//------------------------------// // Legacy // Story: The Legend of Spike: Legacy // by DiabloGuapo //------------------------------// It was early afternoon when they arrived back in Ponyville. The combined magical talent of Twilight Sparkle, Midnight, and Amethsyt allowed the group to teleport from the Macintosh Hills to their home halfway across Equestria. Teleporting magic was fairly complex, but each three of the casters were experts, having been trained by Princess Celestia herself. One moment, they were on the rocky road in the mountains, and in a sparkling flash of magic, they were standing on a grassy hill overlooking Ponyville. Though he had only been gone for a few days, everything felt different for Spike. The cozy little town seemed smaller, and he figured it was due to his new size. He had grown so much much since the day he and Twilight moved to the town over twenty-five years ago. During that time, he and his friends have been on so many adventures. Some were exciting while others were terrifying, but they managed to make it through each one of them together. For such a peaceful and unassuming-looking town, it quite disaster prone. The homes and businesses have been damaged and repaired so many times that Spike wondered if any of the town's original buildings were still intact. For instance, Applejack's farmhouse at Sweet Apple Acres was torn down and rebuilt so many times that it seemed they would throw a barn raising party every other month. Speaking of which, Spike and Rarity's home, Carousel Boutique, had to undergo renovations itself and probably would need some more now that he had grown again. The others made their way down the hill and the dragon followed after them. As he walked down, he looked over to see a plot of land on an adjacent hill that was covered with tombstones. Spike paused when he saw the cemetery, reflecting upon an old memory. Rarity noticed her husband wasn't at her side and looked back to see him looking over the cemetery. She knew his history with the site and walked back to see if he was alright. The others noticed Rarity turn back and they stopped when they too realized what was going on. “Spike? Darling, are you alright?” she asked, the concern evident in her voice. Spike didn't answer her immediately and continued to gaze upon the cemetery with an unreadable expression. After looking for a few more seconds in silence, he turned and smiled before saying, “Yes, I'm fine. Everything is just fine.” He then started walking again and they continued onward. While walking, Amethyst cast a look back at the cemetery. When they reached the bottom of the hill, they saw Cheese Sandwich, Soarin, Big Macintosh, Apple Seed, and Cherry Pie waiting for them. They also saw Princess Celestia and Princess Luna standing behind them, smiling gently as the families ran to each other. Each family group embraced each other and cried out in a mixture of laughter and tears of relief. Midnight, Surprise, Posey, Thunderbolt, Sour Apple, and Amethyst recounted their story of how they were captured and how Evening Star came to free them from their prison. They also told of how they found Spike and how he rained fiery vengeance upon the changelings for threatening them and all of Equestria. The two Alicorn Sisters listened intently to their tale even though Twilight had already sent them a letter explaining everything via Spike's magical fire breath. However, they wanted to hear about the experience from everypony that was involved. When the teenagers brought up that Prince Narcissus was the one that betrayed them to Chrysalis, they were reminded of the unconscious Unicorn that Spike was carrying on his back. Spike reached back and placed the Prince on the ground before Celestia and Luna, who looked down at him. Luna looked down at him with disdain, disgusted that he would betray his own country and his own family in a bid for power, but Celestia looked down at him with disappointment. While her sister had always been annoyed by his arrogance, Celestia believed in giving ponies chances to prove themselves. She had hoped that she could change him and help him become a noble prince, but that dream was now crushed. Over the millennia, she had seen ponies rise to greatness and she had seen ponies fall from grace. She has also seen those that were once considered unredeemable rise the darkness and once again walk in the light. Unfortunately, Narcissus has shown his true colors; he was greedy coward that was willing to sell his fellow ponies into slavery so that he could obtain power. He was no different than Lord Tirek, King Sombra, or Queen Chrysalis. Chyrsalis... the white Alicorn thought about the