//------------------------------//
// An End for His Story 
// Story: No Less Than Perfect 
// by Sparx 
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"Are you alright grandpa?" Spike's attention was grabbed by a young pony, tugging at his wing. He looked down at the tiny creature, barely the size of his pinkie. He smiled down at her, and let his claw down as a platform for the little one to stand on. 

"Of course I am, little one." His voice was low, slow, and raspy. He was very old now, well beyond where he had expected time to take him. Today marked his one million and first birthday. This age was unheard of among dragons, even the legendary Nortune the Black had lived to one million. "I was merely thinking...remembering your ancestors and my descendants. We've had quite a legacy."

Spike slowly moved across the stony floor of his cave, towards the entrance, looking down the mountain he had settled down in, able to survey the entirety of Ponyville. The mountain held sentimental value for him, as it was the mountain where he and Rarity had fallen, as Spike attempted to make his confession. He brought everything he held of value with him to this cavern that he had clawed out himself. He thought it made a great place to watch his family grow. 

"You know...your grandpa has been around for a long long time, and he's seen many amazing things, but the ones like you, little one, are probably the most amazing thing I've ever seen." Spike said. "You see Ponyville down there?" He held her out over the mountain, up high, where she could take in the massive city in it's entirety. 

"Of course I do grandpa."

"Would you believe me if I told you it used to be a lot smaller?" The young filly turned back to Spike with a confused look. "It's true! In fact, I came here when I was about your age. I was the Twilight Sparkle's number one assistant."

The little unicorn's jaw dropped. "No way!" She said, bouncing excitedly in Spike's palm. 

"It's true. She was the one who hatched me!" Spike gave a chuckle. "She was hardly a 'brilliant wizard' when she started out...but she was very impressive. A little crazy, but brilliant. I remember hearing about her breakthrough the very day it happened. The True Magic of Friendship. A brilliant read, and a remarkable tool in unifying the races of Equestria."

"Unifying?" The filly asked.

"That's right." Spike smiled. "Equestria wasn't as it is nowadays. Ponies were the only ones to live under Celestia's rule." Spike had seen though, that the world was willing to change, and alliances and friendships were made as the years passed by. He had aided in bringing the dragons and ponies together, and it didn't take long for the griffons to join under Willow's guidance. Eventually, the offers of peace and friendship reached to farther corners of the world. The Diamond Dogs were the next to join in on the family, and soon followed the Minotaurs. Stories from the deserts told tales that ponies had made peaceful contact with the highly intelligent Sphinx race in the years to come, and to the east were tales of the Tanuki and Kitsune throwing themselves into this large melting pot. But one that Spike was truly surprised to see, was when the changelings slowly began to be welcomed into Equestria. It took many long years, and intolerance still rang in various parts of the world, but it was happening, just as Celestia had dreamed

It always amazed Spike when he would see another group of creatures work to bring peace to the land. Even when Celestia and Luna had contracted him to act as diplomat to help, he never imagined he would see this much progress in his lifetime. Yes, there was still anger and hostility at points, but Spike and the princesses would always intervene and smooth out the process. There were still many more creatures in the world, but Spike was confident that Celestia's dream was possible.

"You remembering again grandpa Spike?" The young unicorn piped up, catching Spike staring into space again.

"Yes...I do that a lot nowadays." He smiled. "I have a lot of remembering to do if I'm gonna remember all the stories I have to tell them."

"Tell who?"

Spike let out a long sigh. "My oldest friends...My family."

"I thought mama and papa and I were your family." The filly raised an eyebrow high.

"Of course you are young one. I mean my original family. The ones who I grew up with and grew up with me. I've had a truly amazing and tremendous family. Much bigger than most folk could ever keep track of. And I remember each and every one of them." Spike then returned inside the cave, and made his way to a massive tome in the back of the chamber, spread open to it's final page with a large quill resting in a bottle of what little ink it held left. Spike then let the unicorn onto his shoulder so that she might watch, as he turned the pages. Eventually he stopped on a page with the word 'Fluttershy' written in big, thick letters at the very top. "The former Element of Kindness, and the wife of Big Macintosh. I remember how positively adorable she struck me to be. Her love for animals was paralleled only to the love she had for her friends. She brought about great help for the Apple Family supporting five of her own foals who grew to help their father run the orchard, not to mention the fact that they expanded the farm as a natural preserve for wildlife, both magical and natural."

