//------------------------------//
// Chapter 7 
// Story: A Silver Summer 
// by Fanboy 
//------------------------------//

Chapter 7

Silver Spoon had felt so relieved she had almost skipped along the rest of the way to Fluttershy’s cottage. The short exchange had taken a lot of weight from her shoulders. This didn’t mean there would be nothing they had to talk about, but all that could wait until later. For now she was happy and excited.
Fluttershy greeted them with a friendly smile while Angel just glared at Silver Spoon. The two fillies greeted her back and walked around the house. Silver Spoon kept looking back at Angel as long as it was possible for her. The bunny’s eyes were locked on her.
“What is up with this bunny?” she asked worriedly.
“Angel? What about him?”
“I don’t know, he just seems to hate me.”
“Nah, Ah’ don’t think so. He wasn’t too fond of me and ma’ friends at first but after we had spent a night here he completely turned around. Once he gets used to ya’, he’s a real nice little thing.”
“Okay, if you say so.”
Silver Spoon couldn’t keep her tone free of skepticism. She wanted to believe Apple Bloom but that bunny hadn’t shown even the littlest bit of sympathy for her in any way so far. She was thankful that a distraction from the small animal was right at hoof. As soon as they had dropped their saddlebags Apple Bloom started to show Silver Spoon what they needed to do before they could really start their camping night.
The first thing was setting up the tent. Silver Spoon would have never imagined how many small steps were necessary to build something that was basically a few poles with a tarp. But soon she got the hang of it, obviously much to Apple Bloom’s surprise. Silver Spoon felt pride spreading inside her chest when her new friend told her that neither she nor her friends were able to handle it this quickly.
After the tent was ready they had to look for firewood to set up a camp fire. Silver Spoon had a much harder time with this task. Not so much with figuring out what kind of branches were suitable for a camp fire. To her, walking around and carrying all the wood along was boring and tiresome. And a few times Apple Bloom led the two of them a bit too close to the Everfree Forest for her taste.
When Silver Spoon had finally learned how to start a fire without a match or a lighter the sun had already started to turn the horizon into a bright orange-red shade. As the fire grew and the wood crackled, Silver Spoon felt the satisfying glow of accomplishment. For a moment she sat down and looked happily at the campfire she had set up.
“We’re not done yet.”
Apple Blooms voice cut into her thoughts.
“There’s still more?” Silver Spoon asked disbelievingly.
“A whole lot. Next thing is this.”
The red maned filly smiled as she pulled a bag of marshmallows from her saddlebags.
“I think I can handle this task,” Silver Spoon grinned.
She knew it wasn’t anything special but nonetheless she observed the slowly roasting marshmallow with fascination. Sure, she had eaten marshmallows before but only those already done served by the house staff. Watching them turn brown accompanied by the crackles of burning wood was more fascinating and – more importantly – fun than she would have been able to imagine or admit.
It was only when she was about to eat her hoof-roasted snack that she realized how joyful she must have looked. It was the first time she looked away from the fire since she had put her marshmallows on a stick. Now she saw Apple Bloom’s amused expression. Silver Spoon felt herself blushing and quickly turned her face back towards he fire.
“This is more fun than I expected,” she mumbled, then blushed even more.
“I can see that.”
Apple Bloom’s response was cheerful, without any trace of malice. There it was again, that sickening kindness of hers. Silver Spoon sighed, but then smiled again.
“Now I know,” she told Apple bloom, still looking into the flames.
“That’s good,” replied Apple ‘Bloom. “What do ya’ now know?”
“I know why.” She turned her head, so her eyes met Apple Bloom’s again. “Why I wanted to do this and why I didn’t want to do this. Why I always hated you and your friends so much.”
