//------------------------------//
// A Golden Offer 
// Story: Oh no, they're Goddesses now! 
// by James Pwyll 
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Spike always enjoyed a good book, especially on a lovely, sunny day such as this. With a gentle breeze on the air, the young god-in-training was eager to learn as much of his responsibilities as he could, and so carefully studied every entry in front of him. Every page was a new tale of some god or goddess that had worked their power upon the world, both the highs and the lows, as well as what lessons there were to be gained from it. It was all fascinating stuff, and he wondered to himself if Twilight had to read the same stuff back when she was his age. A smile crept onto his lips as he ears perked up, hearing well the sound of someone trying to sneak up on him from behind. But, having known this particular someone as well as he had done over the years, there really was no surprising him. "Good afternoon, Sweetie."

Huffing, the small goddess sat beside him, looking rather irritated at his successful guess. "I hate it when I can't surprise you like that!"

Flipping another page, Spike took a moment to pat her on the shoulder in some small measure of condolence. "Maybe next time."

Looking over his shoulder, Sweetie too took an interest in the book he was reading. "Anything good?"

Spike nodded before answering. "I'd say so. Gods we may be, but it's clear from reading this that not every one of us has made the right calls over the centuries. Things done with good intentions suddenly turning bad because they didn't think things through."

Sweetie looked to him with concern. "Are you worried that's what'll happen when it's your turn to start, you know, godding?"

A long sigh from the boy. "Kinda. Barely a day goes by when I don't stop and think about what kind of god I'll be. Or how well I'll do. I have so many people to live up to. Twilight, Sunset, Celestia..."

A giggle from the side caused him to look on with some annoyance at Sweetie. "I'm sorry," Sweetie remarked. "It's just...I don't think it's a good idea for any of us to try and live up to Celestia's standards."

After a moment of thinking about that, Spike chuckled. "Yeah, guess not. Some bars are just too high to reach, you know?" A quiet moment passed between the two, and Spike suddenly contemplated Sweetie's lack of companions this afternoon. "No Bloom or Scoot today?"

Sweetie shook her head. "Nope. They're too busy making goo-goo eyes at one another down by your secret retreat."

Spike rolled his eyes. "Not so secret these days of course." Then, he frowned. "Wait..." With a snap of his fingers, he conjured a sheet of paper, upon which was a schedule of some sort, which he promptly studied carefully. "Is it their turn together today? I could've sworn it was supposed to be Scootaloo and you today."

Sweetie raised an eyebrow to him. "Seriously? You schedule all that?"

Rolling up the parchment, Spike took on a more formal tone. "Well somebody has to. If things are going to work out between the four of us, we need to keep things properly organised."

Hearing that, Sweetie shook her head. "Moving on..." She again looked to the book. "When it finally becomes time for you to take your place as someone the mortals actually worship, what do you think you'll be the god of?"

Spike exhaled deeply, reclining so he was laying flat on his back on the grass, staring at the brilliantly blue sky above. "Hard to say. I guess it could be anything really."

Looking down to him, Sweetie snapped her fingers. "I've got it! How about generosity?"

Spike glanced to her with no small measure of incredulity. "Not to burst your bubble, Sweetie, but that's kind of your sister's thing."

But Sweetie simply waved him off. "I know, I know. But she's so wrapped in other stuff that, you know, one of her roles might slip through the cracks a bit. Maybe not get as much attention."

Thinking on that, Spike sat upright again. "Huh...I guess a lot of gods do have a lot of titles and responsibilities. Spreading things out might not be too bad an idea."

Sweetie clapped her hands together. "There you go! And hey! Maybe you can get some practice in! Show the folks upstairs you've got it in you for something like that ?"

Pondering that, Spike soon gained a small smile. "Huh...not a bad idea actually."

This time, it was Sweetie's turn to pat him on the shoulder. "Alright then, what noble, generous thing can you do, Lord Spike of Generosity?"

Spike's smile grew wider. "Definitely liking the name there." Then, he fell silent for a time as he weighed his options. "Generosity...generosity...there's plenty I could give. We gods aren't exactly limited in what we can bring into the world."

Sweetie nodded in agreement. "Sure, but there's gotta be something you can do. Maybe someone in a really bad situation needs help that only a god can provide? Some magical gift?"

Those words caused Spike's eyes to widen, and he nodded slowly. "Yes...yes! I've got it!" Standing up, He looked down to Sweetie and offered her his hand. "Care to join me for a little divine mission?"

Giggling again, Sweetie accepted the hand. "I most certainly will."

In a flash, the two disappeared from that place, with Spike's book flashing shortly afterwards when the boy suddenly remembered to take it with him. Far away, miles and miles from where they had been, they reappeared, clad instead in more humble, earthly garbs. They were right behind a quaint home, far from the towns. A farmstead. And from around the corner, the two could see an old man toiling away in his fields. His crops were meagre, his hands frail, and overall his situation seemed to be difficult at best. Looking to one another, the children nodded, silently agreeing that this poor fellow needed help. And so, after rubbing his hands together slightly, Spike whispered. "Don't worry, friend. Your life's about to get a whole lot easier."

He pointed straight at the man, his fingers glowing briefly, a clear sign that his power had been unleashed in some way. For a time it looked as though nothing had happened, but then, as the old man knelt down to pick up a small trowel for his next bout of digging, something amazing happened. The trowel instantly changed appearance, and instead of the muddy, wooden tool he had expected, there was now shining gold before his eyes. Stunned, the old man dropped it, not believing what he was seeing. But then, as he slowly drew closer, he tapped the thing, making sure this was no mirage. Sure enough, it was still there, and his face took on a look of delight. "I...I can't believe it! Gold! Real gold!" He fell to both knees, hands clasped together. "Thank ye, o gods! Thank ye kindly!"

"You're very welcome," Spike murmured quietly. 

Unfortunately, his good mood was about to go south, as Sweetie tapped his shoulder to gain his attention. Spike looked to her, seeing a very worried look on her face, before turning again to see what she was looking at. He too began to look on with worry, as the old man suddenly found himself aghast at his own prayer. For as soon as his hands had come together to make that praying motion, the very thing that had happened to his trowel now happened to him as well. He had but a moment to react, as a wave of gold began to surface his entire body. And as it finally reached his neck and head, he had but a second to get out his final words. "...Bugger."

With a loud thud, the now-gilded mortal fell to the ground, leaving only shocked silence as the two young gods looked on with panic at what they had just done. They looked to one another, completely blank-faced and devoid of any ideas on what to do. Then, after thinking long and hard, Spike realised there was only one, proper path for this. "Well...guess it's time to face the music."

Stepping out from behind the farmstead, he cleared his throat, looked up at the sky and clasped his hands together in a similar motion to what the farmer had done. "Um...Twilight? I may need some help here."

The reaction was instantaneous, as a sudden bolt of lightning struck the earth not far from the two, causing their heads to snap in its direction. When the light faded, they saw that it was not only Twilight there, but Rarity as well. And that gave one very clear message. That the two elder deities were well aware of what had happened and, more importantly, who was involved. Sheepishly, Sweetie Belle too emerged from behind the home, and after standing beside Spike for a time, she twiddled her thumbs before looking to her sister. "So...can you help him?"

Rarity glanced to the still-golden mortal, then frowned to her younger sibling. "We can," she said firmly.

Twilight, adjusting her glasses, kept her gaze firmly on Spike. "And then we're going to have a long, long talk."

Leaning over to Spike, Sweetie kept her voice to a whisper. "Kinda wish I had spent the day with Scootaloo now."