Matured Silver

Silver Spoon and company arrived at Canterlot Stadium and took their seats. The entire circumference of the stadium was a rainbow of differently colored ponies, which made the whole experience new to her, as she had never gone to an event of this scope before. She looked over at Sweetie Belle, who was grinning and looking at Rarity, who was shivering, despite the weather being rather warm and pleasant today. Silver Spoon was unaware of why Rarity was acting the way she was, attributing it to her being slightly claustrophobic instead of the real reason behind her shivering. When Silver Spoon looked back to the stage, a brown unicorn trotted to the center of the stage and bowed to the crowd.

"Greetings," said the unicorn into his microphone. "Welcome to Canterlot Stadium. I assume some of you have seen our posters for those who will be performing for us today, so without any delay, let's begin."

The unicorn exited the stage and taking his place was a blue unicorn with a magic hat and cape. She called herself "The Great and Powerful Trixie" and only ever spoke in the third person. Trixie's act consisted of dazzling lights and fireworks shooting out of her horn. It was undeniably a pretty sight, but to Silver Spoon, that's all it really was. Trixie's act consisted of lights, boasting, and little else, and when she left the stage, the crowd applauded, though their posture seemed to suggest that they were doing so out of politeness instead of appreciation.

Once Trixie was out of the way, eleven pegasi wearing blue and yellow outfits rocketed out of the main entryway of Canterlot Stadium. In the sky, they performed daring maneuvers and used the smoke trails behind them to paint pictures in the sky. Such pictures varied from a simple heart shape to a detailed face of a pony, the latter made Silver Spoon's jaw drop. Once the pegasi finished their act, the stadium erupted in cheers and some spectators danced around with joy. Silver Spoon looked over to Sweetie Belle, who looked equally impressed, her eyes shining brightly.

"Who were they?" asked Silver Spoon. "They made that Trixie look like a novice."

"Oh, them? Those were the Wonderbolts," replied Sweetie Belle, her voice squeaking. "I have to admit, that was pretty amazing. I should tell Scootaloo about them, since she loves Rainbow Dash so much."

"Yeah. I know what you mean."

"Anyways, we're gonna go backstage and meet them. None of us want to see the jousting tournament that follows, so let's go."

The group sans Rarity got out of their seats and Sweetie Belle had to drag Rarity with all of her might to get her to come with them to the backstage area. Trotting downstairs, they made their way out of the stadium and through a passageway underneath the stage. At the end of the passageway were two guards, who, upon being shown the backstage passes, moved out of the way. Silver Spoon looked around the backstage, surprised to see that a place where popular ponies prepare before and after their shows was so dark and dull, the most lively thing being the concrete walls and ceiling lamps that formed the hallway. All of them approached a door with a star on it, with the number two printed inside of the star, and Silver Shill knocked on the door. Answering the door was a white pegasus with a fluffy blue mane who was still wearing her Wonderbolts suit.

"Hello there, can I—" the pegasus paused and noticed Rarity among the group. An expression of anxiety formed on the pegasus' face. "I'm sorry, but we're busy at the moment."

"Wait," said Sweetie Belle, blocking the door. "She just wants to apologize."

"Wait a second there, High Winds," another pegasus mare with a white mane said as she approached the group. "Oh, so you're the one responsible for nearly killing three of my teammates, and being best buds with someone who nearly killed three other teammates of mine, and one is right next to me."

Everyone in the group looked at Rarity with a stink eye, who recoiled into her own emotional shell in response. While Rarity did love being the center of attention, she didn't want it to involve her being caught up in a scandal. Rarity chuckled nervously and looked at the two pegasi.

"I'm, um, sorry for what I did," said Rarity.

"You should've apologized much earlier," retorted the pegasus, scowling at her.

"Fleetfoot, calm down," whispered High Winds.

"No, this mare sank the morale of the team too many times. Now then, because Captain Spitfire would never let me hear the end of it if I was rude to someone again, I'm going to give you another chance, but on one condition."

"What would that be?" asked Rarity.

"If you are the Element of Generosity, as you claim to be, then I bet you'll have no problem helping one of my friends. Her name is Vinyl Scratch, and she's having a big concert in Ponyville on Wednesday. I want you to help set up stuff in the area where she'll be performing and I want you to bring snacks, treats, and what not so that everybody doesn't starve. If you can do that without causing conflict or nearly murdering someone by accident, we'll forgive you."

