This story is a sequel to Love Is Its Own Reward
Everypony knows Spike would walk across hot coals if Rarity asked him to, even if he wasn't fireproof. A few years down the line, he is still happily helping her design dresses and mine gemstones. However, his fealty is to Twilight Sparkle, and everypony knows that without him she might accidentally level Ponyville! When Rarity finally feels he is ready for a real relationship, how will the dragon choose between her kiss and his duty?
A follow-up story to Love Is Its Own Reward, set a few years into Friendship is Magic's future.
Chapters (1)
This was simply impeccable. The wording was brilliant, the characterization was realistic, and the atmosphere of the whole tale was the best kind of romance there is.
>knew that she and Luna had much in common, in particular they had both played hostess for the eldritch miasma of Nightmares.
fucking yes you used Nightmare Rarity~
I think I'm in love with you.
And you're also the reason why I just stick to kinky/fluffy Sparity clop since I'll be overshadowed by fics like this.
Beautiful, romantic, real, and focuses on the fact that, no matter how much they mean to each other, there is more to Equestria than the ship. Beautiful. Just beautiful.
It's so great to see writers mention the IDW series... I honestly loved the Nightmare Rarity arc; and was glad to see that Spike had a big part in her returning.
Lovely story!
Very nice!
That was...
Actually, very, very well Done 
I just found it remarkably Decent and Heartwarming, a fine job, mate
D'aaaaaaaw.
Hehe.....duty.
I CANNOT GIVE THIS ENOUGH LIKES!
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In this, we are agreed.
Gummy/Opalescence shipping is so crazy. Obviously he's a better fit with Winona and she is involved in a love triangle with Angel Bunny and Tank.
Will the excellence never fade? I hope not.
3319498 Goddam, you beat me to it.
Wow. Nice stuff here. And good to see the reminder that while Spike is willing to be Rarity's knight, she's just as able to be his Dame.
Add it to an appropriate group, you say? Good idea!
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An amazing piece. I always love me some awesome Sparity love, and this is the kind of a relationship you just have to take slow. The pacing is key in these stories, and you really hit the nail on the head. It is a slow and timid change in relationship, which doesn't really change anything at all. They have been in love for a while. All that this moment really changed, was the word for their connection.
Excellent work.
-Lumino
Vanhoover killed the mood.
Proud to say, it's brilliantly written and one of the few stories that will permanently remain on my favorites list. If you ever need a proofreader/editor, don't hesitate to "hit me up," as 'twere.
Great to see a sequel!
Grand work!
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Too sweet
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Possibly one of the sappiest, yet most emotional slice-of-life Sparity romances I have read (and I have seen the prequel--liquid pride for everypony
). And then just when everypony is drowning in tears of joy and astonishment, you conclude your piece by leaving the crowd laughing.
My hat's to you, sir. Well done!!!
Kinda too tired to make a long comment.
So I'l write this; I LOVED IT!
Finally got around to reading this and was not disappointed! You certainly have quite the talent for writing.
Also, loved the reference to Johnny B. Goode.
I have to confess, my attention span was not strong enough for the preceding series you wrote - I mostly just skimmed through all of them. I really like how you made Spike mature but not out-of-character, something of an issue I have with some other "future" stories. Very groovy, good sir. Two thumbs way, way up
Right here
I was asking: Wait! Is twilight an alicorn? Are alicorn immortal?
And in the next paragraph you say: Yes twilight is an alicorn. As to immortal it seems you don't want to talk about it.
The way you used
killed me. I was smiling like a schoolgirl when her crush walks into the room.
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but then my alter ego looks at me weird so i told her to
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You made a great point about alicorns. We honestly don't know what separates Celestia and Luna from Cadence and Twilight, so I tried to tread very carefully. My personal headcanon is that Celestia and Luna actually are immortal, but Cadence and Twilight are merely ascended mortals. We see very clearly that Celestia and Luna have the flowing astral manes and various other visual cues that imply they are different, even from other alicorns.
What's the source of that difference? Well, we don't know, the folks behind FiM haven't told us yet! Lauren Faust, as I recall, originally penned Celestia as "Queen Celestia" to imply that she was the supreme authority, but changed it to Princess because Hasbro thought it was a more marketable title. Faust also felt that "queen" was too often synonymous with "evil or wicked", which was directly at odds with her plans for Celestia to be the "Big Good".
Personally, I think Celestia and Luna are ageless and bloody hard to kill by conventional means. They have always seemed to be warrior-princesses to me, which the opening to Season 4 only reinforced!
Beyond that is its foolish to speculate, since showcanon will only come along and destroy the best laid plans of mice and fanfiction writers.
Also... I have a confession to make...
That's actually a reference to a videogame. The line in particular was spoken by Mark Hamill. The videogame's cutscenes were actually shot on film, then put into the game. I really enjoyed the game, and the moment seemed perfect to sneak in a little reference. If you're interested in looking it up, the game was called Wing Commander III.
I'm glad you enjoyed the story, and I hope you'll check out my others!
This is a perfect resolution to "Love Is Its Own Reward" and even referenced Nightmare Rarity.
Like, Fav and added to my recommendation group.
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Haha! I read your comment on Love is its Own Reward and immediately thought, "Oh boy is he in for a pleasant surprise!"
