//------------------------------//
// Chapter 16: 20 Years Later 
// Story: A Secret Admirer 3: Spike's Sacrifice (AU) 
// by 1jckuhn 
//------------------------------//

OCTOBER 12, 2039, PRESENT DAY

It had been 20 years since the events of the Canterlot battle, Twilight was paid a visit by her new student, Luster Dawn, because she had a few questions about what was the true meaning of friendship and what was the point of it all. To help her out, Twilight, who had just mastered the spell that shows her friends and herself to Spike on the heaven portal, had gathered all her friends together, Cozy and Cobalt included, to tell Luster the story of how Spike saved Equestria in exchange of his own life. They believed this story was just the thing to help Luster back on the right path, because they could all use the lessons they learned from Spike's sacrifice and pass it on down to her. They had also gotten a hold of Spike and his parents on the heaven portal, because they felt he knew exactly what to say to fully help her back on the right path.

Physically, Twilight now looked almost exactly like Princess Celestia She wore a golden crown, a golden breastplate, and four golden shoes for her hooves. However, not much had changed about the others physically. Rainbow Dash now wore a Wonderbolt jacket, and her rainbow-colored mane was now sticking up, resembling a mohawk. Rarity's mane and tail now had a grey stripe running down the middle of it and she wore a large, blue fur coat with a white collar. Applejack now wore a bandana on her neck with apples printed on it and her blonde tail was braided. Pinkie Pie's mane was in a giant poof on the back of her head. Fluttershy's mane was in a ponytail. Starlight now wore a dark pink shirt with a white undershirt with a purple skirt. As she was the new Principal of the School of Friendship, she wanted to look her best. Her mane and tail remained the same. The Crusaders were much bigger now as well. Scootaloo was also able get really good at flying in the last few years and her top speed matched Rainbow Dash's. Sweetie Belle wore a pair of diamond earrings and Apple Bloom wore a cowboy hat similar to that of her older sister's. Smolder had grown at least another two feet taller and was now a little taller than Ember. Gabby wore a purple bandana and a sunhat. Cozy now wore a sunhat also and a burgundy vest, but her mane remained the same as it did 20 years ago. Cobalt wore the same baseball hat, just in a bigger size and he had a small goatee. His mane, like Cozy's, remined the same. Garble had grown another half foot and had fully turned himself around. Discord, however seemed unchanged. Only a mustache that hung from both sides of his face was the only thing that was new.

"And that, Luster Dawn, is the story of how Spike saved Equestria," Twilight Sparke finished.

"Wow," Luster Dawn said. "I guess friendship really is magic. Spike was a true hero that day."

"Heh," Spike chuckled on the heaven portal. "Well, it wasn't really that hard for me to choose. My lovers were in trouble, and I wasn't about to leave them hanging. It was so much more than just saving them, however. I had made friends with other rulers of different species. There was Ember, who's walls I successfully melted, and I had helped throne her the new Dragon Lord. Then there was Thorax, who's kind was originally feared due to them sucking love from creatures so their Queen and they could feed off of it in their hive. When I saw, Cozy, Tirek, and Chrysalis powering up that blast and seeing my marefriends' horrified looks thinking that was it for them, the thought of not just them, but also every creature in Equestria, dying or submitting at the hands of those power-hungry fiends hit me like a loaded freight train. It motivated me to throw everything aside just for them. I explicitly remember all my pain suddenly disappearing and everything moved about a mile an hour in my eyes."

"Just goes to show you what type of person Spike is," Rainbow Dash said. "Lightning Dust even told me the kid's got enough guts to become a washout."

"Quite right, Rainbow," Rarity added. "Our Spike does do everything he can to please us."

"That's an understatement," chuckled Smolder.

"But why did you forgive Cozy Glow?" Luster asked. "I understand she was mentally-ill at the time, but certainly I would've never met anyone who would've forgiven someone who tried to kill them. I have the same question about Discord, as well. He set this whole thing up."

Cozy winced slightly. Even though she had been on the right path for over 20 years, reminders of when she was evil still hurt her deeply. The same could be said for Discord as well. He didn't want to think about what he did to cause the death of his close friend either, even if Spike had forgiven him for it.

