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"Farewell, Twilight"1,650 words
Epilogue: Keeping a Promise1,022 words

Epilogue: Keeping a Promise

Remember us.

I promise.

"That's it, Flame! Flap just a little harder!"

Flame beat his newfound wings with all his might as he climbed attempted to fly higher. It was only yesterday that the thirteen-year-old dragon grew his wings. This late-blooming was obviously obtained mostly from Spike, who took fourteen years to develop his. Nonetheless, this day was the best day of his life.

"I'm doing it, Dad! I'm doing it!" the lavender-skinned dragon named Flame exclaimed as he rose ten feet off the ground. He was happy that he could finally control himself, considering his millions of other failed tries.

"Thata boy, Flame! You've finally got the hang of it!" Flame heard his father shout up to him from what was now twenty feet from the ground. He was glad and very fortunate to have the support of both his parents. He remembers the countless stories he was told of how his father was taught by a unicorn and her rainbow-maned pegasus friend. Long story short, neither unicorns nor pegasi fully understand the anatomy of dragons, even with the help of about twenty different books.

Flame flew higher and higher. He flew up until the point where he could barely breath the thin air, when he finally started to descend. He learned that flying down was almost runner than flying up! The danger, the speed, the potential for awesome tricks! He couldn't resist temptation and did one final loop to top off his first time flying.

Once he landed safely on his feet, he was greeted with congratulations and large hugs from both parents. Here he was, a newbie flier, and yet somehow was able to successfully do an aerial loop without fail or flaw. He figured that skill came from his mother's side.

"Come on inside, my little champ. Time for dinner," said his mother, Ruby.

Flame was on his way to bed, when he noticed his father staring blankly at the wall. He went to investigate the odd behavior of his father. Upon further investigation, he found him staring not at the wall, but at the picture of the purple unicorn on it.

The two dragons stared at the pony before his father noticed Flame. Flame turned to his father with a questioning look on his face. His father turned back to the picture and sighed.

"Flame, do you know who this is?" his father asked, obviously knowing the answer.

"No," Flame answered. "I always thought it was just some weird decoration. Whenever I asked one of you, you'd change topic. Who is she, really?"

Spike wondered where to begin. He then started with, "I think it's time you knew.

"I wasn't raised like most dragons. My mother was killed by a hydra before I hatched, and during the attack my father was greatly injured. He managed to escape with my egg, but the ones of my siblings were destroyed before he could get them. I was never informed on how my father got me to Canterlot, where I was kept warm inside my egg until a little filly pony hatched me. That filly ended up raising me. And this," he pointed to the picture, "was that filly."

Flame nodded before gaping a bit as he realized where this was going. He never knew any of his grandparents, it being a dragon custom and all, but he never stopped to think either of his parents were orphans. And now, he knew that not only was his father parentless, but he was raised by a unicorn! Ponies lived hundreds of miles away, making him wonder how his father ended up here.

"Her name was Twilight Sparkle," his father continued. "She started out raising me in Canterlot, her first home, where she received private lessons with the princess herself, Princess Celestia. She was so smart, but at first very... introvertial. She had no friends but me, until she was sent to Ponyville to learn the magic of friendship. We stayed there for years after with her friends: Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and..." Spike swallowed hard as the name came up, "...Rarity. They were the best friends I could ever, and would ever have. I had to move out at twenty, though, due to my size. I still visited them often, though. Then, about two years later, Pinky Pie passed, beginning the fall of the six friends. I hated to see them go. They were like family to me. Hell, they were my family. And the reason why I am now here, if you're wondering, is because I promised Twilight I'd never forget them, and today is the anniversary of her death.

"I loved them all. Pinkie Pie was fun, always laughing, the Harmonious Element of Laughter. Fluttershy was sweet, sensitive and caring, the Harmonious Element of Kindness. Rainbow Dash was adventurous, daring, the Harmonious Element of Loyalty. Applejack was strong, hard-working, the Harmonious Element of Honesty. Rarity was beautiful, my first love, the Harmonious Element of Generosity. And Twilight was smart, motherly, the Harmonious Element of Magic."

Flame didn't understand what his father ment by the Harmonious Elements, but he'd ask him later, figuring it unimportant.

Flame saw his dad turn back to the picture and wipe a tear from his eye. He had never seen his father cry, but who wouldn't? Not only did the only family he knows die, but he outlived them and must live another couple centuries with them on his mind. The reason dragons left their parents when they were adults, severing all connection with them, was because dragons were supposed to be strong, without weeping over family deaths. Flame hated that tradition, considering he'd have to do it some day.

Flame embraced his father in a sympathetic hug, making Spike's heart warm with the love of his son. He looked back at the picture of Twilight, his mind flooding with their moments together: the time he ate so much ice cream he was sick for days, his first flight with Rainbow Dash, his first bath with Twilight...

Spike's eyes now overflowed with tears at the memories. "Thanks, guys," he whispered.

"Thanks for everything."

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