Have you been living with ponies your whole life?
Spike was looking into the lake between the castle and the school of friendship. Thrilled by the change his body has mad. The reflection of his new sprout wings stared back at him. He was kind of proud to have wings like all the dragons he had ever met. It was kinda straining to fly, but his body seems to know how it works. Twilight had a harder time to adjust to her alicorn wings, but that seemed to be the difference between growing up dragon and being changed to a different species all together.
"Hey wings! Not bad for the first molting." The young purple dragon turned around to see the only other dragon around Ponyville. Smolder was greeting him with the palm of her claw pointing towards him. "So they are not sending you away? Wished I had that luxury, not gonna lie."
"First molt?!" The itch in his scales returned just by the suggestion.
Smolder was confused for a moment before it clicked. "Right, you are clueless... guess since you grew up around ponies I should warn you; the second molt gets waaaaaay worse."
"Second..." Spike did not wanted to think about going through that again. Super painful stone scales, fire burps, uncontrollable volume shifts...
"Yeah I mean stone scales that turn into freaking gems and get stuck under you scales." Smolder scratched her own scales as if just talking about it made them reappear on her. "Not enough being chased by Hydras and Rocs while outside but... Ever got attacked by diamond dogs?"
Her fist slamed into her fist into her palm over and over again. "Stay down stupid lizard´ -Give us the gems.´ - Punch her over the head.´ -Pull them out.´ - `Break her scales.´" Spike stared at her as she talked herself into a frenzy. "You can´t even hide in your own cave. Because they just keep digging themself into whatever cavern you go. Trying to sleep. BAMM! Rocks smashed on your head to try to knock you out. RAWWW!" Smolder spit fire onto the water. Spike remembered to have seen a dragon like that once, during the big dragon migration. Covered in gems and injuries. A bit more relaxed after turning some water into steam she continued. "In the other claw hiding in caves is not that great anyway due to the tatzelwurms."
"so its over after that?..." He ask hesitant to hear the answer.
Smolder sat down on the pathway to the school, letting her legs be warmed by the almost boiling water. "No of course not. I am still in the molt. Dragon Lord Ember is still in the molt. Heck, every dragon that competed for the dragon lord title is still in the molt. Its the most defining time of our lives. It is not over in a single day."
Spike sat down next to her. He had hoped that was over, but it was not not even close if her next words were anything to go by.
"Oh, and wait for the 23 molt. That´s when it gets real nasty..."
Twilight Sparkle looked at her depressed little dragon as he walked by her room. "What´s wrong Spike? I thought you were ecstatic that you finally got wings?" She trotted over and lifted his head with her hoof.
He did not look her in the eyes as he uttered: "Turns out the molt is not over. Apperantly it is not like getting a cutiemark. Smolder says it goes on for years with occasionally massive breakouts."
"Really?", she touched her own chin, "that explains why they would send their children away."
"You are not going to..." The heart cramped in his chest.
"Of course not Spike. I am just saying that if it was just a single day it would be strange to abandon somepony... erm dragon over it. I really should have gone asking Dragon Lord Ember more about you growing up when she agreed to answer all my questions about dragon culture. Did Smolder said anything I should know?"
"NO!"
His voice betrayed him Twilight would have to write a nice letter to ask Ember for a overview about the molt. She wondered what Spike would hide from her. He knew that she was still working on that book about dragons.
Spike and Smolder were sitting on the walkway with their legs in the water. Spike´s claw was scratching deep into the stone as he kept listening to her.
"...you think you would get used to sprouting and losing stuff. Wings, Legs, Organs, tails. I changed sex like 8 times during the molt so far. But the worst time was when I had 2 heads."
"WHAT!?!"
"`the most defining time of our lives´, our bodies go ballistic on us and look what sticks. I would say enjoy your wings while you have them the next molt they might fall off."
Spike´s wings clung around his body as his arms clung onto them. "You had your head fallen off?!" The casual manner she just glossed over that terrified him almost more then the image of his head falling off.
"One of them, yes. Spike, the dragon lord is chosen out of the young dragons so the body can molt to fit the role. You will fit the environment you life at. Ponyville is so peaceful it would not surprise me if you lose your firebreath during the molt. What do we have here? Trees? Pukwudgies? Us teenage dragon get molded by hardship and then we compete even more. We are the strongest species thanks to that. This place here... is terrible for our future." She was throwing herself into the lake. When she stuck her head back out she saw Spike leaving toward the castle. She shrugged and began to swim. He is a dragon, nocreature has the right to stop him in his way. No creature, but the dragon lord.
Back to the important question in life, how was she going to become a great dragon in a peaceful town she could not terrorize and having to go to friendship school. Giving into her greed was no option thanks to that.