Just then, two more Wonderbolts appeared in front of them, one was a stallion with a flowing blue mane and the other was Spitfire, whom Silver Spoon and the others recognized.

"I'll take it from here," said Spitfire. "Ahem, it's nice of you to come all the way up here. Mind if you four tell me your names?"

"I'm Silver Spoon."

"I'm Sweetie Belle. Nice to meet you."

"Silver Shill is the name."

"And I'm Ruby Riches."

"Well then, I'm Spitfire, and the one whom you haven't met yet who's with us is Soarin, who's also loads of fun to be around."

"Anyways, Fleetfoot is a bit, well, cold at times," added Soarin.

"I am not," retorted Fleetfoot, and after a brief pause, everyone laughed for a little before returning to the conversation at hand. "Anyways, do you accept my offer?"

"I'll accept your offer," announced Rarity. "I'll prove to you I'm the Element of Generosity. Come on everyone, let's think about how we will do this."

"Well then, best of luck," replied Spitfire. "Goodbye."

"Goodbye," said the five visitors before leaving.

Rarity felt confident that she could prove to Fleetfoot that she truly was the Element of Generosity. After all, she proved it to Coco Pommel once before, so doing it a second time didn't seem like a problem. Despite this, a small blot of anxiety resided in her mind, as she wasn't sure as to what Vinyl's concert had in store. The five left Canterlot Stadium, looking back at it off in the distance one more time before returning to the hotel.

***

Rarity and Silver Shill managed to get their business deal completed, which included Upper Crust and Crystal Clear, both respected in the fashion industry. During said meeting, Silver Spoon and Sweetie Belle were stuck with each other for a while with Ruby Riches, and during the two or so hours together, the fillies, with nothing else to do, started another conversation with each other. Silver Spoon was curious as to why Rarity did what she did in the Best Young Fliers Incident, so she wondered if Sweetie Belle had some answers.

"Why did Rarity even enter a flying competition in the first place?" asked Silver Spoon. "It doesn't make sense to me."

"It doesn't make sense to me either," replied Sweetie Belle. "Was she drunk or something?"

"I don't know, but I do know that she's, um, I forgot what I was going to say." Silver Spoon lied about forgetting, but felt relieved that she didn't insult Rarity by calling her the Element of Egoism and the fallout that would result from Sweetie Belle's reaction.

"I must admit, ever since Discord came back the first time, weirder and weirder things have been happening."

"You're right. I can't recall the last time monster attacks have become this frequent."

"It's really scary."

"I know. I think it's scary too."

"If I could make one wish, it'd be for peace to come back to Equestria."

"I agree, there's too much turmoil going on. We almost had a genocide the last time something bad happened."

"There you are with your fancy words again."

"Oh, sorry."

"No need to be sorry. It's a compliment. Did Diamond Tiara ever compliment you?"

Silver Spoon sighed, looked down, then back at Sweetie Belle. "Rarely."

"That's so sad." Sweetie Belle paused and smiled at Silver Spoon. "You know, maybe you will change for the better. I noticed you telling yourself to not act rude when we talked about my sister, which is a start."

"You're good at reading words and emotions then. I'll get the hang of it. Someday."

"Hopefully, because one less bully is always a good thing."

"Yeah, I just hope Diamond Tiara isn't too rotten come Monday."

"Now you know what it's like to be me and my friends."

"Good point. Thanks for talking with me, Sweetie Belle. It feels, well, good."

"You're welcome. I love talking."

***

Silver Spoon was ultimately glad that she went with her family to Canterlot. She had never been there before and seeing the Wonderbolts was surprisingly exciting, though she wished that they had more time to chat with her. Despite this, she understood why they felt the way they did. After all, if someone nearly killed her for whatever reason, she'd likely not forgive them easily. Though there was one upside to all of this, Rarity's quest did give Silver Spoon a chance to show off her skills as a pastry chef if she could help, as the meaning behind her cutie mark was something she knew all three of the Cutie Mark Crusaders were curious about. Thinking about her cutie mark also made her recall that she was never told what Diamond Tiara's cutie mark meant. She would be seeing her Monday, and knowing Diamond, she probably had something nefarious in store for her, but that was something to worry about the following day.