Changeling Queen. She looked from Narcissus on the ground to Spike, who was rejoicing along the others. She smiled from seeing their unmatched joy and loathed to interrupt, but there was still pressing matters to address. “...and then Spike took after her and...” Thunderbolt enthusiastically narrated. “I apologize for interrupting, but may I speak to your parents alone?” Celestia requested while interjecting. “Why? What's wrong, Aunt Celestia?” Midnight asked. “Nothing's wrong,” she reassured them while smiling and slightly shaking her head. “We just need to do a debriefing.” “Well, we were there too,” Thunderbolt pointed out. “Shouldn't be here for the debriefing?” “That's alright, Thunderbolt, but you all have had quite the stressful experience. I don't want you to have dwell on it any longer than you need to.” “Yeah, but...” Thunderbolt started to counter, but Sour Apple intercepted. “She's right. Ah'm plum tuckered out,” the green Earth Pony agreed with the Princess. “Besides, we have a party throw!” Surprise added cheerfully. “I'm not sure that's the best idea, Surprise,” Posey said to her friend. “After all we been through, maybe Amethyst isn't up for a party right now.” “But...” Surprise, Pinkie Pie, Cheese Sandwich, and Cherry Pie all said together in disappointment, their eyes watering up at the idea of postponing a party. “Thank you, Posey, but it's okay,” Amethyst told her. “I think we all need this party.” “Are you sure? I mean, are you up for it?” Fluttershy asked, agreeing with her daughter. “I'm sure,” she reassured them and then pointed to the pouting faces of Pinkie Pie's family. “Besides, they've worked so hard to put this all together. We don't want to disappoint them now, do we?” Seeing the overgrown, teary eyes and the quivering lips on the faces of the party ponies, Posey smiled and said, “Well, if you're up for it.” “Yeah!” the family of hyperactive ponies cheered before grabbing the birthday kirin, lifting her onto Cheese and Surprise's backs, and raced down the road to Sugar Cube Corner. Amethyst only managed to let out a surprised yelp during the process, and the other children ran after them. Big Macintosh and Soarin followed after them, leaving the Element Bearers, Spike, Evening Star, Flash Sentry, and the Princesses in the middle of town square. Wanting some privacy from any onlooking pony, the group entered Twilight's castle. A gathering of royals and national heroes would have certainly gained some attention before long. They entered the crystalline palace and walked down the halls to set of doors made out of green gems. Opening the doors, they entered a circular room that had seven white thrones, six of them bearing the cutie marks of the Elements of Harmony. The six Element Bearers took their respective seats while Luna and Celestia sat on either end of the circle, conjuring large floor cushions to sit on. Evening Star and Flash Sentry took a seat on the floor on either side of Twilight's throne. Spike placed Narcissus on the crest of an eight-pointed star in the center before laying on the floor on the outside of the circle of thrones, much too big to sit on his own throne. “So what should we do with him?” Rainbow Dash asked while pointing to the young stallion on the floor. “Ah say let Spike roast him like he did that bug that dared to harm mah baby!” Applejack angrily suggested, making her hatred for the traitor obvious. Two streams of smoke rose from the dragon's nostrils, willing to comply to the farmer's idea. “I think enough blood has already been shed today,” Celestia said in an effort to calm the enraged parents. “We will deal with him in due time. As for now, we need to discuss what happened. Actually, Applejack, you brought up something I want to address with Prince Spike.” Hearing his name, the dragon rose his head over the thrones to look at the solar Alicorn. “Yes, Celestia?” Celestia's brow furrowed a bit as she gathered her thoughts on how she wanted to phrase her concerns. “Spike, I'm not quite sure how to feel about what happened, especially how you handled the situation.” “Celestia, I...” he started to say, but she held up a hoof. “Please allow me to finish. I understand you were angry that they had kidnapped your daughter and your sister. I know that they were planning to invade Equestria, but I question the extremes you went to. You massacred an entire hive of changelings. Please understand, I'm not angry at you, I'm just troubled by the course of action you took. Evening Star had effectively disarmed Chrysalis's plan. The children were out of harm's way and were able to find their parents before they could fall into her trap.” “Sister, to speak in his defense, what