Spike's Life Lesson

Hello fellow bronies & pegasisters! ^_^ This is my first MLP:FiM fic. I'm not concerned about exact grammar so long as the plot of story comes shining through. This is a sweet piece of cotton candy fluff between Rarity and Spike. Not exactly my favorite characters but the story just came together so sweetly I just had to go along with it. Hope you all enjoy! Stay pony my friends.

From within the center of his cave, located within the hollow labyrinth of the mountainside adjacent to Ponyville, Spike slept soundly upon a pile of blankets. A massive growth spurt over the last couple of months had forced the baby dragon to find a domain of his own, as most dragons of age would do. He didn't want to leave Ponyville, having fallen in love with the little town's charm and friendly appeal, but he just got too big to live in the library anymore. Thankfully he had great and wonderful friends who were more than willing to help him when time came for him to move out.

His trusty companion Twilight Sparkle had done everything she could to stunt his growth. Without Spike she was lost, but not even Princess Celestia could stop the aging process of a dragon. An age spell would work only for a little while, but he would continue to grow and every inch he grew would cancel the spell out. Eventually the two came to the conclusion that it was time little Spike to finally move on to the next chapter of his life. He was, after all, a dragon.

He was one of the most magnificent creatures to ever soar the skies and define creatures of myth, the princess had once told him. Mighty in size and fierce in battle, these monsters of legend were created as keepers of the earth. A tale from long ago spoke of dragons who once soared beyond the clouds and into the stars. Though their numbers have dwindled over the last 500 years, their very presence spoke volumes of their commitment to the protection of earth. What incredible stories a dragon would tell!

The princess certainly had a fascination for dragon based legends, but not him. Having grown up around ponies for a majority of his life, Spike could have cared less about the life lessons of his kin. He was happy with where he was now and the thought of moving onto something bigger and unknown scared the daylights out of him. He knew nothing about life outside of the pony's perspective. What little he did know about his heritage was the time he thought he wanted that kind of life. Even though he learned that his station in life was just the kind of bliss he was after, he still harbored incredible fears. Would his kin accept him if he tried to reach out to them? Having been born a dragon, what was his purpose? Would his old life even matter anymore?

Princess Celestia could not answer any of his questions. Instead she insisted Spike taking a journey of his own and finding out just what it was life wanted out of him and not what he wanted out of life. No doubt the riddle threw him for a loop and after leaving the castle with more questions than answers; Spike inevitably sat down with Twilight and discussed the preparations for moving out. The news devastated everyone. Especially Rairty.

The fashionista pony was heartbroken the evening Twilight broke the news to them. Spike was too emotionally distraught to tell them himself and instead asked Twilight to take care of his farewells. She demanded to see Spike, to convince him it was all a terrible mistake, but by morning he was gone and not even Twilight Sparkle knew his whereabouts. He had left behind only a single sapphire ruby left in an envelope at Rarity's door. It hung from a golden chain and sparkled beautifully when held up to the sun's lights.

It really didn't the mane 6 to figure out his whereabouts. Just two days after his departure he was found by Applejack in the Evertree forest, struggling to hide under a cluster of branches and leaves to stay out of the rain. She convinced him that life was full of trials and running away from his problems wouldn't make them disappear. Apart of growing up was facing your fears. She promised him that he wouldn't be abandoned by them, that he was still their friend and that friends stuck together no matter what. What a lesson that had been for Spike. What a treasure they all were to him. Their love for him was worth more than all the gold a dragon could ever hope of finding.

Not soon after he found a large opening in the side of a mountain just west of Ponyville. The cavern went on for miles within the mountain, winding and twisting it's way to the bottom. It was the perfect place for him to stay while he tried to figure things out. Once a day Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbowdash and Pinkiepie would come to visit him. It brought him joy to know they still cared enough to see him, but the absence of Twilight and Rarity stung worse than a bee's sting. He wasn't as hurt by Twilight's absence as he was of Rarity's no show. The purple unicorn was always busy with her spells and lessons from the princess. He could forgive her, after all, it was her purpose in life to be great in her field. She was a specially gifted unicorn, just as her cutie mark says. The thought almost made him jealous. Why couldn't dragons have cutie marks? Then he thought of Rarity's cutie mark.

The three adorable blue diamonds placed strategically on her flank reminded him of Rarity's special talent; being fabulous. She outshined every pony she ever came across. No one could match her neatural beauty or even come close to the bar she set in the fashion industry. She was talented, beautiful, and one of the most amazing ponies he had ever known and it made him very upset to know that she hadn't come to see him since before he had left. He missed her so very much. He especially missed the dazzle in her eyes when she smiled and the special way her mane flipped and curled just the way she wanted it to. Her white coat was absolutely luxurious to the touch and what he wouldn't give to touch it again.