"You knew her too grandpa?" The filly asked in amazement.

"I did indeed. I knew all of the former elements of harmony...but the originals were my dearest friends." Spike turned a few more pages until he came to one titled 'Rainbow Dash.' "The first Element of Loyalty, and nopony wore the title better. Sure she was a little self-centered when we first met, but they all had their weaknesses. To this day, nobody has been able to break her speed record, pony or otherwise. It was her final hurrah before she had to quit competitive flying, and it still holds today. In total, there have been four ponies to ever manage a sonic rainboom, but she was the first. She was strong, and proud, but as she grew older, she became a brilliant coach and an even better partner to the one she loved."

"Applejack! Right grandpa?" The unicorn responded happily.

Spike let out a low laugh that caused  some of the loose scales on his throat to wobble. "That's right." He turned the page and there was her name; 'Applejack.' "Truly, many knew her as the wisest of us. She was stubborn, I won't lie about that, but she was always a pleasure to have around, and always willing to help. Even after Bic Macintosh's children began working the farm, Applejack was working behind the scenes to make sure it all ran smoothly, taking after her own Granny Smith. She made Sweet Apple Acres into what it is today, and provided food all across Equestria. I've yet to meet anyone who worked harder than her. She made excellent use of the pegasi that were brought into her family, allowing her to harvest the orchards quicker and plant the crops faster." Spike brought his tail winding over towards a barrel in the corner of the cavern and wrapped it around an apple, bringing it to his young guest. She graciously accepted the fruit and took a bite out of it. "Best apples you'll ever taste."

Spike returned to the book, flipping through the pages again until he came to the page for 'Twilight Sparkle.' "Element of Magic, the center and leader of the first Elements of Harmony. She was part sister and another part mother to me. We would argue, and fight like any siblings, but she also raised me and cared for me. We took care of one another and went through most everything together. I was nervous when I left her, I wondered how she was going to fare without me. But she did well, and eventually became one of the greatest unicorns to exist, surpassing the knowledge and skill of Starswirl. She kept the best company I could ever think of, with the greatest friends to have lived. She studied directly under the princess, and even found somepony to speak to her on her own level about magical studies."

"The Great and Powerful Trixie!" The filly pronounced, throwing her front hooves into the air in a cheer.

"Indeed, and she let everypony know it." Spike laughed. "But, when she and Twilight met up in their adult years, they came to know one another, and she took a turn for the better. She became just as well known as Twilight, if not more. I think all she ever really wanted was to have ponies enjoy having her around. Surely enough, they came to absolutely adore her when she began putting her talents towards making other ponies shine. Ponies from all around Equestria came looking for Trixie to set up effects and illusions to add to their own performances."

Spike then flipped through ore pages. The next name that he stopped on was 'Pinkie Pie.' "Laughter...there was so much more to her than that though. She was joy itself. Only under the most extreme of circumstances was she never seen smiling. I swear, when I heard she was settling down, I could hardly believe it. She was quite knowledgeable too! She saved the town from a parasprite attack all by herself, and always seemed to know how to solve the most strange and obscure problems we ever came across in her own Pinkie Pie way. She was a great source of wisdom and joy for me, and one of my greatest friends, and happened to be the mother of the first hippogriff when she found a strapping young gryphon who had been eyeing her. She was an individual who made the world better, simply by being in it, with a laugh so contagious, she could bring the entire town to their knees, out of breath."

Spike continued to flip through pages, telling the little filly on his shoulder the stories of the friends he had met. How the Cutie Mark Crusaders went on and made their organization into something that foals around the world could get into, helping them reach self discovery through camps and classes to help stop bullying towards blank flanks. He told her about every member of his family that joined the Wonderbolts, starting with Nail, and the others who went on to become brilliant scholars like Mythic. He recounted the various adventures he and the Elements of Harmony went on, from their stopping Nightmare Moon and Discord, to how he helped to save the Crystal Empire. He let her know how Shining Armor and Princess Cadence were the first ones to stand up for a changeling who was discovered in his village, and how his friend Willow was able to beat Rainbow Dash in a race through the mountains. 