The train arrived at Ponyville, and once out of the station, the two families went their separate ways. Silver Spoon and her parents arrived back home and with nothing scheduled for the rest of the day, she decided to relax for a bit, maybe take a walk in her backyard, before the day ended and another school day began early in the morning. Silver Spoon trotted to her backyard, which was decorated with all sorts of beautiful trees and flowers. Roses, violets, evergreens, all of the best flora and statues resided in the garden. As she was walking about, taking in the beautiful sights around her, Silver Spoon noticed something going on at one of her neighbor's yards.

Trotting towards the fence that divided the two yards, she climbed up the fence and tried to get a peek as to what was going on. It looked like three pegasi were helping get her neighbor's pet out of the tree, and upon closer inspection, Silver Spoon realized that those three pegasi were the ponies she met at Canterlot Stadium the day before, more specifically, Spitfire, Soarin, and Fleetfoot. Once the neighbor returned to his home with his pet, Spitfire turned around and noticed Silver Spoon peeking at them before she could duck.

"It's okay, we can come chat for a bit if you want," said Spitfire. The three hovered up high enough so that Silver Spoon could get a good look at them. "So, what's up? Is everything alright?"

"Yeah. I have to admit, your show looked incredible," replied Silver Spoon. "I never knew some of the things you did were possible."

"But they are," said Soarin. "That's the coolest part. Also, we're sorry that we had a little run in with you know who back at Canterlot."

"To say that our relationship with her is shaky would be an understatement," interrupted Spitfire.

"I understand where you are coming from," responded Silver Spoon. "Anyways, I remember you mentioning Vinyl Scratch. What's going on with her?"

"Well, she's having a concert in Ponyville, but the report is that she's lacking help for accommodations, snacks, and so on. Have you met Vinyl Scratch?"

"I have. She's, well, interesting to say the least."

"She sure is," replied Fleetfoot. "Vinyl happens to be one of my closest friends, and I've been told that we have similar personalities."

"Tell me about it," muttered Soarin in a sarcastic tone.

"One more thing before we go. I know that I told Rarity to prove her generosity, but if you want to help her, that's fine with me. I know I can be rude at times, but I'm working on it, cause the captain here wants to avoid some of our more, well, less friendly behaviors. Anyways, it was nice to get a chance to talk with you a little more."

"Thanks. I don't want to delay you three any longer, so I'm going to head back inside. Goodbye."

"Goodbye," replied the three Wonderbolts, who took off into the sky. Silver Spoon looked at them a little longer and once they were mere specks from where she was, she trotted back inside, glad that she was able to have the conversation that wasn't possible the day before. The rest of the day proved to be uneventful, and before Silver Spoon knew it, Monday rolled around, and it was time for school.

***

Silver Spoon arrived at Ponyville Elementary earlier than usual. She took her seat and found herself alone with Miss Cheerilee, sitting at her large desk and apparently jotting down something on a notebook of some sort. Cheerilee looked over at Silver Spoon and smiled, which caused Silver Spoon to smile back.

"Good morning, Silver Spoon," said Cheerilee. "How is everything going?"

"It could be better," responded Silver Spoon. "I went to Canterlot on Saturday, which was more fun than I thought it was going to be."

"That sounds exciting. Class doesn't start for another thirty minutes, so would you like to tell me what you did there?"

Silver Spoon found Cheerilee's behavior more friendly towards her than usual, and that was strange because it's a well known fact that Cheerilee is friendly to all sorts of ponies, only becoming sour when someone misbehaves or is rude to someone else. Silver Spoon was still regarded as one of the bullies as far as she knew, so perhaps Cheerilee noticed her sadness last Friday. Regardless, she felt obligated to tell Cheerilee what she did Saturday and how she felt, which piqued the interest of her teacher.

"That's wonderful. I've been to Canterlot a few times, but to go to a show at Canterlot Stadium must have been a treat."

"I agree. By the way, now's not the best time, but I want to confess something to you in private after class, is that okay?"

"Sure. I'll make a note of it and you can tell me."

Silver Spoon immediately regretted asking to talk to Cheerilee after class about all the terrible things she did with Diamond Tiara. In her mind, there was no going back, and she had to brace for any punishments that may come her way. She wondered if it was another one of her unconscious responses, as though she was trying to admit how horrible she has been for some reason.

Other students started to enter the classroom one by one and once it was time, attendance was taken, everybody was present, and class could begin. Before Cheerilee began her lesson, Silver Spoon looked at Diamond Tiara, who happened to notice her and responded with a devilish wink. Biting her lip, Silver Spoon knew that she'd have to be on the defensive once recess began.