Everypony in the town square freezes in surprise as the pair of unfamiliar Alicorns teleports into the middle. At least one of them mostly resembles the resident princess, albeit with an unusual flame-shaped mane and peculiar fangs in her mouth. That's still far more recognizable than the other, purple-and-green Alicorn who had appeared alongside her.
"There is no dragon! It's just me!" Twilight shouts out. "Same old Twilight Sparkle! We've just, um, had a bit of a... Magical accident." She rubs the back of her neck, embarrassed, as she flies up to make sure she has everyponies attention.
The ponies around glance back and forth, nervously, until eventually Lyra steps forward, hesitantly. "Um... Twilight? Is that really you?" She asks, uncertainly, eyeing the unusual features adorning the normally familiar alicorn currently floating above the town.
"Y-yeah. Just ask all my friends, they can tell you we've been having a... weird situation." Twilight can't think of a quick way to explain, and for the time being she just needed to make sure nopony panicked. She focuses and then breathes out a thin stream of purple flame into the sky. "See? No dragon, just me!" She smiles weakly at everypony.
"Whose the other princess? I don't remember anypony else becoming an Alicorn." One of the other ponies asks, staring at Spike unsurely.
Spike blushes a little and paws at the ground nervously. Assuming that any Alicorns title is 'princess' really does seem to be deeply ingrained in pony culture. His gaze is drawn up as Twilight landed next to him, draping one wing over him protectively.
Twilight hesitates for a second, before gulping. "This is... My little brother, Spike. He was also transformed by the magical mishap. But he's still the sweet, diligent Spike you all know." Twilight announces.
Spike looks up at Twilight in wonder. She just called me her little brother, in front of everypony... Spike feels his face heating up, while his vision blurs from moisture forming in his eyes.
Lyra takes a step back, raising a brow in surprise and confusion. "Your little brother?" She questions. "Uh, did I miss something?" She asks, skeptically, looking around at the other ponies to see her confusion reflected on all of their faces.
Twilight nods. "I suppose you all did. Spike's been my family as long as he's been alive." She asserts confidently. Then, her gaze softens and her voice drops an octave. "I guess I haven't made that clear enough."
Spike looks down at the ground again, uncomfortable with being the center of attention for so many ponies. "Um, Twi?" Spike pauses and takes a deep breathe before amending his question. "...Sis? Can we head inside? I don't like having so many ponies staring at me." Spike mumbles.
"You should know, this is the logical conclusion of what you'll have to deal with if you decide to stay like this, Spike." Twilight states in a sympathetic tone. "It might ease up over time, but... Alicorns always draw everyponies eyes. But for now, I think we got the idea across, so why don't we head to sugar cube corner?"
Spike eagerly nods and lets himself be shepherded across town, keeping his eyes down to the ground to avoid seeing all the ponies around staring at him. On the way, Twilight has to stop twice to try and explain what was going on, but Spike just stays silent, feeling maddeningly self-conscious. Even if he isn't looking, he can still feel everypony staring at him, their eyes practically boring into his skull.
It doesn't help that he is uncannily aware of everything around him, courtesy of new equine ears and magical sensitivity that makes it impossible to ignore anypony in his vicinity; He can even tell what type of pony they are based on how they feel. Earth ponies have a dull but strong aura, blending in with the world around them, subtle but powerful. Pegasi are bright and vibrant, their magic fluctuating rapidly. And unicorns were somewhere in between the two, quiet and dignified but artificial in feel.
It is with some relief, then, that Spike finally steps with Twilight into sugar cube corner. Stepping out from under Twilight's wing, Spike stretches out and straightens his posture. There is nopony present at the counter, but Spike can hear somepony shuffling around in the back.
"Just a moment, dear, I'll be right with you!" Mrs. Cake's voice calls out from behind the wall. Spike and Twilight sit down and wait. It isn't really a proper pick for lunch, but it is familiar and they could always get bagels or something; More importantly, it was easy relief from the stares outside.
At least, to the extent that could be expected, as long as they aren't in the privacy of their own home. Mrs. Cake's jaw drops as soon as she rounds the corner. "Well, I'll be." She mutters. "Pinkie Pie told me about what happened, but I don't think I really believed it until I saw it with my own eyes! Does... Does this make you a princess, too?"
Spike groans. How does everypony seem to jump to that conclusion!? Thankfully, Mrs. Cake's attention is distracted from Spike as her gaze drifts over to Twilight beside him, and her brow raises. "But I don't think Pinkie said anything about that."
Twilight clears her throat. "Yeah, its. It's a whole thing. I'm still trying to figure it out." Her tone sounds almost apologetic. "Anyways... We could really use some lunch. You think we could get a couple bagels?"
The two of them settle in to wait until they can get their food, at which point Twilight simply teleports away rather than endure another trek through town. It's a rather impromptu picnic, but it'll have to do.
"It's probably best if you understand what you're getting into." Twilight states, in between bites of her bagel. "If you really do decide to stay this way... You should know that you'll spend the rest of your life getting looks like that." Twilight sounds both sympathetic and concerned.
Spike stares down at the ground. "I... Guess I hadn't considered that." He admits. It makes sense, nopony he met would have ever seen anything like him before. Did he really want to live with that much attention, for the rest of his life?
Yet at the same time as being reminded of the struggles it could bring him, he is also reminded of some of the simple pleasures he'd gotten to experience since his transformation. Take the bagel in his hooves; He'd never been able to properly enjoy the same foods as everypony else, it sometimes felt like he was left out when they went out to eat. But now... The earthy, rich flavor of the bread tastes so much better than it ever could have before.
It doesn't take long for Spike to finish his meal, and Twilight follows along right after. "Ready to go?" Twilight asks, and Spike nods his head. But as Spike takes Twilight's hoof, ready to be teleported, a familiar shape swoops down from above, interrupting the two of them.
"I see you decided to take me up on my offer!" Rainbow Dash calls out, grinning widely, as she lands in an action pose right in front of the two siblings.