Spike painted images of the stories as he told the in the air with illusions he cast from his claws, showing the filly some of his favorite moments and experiences in life. He went on to tell her about the families his friends had left to grow, and what they were doing. He remembered all the friends he had grown to know and see leave through his long life, and how Celestia, Luna, and even Discord had been there to watch the world grow with him. 

Then Spike came to a page that made him stop. He placed his claw back to his heart. Halved and given as a gift in his youth. "Then there was her. Generosity. I fell for her at first glance. I was always eager to help her, a vision of beauty itself. We had more adventures together than with anybody else. I gave her my heart, and she gave me hers. We felt what the other felt, and loved deeply. She was dedicated, focused, and very very passionate. She was very professional, and yet incredibly fun. We moved into a cave under Canterlot together where we raised our children. She was a trooper...worked behind that counter until she couldn't work anymore. And I mean that quite literally. She started Carousel Boutique with her own hooves, and I know she'd be glad to know that your mother and father are taking good care of it." Spike smiled, feeling a warmth fill him. "The last of the six to leave, and the one that hurt the most. But I continued. And I watched our family and friends grow. Because she'd want to know how everything was going." A single chuckle escaped his old lungs. "She'd be disappointed if I didn't take care of things while she was gone. And she'd let me know it too!"

The little filly looked down at the pages of the book. "Hey grandpa... This chapter is longer than the others."

"Yes...it is...It holds my dearest memories." Spike explained. "She was the one I knew most about, and the one I thought of every day, reliving those happy memories. So I wrote about her...every day."

"But grandpa, isn't that my name?" Spike turned his head to look to the little unicorn filly. She was a snowy white, with a brilliant purple mane and tail, straight and long. He chuckled.

"It is indeed, Rarity. You were named after her, and I know she would love you just as much as I do. It's a name she'd be proud to see given to you." Spike once again held out his claw for the young Rarity to step onto, and brought her to the ground. "Now, your parents should be here soon. Tell them I said hello...and goodbye. I'll see you all again, but not for a while."

"Where are you going grandpa?" 

Spike brought his nose down to level with young Rarity. "To see some old friends of mine, little one. They've been waiting for me very patiently, and I think I've kept them waiting long enough. I have to share my stories with them too, after all. But know that I will always love you, no matter where we are, or what separates us."

Rarity smiled at Spike, and rubbed her face against his nose affectionately. "I love you too grandpa." She then turned and started running toward the cave entrance. She stopped to turn at the last moment. "And happy birthday! Thank you for telling me those stories!" She once again turned, and made her way out of the room. 

Spike smiled after her, and returned to the book, picking up the quill, and turning to the back page, on the final chapter only labeled as 'Spike.' This dragon, lived a life of love and joy, brought to him by the most amazing of friends, and the most loving of family. He lived adventure, and romance. And as his life came to a close, he had to admit, he wouldn't have changed a thing. His life was no less than perfection. He then returned the quill to it's pot, empty of ink, and closed the tome. The cover was adorned with large violet letters, spelling out the title, No Less Than Perfect: The Lives and Stories of Equestria's Finest. At the top of the book, two fire rubies were embedded into the cover. 

Spike mad his way to the entrance of the cave. Rarity and her family had already left, but he was looking for someone else. In the sky, he focused his gaze. He smiled, as the vision of his friends standing together appeared before him, just under the sun. They all looked just as they had when he first met them in Ponyville, hundreds of thousands of years ago. Rarity, was standing there in the front, with Mythic and Nail by her side. "I've missed you all dearly. I've had my fun, and found my stories...but I'd like to come home now." His friends all nodded their heads, and Spike smiled, he could feel himself being lifted, his body returning to what it was in his prime. He stood among them, in front of his love. 

"Welcome back, Spike." Rarity said.

He simply smiled, and hugged her, tears streaming down his face. "I've waited to do this for so long." He then pulled his head back and met her eyes, leaning in and giving her as big a kiss as he could manage. "I have so much to tell you..."