if they were unable to locate them in time? Even with Prince Flash's assistance, the probability of them avoiding being capture without Prince Spike's help would have been unlikely. And if she had fed on all of the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony, she may have had the power to challenge us.” “Not to mention that our forces are on the border of the Badlands awaiting the minotaurs. We would have been completely exposed,” Flash Sentry said. “That is true,” Celestia agreed. “And I can agree it was for the best that he did make a preemptive attack on them, but what concerns me was that, according to all of your accounts, Chrysalis was fleeing.” Hearing this reminder, they all looked uncomfortably at the ground, remembering the sound of her screams as Spike incinerated her. “Spike, killing should always the last solution. When the Nightmare Forces took over Luna, I didn't slay her nor did we slay Discord or Sombra when they threatened Equestria.” “What about when Sombra returned?” Spike countered. “The first time, he was destroyed by the Crystal Heart. The second time, I did it myself.” “Yes, this is true, but difference this time is that Chrysalis was fleeing. She was already defeated.” “But she would have returned eventually. She even vowed that she return and she would have her revenge.” “He's right. We all heard her say that,” Twilight confirmed and the others nodded in agreement. This caused Celestia to pause and think some more about the matter. Luna, having more of an affinity for war than her sister, said, “Celestia, you know that in times of war, it is a credible strategy to prevent the enemy from regrouping to form a counter attack, which she was planning to do. She wasn't helpless, she didn't surrender, and we both know that she would have followed through with her promise to invade again.” “You're right,” the elder sister relented while sighing before turning back to the purple dragon. “However, I want to make sure you always remember this, Spike; always try to take the peaceful path first and only resort to violence when all other options have been exhausted.” “I will,” he responded. There was a moaning sound and Prince Narcissus started to stir. “It looks like somepony is waking up,” Pinkie Pie said, her usual happy tone missing from her voice. She, like her friends, were less than thrilled by having him endanger their children. He opened his eyes and slowly tried to raise himself up, but shouted in surprise when his body was pulled back to the ground by the grip of a dark blue magical aura. “Prince Narcissus,” Luna addressed the traitor in the Royal Canterlot Voice while restraining him with her magic. “You have a lot to answer for!” “What is this? I demand you let me go!” the white Unicorn stallion shouted as he struggled under the blue magical restraints. “Be silent!” Everyone flinched in surprise and turned their heads to Celestia for they had never before heard her use the booming traditional voice. “Prince Narcissus, I have watched you your entire life. I've tried to steer you in the right direction. I've given you countless opportunities to prove yourself and restore honor to your house. I wanted you to prove to all of Equestria that you were a true prince, but you wasted the chances you have been given and betrayed everypony. And for what? A throne? A crown? These things you could have been yours if you had only let me guide you.” Narcissus then contemptuously chuckled at her and cast a glare over at Twilight Sparkle while sneering, “You mean discover the 'magic of friendship' like that usurper on that throne? What utter nonsense. Just because she made some friends does not make her a true princess. If making friends is all it takes to become an Alicorn Princess, why don't you just make everypony in Equestria one!? Everyone is a princess! Bah! I should be sitting on that throne! I was born to be a ruler! You're just a peasant!” He then turned to Rarity, Flash Sentry, and Evening Star. “All of you! You have your titles because of a lie!” He then turned to the dragon that was glowering at him. “And you're just a monster and your daughter is a freak!” There was a streak of blue and something hard collided with the belligerent Unicorn's jaw, knocking him over. His mouth throbbing with pain, he looked up to see that it was Rainbow Dash's hoof that had knocked him down. The cyan Pegasus panted with rage and was about to hit him again when Fluttershy came up and grabbed onto her hoof. Just as Posey restrained Thunderbolt from harming him, their mothers now reenacted the scene from earlier that day. “Let me at him!” Rainbow Dash yelled. “Please, Rainbow Dash. Don't sink to his