She was upset with him and rightfully so. He should have come to his friends first before having ran off the way he did. He had been selfish and hadn't thought that his actions could have hurt them at all. So she kept away from him. He didn't blame her. He was angry with himself as well. But it didn't mask the fact that he still missed his beloved Rarity and prayed on every star in the sky that she would come to see him. Going to Ponyvill wasn't an option, not until he could figure things out. He also didn't want to embarrass her. The residents of Ponyville wern't exactly the nicest when it came to gossip and the sight of her with a big, wimpy dragon would just tarnish her reputation. So instead he would wait for as long it takes. He would see his precious Rarity again one day. Until he saw for himself those beautiful blue eyes of hers, he wouldn't dare look another female in the face.

The soft clip clop of hooves drew Spoke from his restless slumber. He rubbed the sleepiness from his eyes and turned over in his blanket bundle. He stared at the wall and watched as the shadow of a pony vame into view.

"Go away Applejack. I'm not really in the mood for visitors."

A moment of silenced passed but the shadow did not leave. A tad bit irritated by this, Spike grabbed a blanket and threw it over his face. His snout was now longer than it was before and nearly took up the whole blanket to hide. "Go away Applejack!"

He heard a soft feminine sigh and the blanket on his snout was yanked right off.

"Spike, we need to talk."

His eyes shot wide open and he rolled over the instant he heard that familiar voice. The one and only pony of his dreams was looking up at him. There was pain in her eyes. Her usual smile was nowhere to be found. She tipped back the head of her navy blue cloak and looked up at Spike sadly.

"Rarity? What are you doing here?" He asked, still in disbelief.

"I came to see you Spike." Her bottom lip trembled as she spoke. "You left so suddenly and without explanation."

Spike turned his head down and away.

"Twilight told us everything but…" Rarity struggled with her words. "What I don't understand is how you could have just left us all behind like that."

Without much effort he crawled on his belly towards the opening of the cavern. He laid his head down next to Rarity but wouldn't look at her. "I was afraid you'd abandon me because of my growth spurt. I know I can't live in Ponyville anymore, I'm too big. And Canterlot is out of the question."

"But Spike you ran into the Evertree forest! You could have gotten hurt out there."

Spike then took a moment to look at Rarity and narrowed his eyes. "Rarity, look at me. I'm a dragon. What scares ponies like you is supposed to be scared of me. I was fine out there."

"No you weren't. You had friends in Ponyville who were more than eager to help you in your time of need but instead of seeking me out first you decided to run away." A single salty tear formed in the corner of Rarity's eye. "You have no idea how worried about you I was! I couldn't sleep, I couldn't eat… Just wondering where you were and if you were ok was killing me. Do you have any idea what that feels like?"

He looked away from her once more but Rarity wasn't having any of that. She trotted right up to his snout and stomped both her front hooves into his nose. "Look here mister. I didn't come all the way up a dirty mountainside just to have you turn me away. Now you look me in the eye Spike and don't you dare turn away from me!"

It wasn't in his heart to defy Rarity. What she wanted, he would give whole heartedly. He looked at her and almost wished that he hadn't. A tear fell across her cheek and it ripped his heart in two.

"We love you Spike. Friends stick together no matter what. There will be times in life when friends do part but it only happens for a short time. We all grown in our own special way and with friends it makes the growing process even more special." Taking a deep breath, Rarity removed her hooves from off his snout. "Even ponies must adjust in order to earn their cutie marks."

Spike lifted a claw to his face. The once soft and plush little fingers had grown into monstrous sized talons ready to rip flesh from bone. His thin green scales had thickened and found a radiant luster in the light of the sun.

"Applejack said the same thing to me."

"And she's right."

Rarity walked in between Spike's arm and his body and nestled herself comfortably next to his soft underbelly. She looked up at him with a soft smile and Spike blushed. "Promise me you'll come to me if you ever feel scared. I will always be here for you. Even when we are apart for a time, I promise that with one word I'll come running and I won't let anything stop me from getting to you."

His bottom lip trembled. A tear of his own fell from his eye but it quickly dried. He offered her a smile of his own. "I promise Rarity. I won't ever leave you behind again."

Lowering his head to the ground he watched as she pulled the hood of her cloak back over her head. A mountain wind was caught in the cavern and caused the unicorn to shiver. As she cuddled closer to his warm belly Spike extended a wing over her to stop the wind. Rarity stopped shivering and looked up at Spike. They shared a smile as sweet as candy. Neither said much for the hour that they were together. In each other's company even the silence said it all. That was when Spike noticed a glimmer at the base of Rarity's neck. Just below the cloak was hidden a single sapphire. His eyes widened when he realized just what it was. His warmth spread through his heart before sleep decided to take over, but not before he poked out his tongue to stroke the sapphire. The jewel on Rarity's neck began to sparkle and while Spike slept, dreaming of oceans and skies, the twinkle of sapphire colored eyes never left his memory. They stayed with him for all time.