"Ah, that," Spike said. "I was watching over every single event from up above in the heavens and I overheard Tirek confessing to Twilight of how he met and manipulated Cozy. It filled me with anger and disgust hearing it. Yet, at the same time, I realized that Cozy was not a bad pony, she was an emotionally broken pony who was drug down the wrong path by someone who was determined to bring us to our knees by any means necessary. While I was thinking that, another thought hit me. When we were interrogating Tirek in Tartarus, we should've pressed him further and make him crack about how exactly he had met Cozy. There's no doubt in my mind that if we went with that option, Cozy would've been reformed sooner, the Legion would've been a lot weaker, and we would've had a lot less carnage. When we sent her to Tartarus, I believed that made her straddle the line between insane and normal. Then I was suddenly summoned here by Luna and Celestia because they mastered a spell that was originally thought to have been a myth for thousands of years. They filled me in on what happened and told them not to charge Cozy Glow with anything because I believed that I could reach into her and reveal the good in her. I wanted to talk to her personally. When I did see her, not only did she seem remorseful, but I could, no joke, see her soul in those scarlet eyes and it seemed broken. Cozy had promised me that she'd be a better pony, and true to her word, she did. She passed all her classes with flying colors. Twilight even said it was as if she knew as much about friendship as she did. She didn't go to school alone, however, her best friend, Cobalt Blitz, also went with her, just make sure that she would be okay. By the end of her first day back at school, I knew, without a doubt I had made the right call with forgiving her. There's a lesson to be learned from Cozy, Luster. You may meet someone who's a bully and may try to act tough on the outside, but on the inside, they may act like that because they are broken or, like Cozy, were drug down the wrong path and extorted for someone else's nefarious purposes. As for Discord, I knew he wanted to help us, not hurt us. I did know about his whole plan about how he wanted to give Twilight and the others a confidence boost so that they could be ready to rule over Equestria together, but that wasn't the only reason he did it. I overheard him saying that his plan also revolved around reforming Cozy because he didn't like seeing her get sent to Tartarus. He even offered her an honorable apology at the School of Friendship for what he had put her through. Plus, he also managed to free all of us in one go, just by antagonizing Tirek. I have to say, those two are getting along just fine and I'm proud of both of them for their performance from what I've seen up in heaven. My parents feel the same way."

Cozy felt tears of pride welling up in her eyes. 20 years later and Spike's opinion of her had never soured. She still vividly remembered seeing Spike's soul when she first looked into his eyes at the hospital. Discord also teared up with pride listening to his best friend as well.

"Oh," Tyson said. "We're not just proud of them, we're also proud of you too, son."

"Quite right," Kimba agreed. "Our little boy has grown up so much. He truly is someone to take notes on."

"I saw Spike's soul in his eyes too," Cozy added. "It was literally looking right at me and silently saying, "You're going to be okay, now. I promise"."

Luster was amazed.

"Wow," she said. "I really hope I meet someone just like Spike. He could really guide me through all hard times with ease. Who knows? Maybe I could fall in love with him the way you all fell in love with Spike. Before I met all of you, I never thought about friendship being something to work at, and I don't mind work. I guess if they don't have to fade away, maybe making friends isn't the waste of time I thought. But I've been so focused on my studies, I wouldn't know where to start."

"That's all right, because I know exactly where to send you," Twilight said kindly. "It's a little place called Ponyville. There, I too learned the true meaning of friendship. I have no doubt in my mind that it will do the same for you too."

***

The Magic of Friendship grows

[ Twilight Sparkle]

When I started out, I was unsure
I thought I knew all that I needed, didn't know what to expect
But when my walls came down, I saw the truth
All along something was missing
And I think you'll see it, too

This is where the magic happens
This is where the magic lives
Our friendships weave together stronger
The bonds grow deeper, lasting longer
And the greatest spell you'll know
Is how the Magic of Friendship grows

[ Pinkie Pie]

And no matter how much time goes by
The party will still be here with some fun new games to try

[ Rainbow Dash]

Big adventure's waiting obviously
Long as we're still here together
We'll be flying happily

[Twilight, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash]

This is where the magic happens (where the magic happens)
This is where the magic lives (where the magic lives)
Our friendships weave together stronger
The bonds grow deeper, lasting longer
And the greatest spell there is
What the Magic of Friendship gives

[ Applejack]

And it's somethin' true to pass on down
To generations yet to come

[ Rarity]

And we'll never stop believing in
The generosity of the friendships we've won

[ Fluttershy]

And because the love that I feel
For every single living creature is something that is real
Friendship happens so naturally

[ Twilight Sparkle]

Oh, and how I used to wonder

[Choir]

(Ahhh-ahhh-ahhh...)

[ Twilight Sparkle]

What friendship could be!

[All]

This is where the magic happens (where the magic happens)
This is where the magic lives (where the magic lives)
Our friendships weave together stronger
The bonds grow deeper, lasting longer
And the greatest spell you'll know (you'll know)
Is how the Magic of Friendship grows

[ Twilight Sparkle]

How the Magic of Friendship grows

***

TIME SKIP

Spike, Tyson, and Kimba, Spike's harem, Garble, Discord, Cozy, Cobalt, and Luster were now in Ponyville and were getting ready to send Luster off.

Twilight and Luster parted ways after they gave each other a quick nuzzle. Luster ran off to join her friends, but not before waving goodbye to the 17 creatures and three angel dragons. She seemed to be fitting in just fine already.

"She's learning quick," Spike said.

"Yep," Rainbow Dash said. "Just like Twilight."

THE END