level,” Fluttershy urged her. “His level!? His level is below dirt! Even if I pounded him into next week, I still won't even come close to his level!” “That's enough, Rainbow Dash,” Celestia calmly intervened. The Wonderbolt snort, but took her seat again. “Then what are we going to do with him?” she grumbled as she sat down. “And what about the minotaurs?” asked Flash Sentry. “Evening Star and I need to get back to lead the soldiers.” “That's right. They'll be at our borders soon,” Evening Star confirmed. “At least we don't have to worry about fight two battles at once.” Flash's statement sparked something in Twilight's mind and she started to come up with a theory. “Wait. Does anypony else find it very coincidental that the changelings were planning on invading the same time the minotaurs were?” she asked. “That's right. Our children told us that their plan was to invade while the soldiers were distracted by the minotaurs,” Rarity said, also seeing the connection. “A plan like this would take some time to organize. I can't imagine Chrysalis just sitting around waiting for an enemy army to invade in order to carry out her plan. No, she took matters into her own hooves.” “Although Chieftain Thickskull only recently took command of the United Minotaur Tribes, he was friendly towards our Kingdom until a sudden change in his behavior a few days before the raids began,” Celestia recalled. She then looked back down at the bounded Narcissus. “That's it, isn't it? Chrysalis bewitched him, didn't she?” Narcissus scowled and looked down at the floor in defeat, confirming their suspicions. “Well, that's good, ain't it?” Applejack asked. “Don't spells like that end when the one who cast them are no longer around?” “That's right,” Twilight confirmed. “Without a caster to maintain the enchantment, the spell should end.” “Regardless, we need to go back to make sure,” said Flash. “I agree. Thickskull may have been bewitched into attacking, but he is too stubborn to turn back now, even if he's been released from the spell,” Celestia told them. “Perhaps there is a way to end this fight before it even begins,” Spike suggested. He grinned and turned to Celestia. “I suggest we take the 'peaceful path'. If it works, we'll all be back in time for Amethyst's party.” “What do you have in mind?” Evening Star asked. “Oh, you'll see.” “Very well. And as for you,” Celestia spoke down at Narcissus. “I charge you with high treason against the crown and the Kingdom of Equestria. All those agree, raise your hoof or claw.” One by one, the hooves (and claw in Spike's case) of the Royal Family and the Council of Friendship rose in agreement. “Prince Narcissus of the House of Blueblood, this council finds you guilty. I hereby sentence you to imprisonment for life.” Celestia brought her hoof down, sealing his fate. The condemned Prince said nothing as the council disbanded and Luna and Celestia teleported away with him. ***** On the dry, dusty grounds of the Badlands, lines of pony soldiers stood ready for battle. The sound of marching hooves were heard as they saw the large, bulky bodies of the minotaurs come over the hill to meet them in combat. The horned bipeds carried battle axes, war hammers, pole arms, and spears as the marched forward. Their coats were covered in war paint and they wore armored padding on their bodies. Leading them was their Chieftain, Thickskull. He carried a large, two-handed morning star and red tribal markings were painted on his face and carved horns. As he drew closer to the ponies, he saw three figures descend from the sky and land halfway between the opposing armies. He recognized the central lavender pony as Princess Twilight and the orange and purple stallions beside her from their negotiations the week before. Apparently, they were wanting to try to talk him out of his decision to invade one last time. Laughing to himself, he decided to humor them and held up a hand, halting his army. He then walked out to meet them. “Ah, the little Pony Princess,” he mocked as he approached them. “Chieftain Thickskull,” she greeted, bowing an inch to show some courtesy. “I see Celestia is still afraid to meet me in combat. How long is she going to hide behind her errand girl?” Twilight groaned a bit at the insult, but calmed herself and said, “I'll give you one last warning. Turn back now and swear you will leave our Kingdom in peace.” Thickskull roared in raucous laughter and turned around to face his forces. “She wants us turn back after we came all this way and leave them in peace!” The battlefield was filled with the sound of hundreds of minotaurs laughing at the Alicorn, and Thickskull turned back around to face her once more. “I