming i—” He burped, and this time produced a gout of flame and another scroll. “Ugh.”
	
	Cheerilee smiled awkwardly.  Spike couldn’t blame her.  The sight of a dragon hacking up pieces of paper was something that few ponies in town had grown used to.  “You must have been… doing that quite often.”
	
	“Yeah, I’ve been coughing up scrolls all morning.” He noted the curiousness on her face. “You want to know how it works, don’t you?”
	
	“I must admit that I wonder about it.”
	
	“It’s an old unicorn spell.  You enchant a scroll, and then when you burn it, it gets transported to another source of fire and reconstituted. I’m Twilight’s designated fire source.”
	
	“That does sound quite convenient.” She paused. “For Twilight, at least.”
	
	“It’s not that bad.  It’s just that they’re a bit rough coming up sometimes. It is pretty convenient once it’s set up, but doing that’s a bit of a hassle.”  It wasn’t often that he got to explain things like this, not with Twilight around. “It’s actually a pretty complicated spell to set up.  You know, to make sure that the letter doesn’t get destroyed or sent to the wrong place. Both the fire sources and the scrolls themselves have to be enchanted very carefully or else it really isn’t very useful.  Twilight and the Princesses are some of the only ponies who are actually able to maintain it.”
	
	“I see. That’s quite interesting,” she said earnestly. “Pity they haven’t been able to make it more accessible.” Spike grimaced at the idea of being the conduit for the mail of a whole town.  Cheerilee noted his displeasure and continued quickly. “What are your plans for the day?  After you find Twilight, of course.”
	
	“Actually, I think I’m just going to get a milkshake and head back to the library,” Spike answered. “I’ve already wasted enough time wandering around town, so I’ll just give Twilight these notes when she gets home from work.  I have to get to work on library stuff.”
	
	“Speaking of which, I have my own work to get to,” Cheerilee said. “I have a test to give on Monday.  But before I go, allow me to treat you to that milkshake.  It seems you’ve been having a rough day.”
	
	“I… thanks,” Spike said. 
	
	“It’s the least I could do.” Cheerilee took a large gulp of her coffee. “What flavor did you want?”
	
	Spike rapped his claws on his chin. He never had answered that question.
	
	
	
	The library was still empty when Spike returned.  He glanced at the clock.  She was almost certainly at work now.  He hadn’t seen any Hydras, Ursa Majors, or Manticores running around town, and without a distraction of that caliber, nothing could prevent her from getting to work on time.  Except for maybe cramming for a test.  
	
	He left the letters on the table and busied himself with his list of library chores.   Even though the duties had accumulated over the past few days, he found himself moving down the checklist with an almost mechanical precision.  Overdue books, check. Reshelving, check. Sweeping, check. Making a list of which books needed to go in for repairs, check. Reading through the suggestions in the suggestion box, check.  Rejecting the suggestions in the suggestion box, most of which were written by the Cutie Mark Crusaders, check.  
	
	He sighed. Normally he felt quite satisfied with himself when he finished up his work, but today he had somehow been too efficient.  Twilight still wouldn’t be back for another hour or so, and that was assuming that she came straight home from her job.  If she stopped at the market, or went to go visit Applejack… I’m going to be on my own for lunch, aren’t I?
	
	He could almost hear his thoughts echo. The library seemed a bit too big when he was the only person in it.  Quiet, too.  More than quiet, even.  Even during Twilight’s study sessions, it was never silent.  There were always rustling pages, quills scratching on paper, and Twilight munching on snacks.  He wondered if every house felt this enormous still when there was only a single occupant. 
	
	Living on my own; what was I thinking? Even if he could, would he really want to? It was all well and good having the place to himself for a day or two, but he always knew in the back of his mind that things would go right back to normal when she got back.  He couldn’t quite imagine how it would feel to be like this all the time.  Well, not all the time.  His assistant job was still safe, but even so, he’d have a lot more time to himself.
	
	It couldn’t be all bad, though.  At the very least, he wouldn’t have to worry about Twilight waking him at four in the morning to help her find her notes.  That was a plus.  Sure, he’d have more responsibilities, but he could decide when he wanted to do them. There’d be no more “You can’t read your comics until you finish the laundry,” either. The laundry had to be done, of course, but he got to choose when to do it.  
	
	It was too much to think about now.  He’d have months to figure it out.  In the meantime he’d have to simply not pull a Twilight and drive himself nuts worrying about. Unlike Twilight, he didn’t have a hypercompetent and exceedingly handsome sidekick to help him out. He’d have to settle for not being a worrywart.  If he was going to worry about anything, he would worry about things that were happening now.  Like the cliffhanger in the latest Power Ponies comic.  He had been just about to find out whether Radiance would be able to defeat a brainwashed Mistress Mare-volous when the whole “engagement” thing had come up.
	
	As he ascended the stairs, he thought a bit.  Perhaps he should think ahead just a little bit. Once he found out how the heroine rescued her friend, he’d have to get some food.  Right now, grilled cheese sounded good.  Specifically, a mix of cheddar and muenster, with some grilled onions for extra flavor.  Hopefully Twilight wouldn’t mind the smell too much.  At least if he moved out, he wouldn’t have to worry about that anymore.
	