Glad you enjoyed it. I keep hinting I am working on another Sparity story (because I am), but I am working really hard on Bon Hadescream right now to keep my commitment to that story. Thanks for the feedback!
Nicely done
Enjoyed the ride A slice of simple fun Even Twi blew up the library.
Thank you once more .
This was good. Great actually. I like this better than the previous one, mostly because I prefer character interaction over long monologues.
The characters are great and the somewhat flowery narration fits the characters. Well done. Have a like.
I really liked the story!
Rarity was also a delight. And the whole "forever isn't long enough"
gah I got FEELS
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Glad to hear folks are still discovering and reading my work! I actually did a lot of research on Spike and Rarity for Love is its Own Reward, which I feel is why I was able to convey the characters so well here. Spike's a complex character, and it always irks me when a writer doesn't take the time to develop him beyond comic relief. His heart calls Equestria "home", but his body's quite literally alien. Coping with that every day, dealing with cultural standards of beauty and dietary norms that aren't developed with dragons in mind, has its affects on the psyche. It's fascinating, and the fact that The Show makes note of such things in the very first episode after the two-part pilot (Spike trying to order rubies at the restaurant in The Ticket Master) sets a standard for fans to follow!
But, all the work is worth it when the reader enjoys the tale.
Oh, and as for "Forever isn't long enough"... I have a confession to make. I took the inspiration for that line from a classic videogame. I won't name it, but it was among the first to use Full Motion Video, and it came on four CD-ROMs. The FMVs were shot to Hollywood standards with greenscreens and everything, the developers even managed to get actors like Mark Hamill and Malcolm McDowell! The line always stuck in my memory as having the right amount of "punch" for expressing one's feelings, but it wasn't until I was researching Spike for Love is its Own Reward that I realized he was someone who actually could say it with meaning. Between two mortal humans, "forever" is "until the end of our roughly equal potential lifespans". Between a creature who can take hundred-year-long naps and a mortal seamstress, both of whom live under the oversight of immortal Princesses who wrangle the heavens into submission, "forever" really means something. That's why I used the line, but now you've called me on it I really had to confess my inspiration for the moment.
5495154 Your research really shows! Even though you don't specifically out right say that Spike is...what would be a good term "Absolutely head over heels infatuated!" the message is conveyed crystal clear. It is though his actions that his motives are understood. Just the fact that you paint the picture of him patiently tending Rarity leaves a powerful message.
And uniquely enough you show that yes their are other things Spike thinks about besides Rartiy. It may seem detrimental to a romance story but to me "true"love is when two fully developed characters meet. And props to how you portrayed Rarity too. True you focus on Spike but i can just imagine her fussing over the latest fashion or something LOL. Moreover she doesn't reject Spike, and even helps steers the romance. In this way i see her as incredibly wise. Thus she seems worthy of an immortal, and Spike seems worthy of Rarity, their both on equal footing.
As much as I hate bothering people by commenting on two year old works of fanfiction, I feel obliged to say something after reading this.
I could go a whole big spiel here, but for the interest of brevity I'll try to keep this short. Both this and Love Is Its Own Reward were absolutely inspired. There's no other way to say it. I personally felt that the characterization, the exposition, and the pacing for both of them were spot on. Love Is Its Own Reward was very wordy and verbose all things considered, but in absolute the best possible way. It was long and really the majority of the fic was just two people sitting in a room and talking, but it never felt boring and it was never a chore to read. Actually, it was a joy to read. Rarity's parts felt so natural and I was more or less enthralled with how genuine her character felt. The same goes for Fancy Pants and how you managed to bury so much exposition into just a few chapters while still staying on task and keeping with the narrative.
Past that A Kiss And A Duty is harder to describe in words without going on for much longer than I should. I will say that it was fitting, and that I was glad to read through it after reading Love Is Its Own Reward.
You said that you put a lot of work into these, and it shows handedly. I'm not the most read person on FiMfiction, but these two fics would easily rank among the best on the site in my book.
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As much as I hate bothering people by commenting on fourteen week old comments, I wanted to let you know it was both read and appreciated.
It's always good to hear from readers, because it lets me know that all the effort I put into the story affected someone else in a positive way. Critique is good too, since that helps me improve. I'm glad to hear you think I got the characterizations right! I felt that both stories had to be character driven, since they did not have a lot of action moments to keep the story moving. Because Rarity, Spike, Celestia, and Fancypants have established personalities from show-canon, I tried my best to fit their antics in the story to the personalities that the creators gave them while still expanding the universe a bit. I really enjoyed writing Opal's perspective, since it let me undermine the more serious notes of the story with a hint of mischief! Both of these stories went through quite a few drafts, and I actually discarded a lot of work since it didn't quite fit the narrative. As I think I mentioned in a "deleted scene blog" for Love is its Own Reward, "good" content shouldn't drive a story like this. That has to be taken for granted, as a foundation for everything else The core plot and characters have to drive the tale and keep the reader interested. Also, some things are better hinted at than said outright!
I hope you'll check out the rest of my stories, if you haven't already! Every story I've uploaded now has a "completed" tag, from the short stories to Bon Hadescream's forty-chapter M-rated action-adventure, and I'm kind of proud of that achievement. But I'm even more proud to have earned the interest of readers like yourself.