think not. How about this instead? You bow down to me right now and let me chop off your horn and I'll let you keep your wings. Or you can try to defy me and I'll take it by force. Either way, I'll be taking the throne of Equestria and I will have my crown of Alicorn horns.” “So be it,” she told him. “If really you want to fight, I have another offer; we each choose one champion to fight in behalf of our nations. They will fight in single combat. If my champion wins, you must swear to leave in peace. If your champion wins, Celestia, Luna, Cadance, and I will surrender. We won't resist and we'll even let you make a crown out of our horns. Either way, we will prevent any further battles. No lives have to be lost.” “You are willing to gamble your country's freedom on the outcome of one duel?” he asked, hardly believing what she was suggesting. “Do you accept, or are you afraid to lose?” she goaded him on. “I'm not scared to do battle with one little pony!” he boasted. “I'll fight your champion myself! Let them face me here and now! I'm ready!” “Very well. Your opponent shall be my firstborn,” she told him, grinning up at him. Thickskull looked down at Evening Star, assuming she meant the Purple Pegasus. The gray minotaur snorted and then laughed, gripping his weapon tighter. Twilight then turned around and looked up to the sky. “SPIKE!” Thickskull hesitated when he saw her call up to the sky and looked up, expecting to see another Pegasus or even an Alicorn. High above them, he saw a dark figure circling the battlefield. From ground, he could barely make out the outline of the figure's flapping wings and then saw it dive down towards them. As the silhouette approached them, it became larger, much larger than any pony should be. The wings were like a bat's and it had a long, serpentine neck and tail. Thickskull's eyes widen as he realized what he was looking at, and before he could react, a large, purple dragon with green spines landed on the ground between the Chieftain and the ponies. Spike raised himself up onto his hind legs, fanned out his green wings, and came crashing back down with a roar. Thickskull screamed like a heifer and ran back to his army. He barreled through the lines in his desperate attempt to get away, knocking anyone over that got in his away. Stunned, the other minotaurs looked from their retreating commander and back to Spike. When they saw the dragon breathe green flames into the air, they followed Thickskull's example and stampeded away. ***** Amethyst and her friends chortled with laughter as Twilight told them how Thickskull ran away without a fight after seeing Spike. Thunderbolt and Sour Apple held their sides and Surprise had fallen to the floor, kicking her legs in the air as she screamed with laughter. Even Princess Celestia gave a hearty laugh as she listened. “You...You should have seen his face!” Evening Star gasped between laughs. “All's well that ends well,” Twilight said as they calmed down, wiping the tears from their eyes. “Now that was a treat,” Amethyst said. “Too rich.” “I'd say,” Midnight agreed. “Now that we don't have to worry about any changelings or minotaurs invading, we can enjoy the party in peace.” The party was taking place in Ponyville Square and ponies from all over came to attend. After all, a Princess of Equestria was having a birthday party and was being thrown by Pinkie Pie and Cheese Sandwich. The town was filled with booming music, bright lights of all colors, and confetti. The family and friends of the birthday kirin were seated at a long table, all of them wearing party hats, even Princesses Celestia and Luna. At the head of table was Amethyst with her friends at her sides. The parents sat at the other end with Celestia and Luna and Amethyst's grandparents, Twilight Velvet and Night Light. Due to his size, Spike lounged behind the table and ate a pile of gems that was brought to him. When Pinkie gave them and nod, she disappeared with Cheese and their daughters, but then returned moments later driving around the corner in parade floats. Leading the parade was Pinkie in a Rarity float, followed by Cheese in a Spike float, and then by Surprise and Cherry in an Amethyst float. The white scaled kirin gasped in delight when she saw the floats and then laughed when they launched candy out of their tops. “Do you like it?” Pinkie yelled over roar of the crowd as they rushed forward to grab the candy. “We call it 'the Pinata Party Pony Parade'!” “I love it!” Amethyst shouted back as she grabbed pieces of candy with her claws. “Wait until you see the cake the Cakes helped us make!” “Oh geez...” she said as she shook her head with amusement when she saw the Cakes