	
	
	Spike groaned as he opened his eyes and glanced at the clock. His usual post-lunch nap had gone a bit past long.  Not that it mattered much.  He had done all of his work, and if Twilight needed him for something she’d have woken him.  If anypony wanted to check out a book they could just ring the bell.  
	
	There were sounds from downstairs, muffled voices, too.  Twilight must have come home. Finally, Spike thought.  As he descended the stairs, he found Twilight scurrying around the table, meticulously laying out some place settings at the main table.  Doubtless she and Applejack were planning for another romantic dinner.  Though if that was the case, it was rather odd that she wasn’t using the good silverware.  Not to mention the three place settings.
	
	“Spike!” Twilight waved at him as she realigned the spoons to make sure each place at the table had the proper rotational symmetry. “How was your nap?”
	
	“Uh, good afternoon,” he mumbled in response. “I just woke up…”
	
	“I figured,” she said cheerfully. “When I got home you looked like you were having a nice rest, so I couldn’t bring myself to wake you.”
	
	“Thanks, I guess.  What’s all this?”
	
	“Oh, this is for dinner.  Unless you slept through lunch, in which case it can be lunch, I guess.” She thought for a moment. “Although I guess it’s too late right now for it to really be lunch. I guess it could be a combination of lunch and supper.  You know, like brunch, only in the afternoon.  Lupper!”
	
	“Lupper?”
	
	Twilight nodded. “Or sunch!”
	
	“Just call it dinner, Twi,” Applejack emerged from the kitchen, along with a puff of savory scents. “Oh, hey, Spike’s up!  How’s your day been?”
	
	“Okay, I guess,” he answered. “I spent the morning trying to find you or Twilight so I could give you those letters from everypony, but you two had disappeared.”
	
	“Oh, I’m sorry!” Twilight said. “I hadn’t realized that everypony would get back to us so quickly.  Applejack and I were at the market buying everything we needed for”—she paused to make sure she had the right word—“dinner.”
	
	“So what’s the occasion? Is there anything I need to do?” He hoped he wouldn’t, but he couldn’t help but ask.
	
	“You can relax, Spike,” Twilight said. “We’re actually doing this for you.”
	
	“For… me?” He cleared his ear with a claw to make sure it was working properly. 
	
	“You’ve been so helpful these past few days, with all this engagement stuff. I know Applejack and I have been running around a lot, and you’ve just been putting up with it all. We just wanted to show you how much we appreciate it by making dinner for you.”
	
	“Yeah, I’m makin’ that stew you like so much.  And I’m gonna pop some apple pie in for dessert.” She winked. “I even stopped by Rarity’s and picked up some topaz chips for you.”
	
	“Really?  Y-you guys didn’t need to go and do all of that.”
	
	“We know we didn’t need to, but we wanted to,” Twilight said, putting a hoof around Spike’s shoulders.
	
	Applejack nodded. “Yeah, everything’s been about me and Twilight for the past couple days, and we thought you deserved some attention.  Now if you’ll excuse me, I gotta get back in the kitchen and keep an eye on the biscuits.  Wouldn’t want ‘em to burn.”
	
	Spike nodded. “Thank you.”
	
	“Aw, don’t worry about it, Spike.” Applejack ruffled his spines before heading back to the kitchen. “You’re family now, remember?”  She sniffed. “Yeah, biscuits are just about done.  See you later!”  She hurried back into the kitchen.
	
	Spike turned back to Twilight, who was carefully folding the napkins. “You know, the pancakes would’ve been enough,” he said.
	
	“I suppose,” Twilight answered. “But I thought you deserved more.” She finished aligning the napkins properly.  Then she checked them again. “You know, about that whole ‘getting your own place’ thing…”
	
	“Oh, that,” Spike said sheepishly. “That just… I’m not sure exactly where that came from.  I didn’t really think it through.”
	
	“Well, if you want to talk about it, just let me know, okay?  We’ve got plenty of time to get this all figured out.” She smiled. “I don’t want my relationship to be a burden on you, and I know Applejack certainly doesn’t either.  For now, just keep it in mind, and we’ll work through when we’re all ready, okay?”
	
	He nodded, and smiled for the first time that day.  “Sounds like a plan.”
	
	“Good, now I just need to—” There was a knock on the door.
	
	“Delivery.”
	
	“Delivery?” She scratched her head. “I didn’t order anything.  Did you?”
	
	Spike shook his head. “Nope.”
	
	“Huh.” She opened the door. “Good afternoo…” Her voice trailed off as she saw the shape of the package that sat on the delivery pony’s cart.
	
	Spike poked his head out the door and chuckled.  “Let me guess,” he said to the delivery pony, “It’s from Princess Luna?”
	
	“Indeed it is.”  He held out a clipboard. “Could you please sign for it?”
	
	“Just what we needed,” Twilight grumbled as she scribbled her signature. “More cheese.”