wheel out a towering white, purple, and green cake. When they saw multilayer cake, everypony starred up at the ten foot tall culinary colossus. “Is that a...” Fluttershy stammered as her mouth watered. “Marzipan Mascarpone Meringue Madness!” they all exclaimed as they identified the tasty tower of sweetness. They sang “Happy Birthday” to Amethyst and served out the cake. “Thank you, everypony. I don't know what could make this party better than it already is,” Amethyst told them. “How about a visit from your aunt?” a voice asked, and she turned to see a white Unicorn mare with a two-toned, pink and purple mane. “It's Sweetie Belle!” a foal announced from the crowd, recognizing the famous singer. Along with her were two other mares; a yellow Earth Pony with a red mane and orange Pegasus with a purple mane. Amethyst, Thunderbolt, Sour Apple, Apple Seed, Cherry Pie, Surprise, Midnight, and Posey got up from their seats and ran to hug their old friends. “Sweetie Belle! Scootaloo! Apple Bloom! What are you three doing here?” Amethyst esthetically asked as she hugged Sweetie Belle. “Did you really think we'd miss this?” Scootaloo asked as she hugged Thunderbolt. “We wouldn't miss it for the world,” Apple Bloom claimed as she tussled Apple Seed's mane. “Look who else who came,” Sweetie Belle said as pointed to a white Unicorn and two pink Alicorns. “Shining Armor! Cadance! Flurry Heart!” Amethyst almost couldn't take it all in. She ran to the Prince and Princess of the Crystal Empire and their daughter. Flurry Heart looked very similar to her mother, except her coat a lighter pink and her mane was purple and blue. Like her mother and Aunt Twilight, she was an Alicorn. Though their mother was an Alicorn, Midnight and Evening Star were a Unicorn and a Pegasus. It was expected that Midnight would join her mother in Alicorn Ascension once she was ready. With all of her family and friends surrounding her, Amethyst couldn't be happier. Sweetie Belle took a microphone and treated the audience to a free concert. The crowd roared in excitement and cheered. The teenagers rushed to in front of the stage and began to dance along with the upbeat music. When the famous singer began to sing softer songs, they began to slow dance. Spike looked over to his friends and saw that Twilight was being led to the dance floor by her husband, as were Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie. Spike rose up and made his way to Rarity. “My lady, may I have this dance?” he asked as he held out his claw. She looked at and saw it was nearly the size of her entire body. “I'm afraid we might be pass the time for dancing,” she lamented. She then gave a mildly surprised cry as Spike scooped her up in the crook of one of his fore legs. “We'll never be pass the time for dancing,” he reassured her, smiling at her. She smiled back and wrapped her fore legs around his neck. Since her rear hooves couldn't reach the ground, Spike simulated the motions of a waltz by swaying slowly side to side. As they danced, they looked to the other dancers and were reminded of their wedding. Sweetie Belle was singing and they were dancing along with their friends, though a few new faces now joined the dance. They giggled when they saw the little colts nervously approach the young fillies. Thunderbolt was sweating bullets as he approached the dinner table. Posey was still sitting, bobbing her head along to the beat as she enjoyed the tune. When he reached her, he cleared his throat and she looked up at him. “Hey Posey. Mind if we talked?” he asked hesitantly. “Not at all,” she sweetly answered and he took a seat beside her. “What's on your mind?” “I've been thinking ever since yesterday.” “Yesterday? You mean when we were being held captive?” “Well...yes. Especially about how the Changeling Queen tried to brainwash us.” “Oh,” she replied, remembering the awful experience. “When she zapped me with her spell... I saw something,” he slowly told her. “I saw something too. She got to both of us before Midnight stopped her.” “I saw thing...nice. I was with someone.” “Same here,” she whispered, looking away from him. “What...Who did you see?” “...You.” She snapped her head up to see his troubled face. “I was with you. I don't know if it was something she saw in my mind or something she put there, but I was happy. I know it was a lie, but I wanted it to be true.” Posey then whispered something he couldn't make out. “What was that?” “Do...Do you really mean that?” she said a little louder, her face hidden behind her vale of pink hair. He was quiet as he thought about her question. It may have all just been a ploy Chrysalis used to manipulate him. “Yes,” he finally replied adamantly, causing her to look into his eyes. Her own teal eyes were starting to fill with tears and her cheeks turned red. “Yes, I do.” She couldn't hold back the tears and she leaped towards him, throwing her fore legs around him. She happily sobbed into his chest as he held her, stroking her mane. “I...I saw you too,” she admitted. “She may have been trying to trick us, but I was so happy! When it was over, when we woke up, I felt empty! For a moment, I felt something wonderful, but then it was taken from me.” “I don't know if these feelings are our own or not, but I want to give a try.” She nodded in agreement. She then wiped her eyes and regained her composure. They sat in awkward silence after that intense moment they shared, not knowing how to proceed from there. Thunderbolt then looked over to the dancing ponies and then turned back to Posey. “Would you care to dance?” “I'd love to,” she answer as she took his hoof that he extended to her and followed him to dance floor. As the dance continued, Spike noticed Thunderbolt with Posey and pointed them out to Rarity. “Would you look at that?” “If you think that something, look over there,” she said to him. Looking in the other direction, he saw Surprise telling Sour Apple a joke and he was laughing mirthfully. “Pound Cake isn't but a step away from her and she hasn't even looked in his direction once this entire evening.” “Do you think she's over her crush on him?” “Maybe it's for the best. After all, look how happy she's making Sour.” She then recalled something from earlier. “When we got back, I noticed you looking at the cemetery again. Were you thinking about what you saw a long time ago?” When Spike had traveled to the parallel world of Trotina, he had seen a vision of the future. For years, the experience had haunted him. In the vision, he saw everypony he cared about grow old and die before him. “I was, but it's not what you think,” he reassured her. “I was noticing what parts of the vision have come true and what parts haven't.” “Like what?” “Well, for instance, you and I are married. In the vision, you had married Count High N'Mighty.” “Oh, him,” she said, rolling her eyes. “I had almost forgotten about him, but I suppose he is responsible for bring us together. If it wasn't for the awful experience with him, I may have never realized how much I cherished our relationship.” “Twilight did become a member of the Royal Family, though I didn't know she would become an Alicorn,” he continued. He looked back at Surprise and smiled. “I saw her.” “Who? Surprise?” Spike nodded to her question. “She comforted me and offered to be my friend when I thought I had lost all my friends. She taught me that though my friends may leave me one day, I will be with them again.” He remembered the words she had used. “She said, 'Don’t think of it as 'goodbye', think of it as 'see you later'.'” “That's a wonderful way to think of it,” she told him. “We should all think of it that way.” “Yes, but we still don't have to worry about for a long time.” He looked among the crowd and saw his mother, Twilight Sparkle, dancing with Flash Sentry. Applejack was smiling proudly as she watched Sour Apple dance with Surprise. Rainbow Dash and Soarin were similarly watching Thunderbolt dance with Posey while Fluttershy and Big Macintosh reflected on how they hooked up at a dance like this one. Pinkie Pie and Cheese Sandwich had joined Sweetie Belle on stage and Scootaloo and Apple Bloom were entertaining Cherry Pie and Apple Seed with stories of when they were Cutie Mark Crusaders. “Even when it's time to say good bye, I'll still have our friends' children.” “And our daughter,” Rarity reminded him, motioning towards the kirin with the violet mane. Rarity and Spike saw that their beloved daughter, Amethyst, was socializing with Midnight and Evening Star, happy that they could share that day with her. Seeing her having the time of her life meant everything to them. “And then their children.” “And their children's children.” “Soon enough, I'll have a whole nation of descendants running around,” he mused. “I'll never be lonely.” “Yes, but that can wait. Right now, let's dance.” Sharing a smile, they continued their improvised waltz. As they danced the night away, Spike still thought about what he had. He had a family that loved him; a darling wife, a precious daughter, and an extended family and circle of friends that gave his life meaning. It was something worth fighting for, something he would do anything to protect. He knew new dangers would arise to threaten Equestria. It was inevitable, but he would be there to protect his family from them. They would all learn to fear the Legend of Spike.