She paused for a brief moment, waiting for some kind of response from Apple Bloom. But she sat silent, with an expectant look in her eyes. So Silver Spoon continued:
“You always were so cheerful and happy. Not just you on your own, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, too. Whatever happened, whatever you did, everything seemed to be a big fun party. Even if it was the simplest of things, you enjoyed it. I never understood why. My family is rich. I have everything. And if I don’t have it, my parents will buy it for me. I always thought that means we should be the happy ones. But then I see your little trio. And all the other fillies in our class. All of you are always happy. And nopony at school ever cared about my family’s money. Or our house. Or any of my expensive toys nopony else has. They always ignored what made me…”
She choked on her words. Something inside of her was holding them back with an iron claw. Then Apple Bloom finished the last sentence for her:
“What made ya’ better than them?”
“Yes, that’s what I used to think.”
Silver Spoon looked at the ground flickering in the light of the campfire. She was afraid to see resent or anger in Apple Bloom’s face if she looked up. And that she could start crying any moment, as she already felt tears of shame rising behind her eyes.
“Ya’ used to? So, ya’ don’t anymore?”
The lack of any form of indignation in Apple Bloom’s voice gave Silver Spoon the much needed reassurance to go on: “No, I don’t. I’m not even sure if I was really convinced of that for a long time now. I guess at some point I started clinging to this thought just to make me feel better. I was hated for what I was sure to be admired for. If it hadn’t been for Diamond Tiara, I wouldn’t have had any friends. And I think it was the same for her. And still is. In the end we convinced each other that we actually were better and all of you were just too stupid and low-class to see that. We built a friendship over what made us outsiders.”
“Yeah, Ah’ can relate to that,” she heard Apple Bloom sighing. That made her risk lifting her view again. Apple Bloom wasn’t looking at Silver Spoon, she looked at her own flank. A new wave of shame overcame Silver Spoon and she started talking to the ground again.
“Yeah, that… I’m sorry about whatever I have said. It was just that… that… Out of everypony in our class you were always the worst to me.”
Again she waited for Apple Bloom to say something but she heard only silence. She peeked up cautiously. Apple Bloom’s expression was hard to read for her. It looked like the yellow filly tried to figure out if she was surprised by that statement or not. Silver Spoon lowered her eyes again and went on:
“Please don’t be angry at me for saying this, but from the first day in school you were just some farm filly from a poor farm family to me. You had nothing and were supposed to admire me, be jealous of me. But instead you were happy. You dared to be cheerful even though you didn’t have anything. At least, that’s what I imagined your life to be. And somehow you still are somewhere in my mind. I just can’t help it. Whenever I try to imagine you at home, I see you and your family in a moldering little hut, built somewhere inside a huge, dark forest of apple trees.”
“Then why don’t ya’ come over to our farm some time and see what it really looks like? I’m sure when Ah’ ask Applejack ya’ can even stay for dinner.”
Apple Bloom’s question scrambled Silver Spoon’s thoughts within a second. She looked disbelievingly at the smiling face in front of her. Silver Spoon couldn’t help herself, she just grinned and shook her head.
“Ya’ don’t want to?” Apple Bloom asked crestfallen.
Now Silver Spoon started to laugh.
“You’re insufferable.”
When she saw Apple Bloom getting more worried by the moment she added: “I really don’t know how you do this. I just told you all that and your first and only reaction is inviting me over for dinner.”
Apple Bloom still didn’t say anything. Silver Spoon wiped some tears from her eyes. “Don’t worry, I do want to see your farm and if it’s okay, have dinner with your family.”
“Great!” Much relief carried in Apple Bloom’s voice. “That’s settled then. Now Ah’d like to know, what did all that have to do with me bein’ a… Ah’ mean, havin’ no cutie mark?”
“Right,” Silver Spoon nodded, “I was getting to that. Cutie marks seemed to be the only thing you were actually getting jealous about. That wasn’t hard to make out. The more of our class-mates got one the more anxious you became. Finally I really had something you wanted. And as much as I don’t want to admit it now, I loved that feeling. Taunting you about it became something like a hobby for me. Even more since Diamond Tiara was terrified you might actually get your cutie mark before she got hers.”
“Hm, Ah’ think Ah’ see what ya’ mean. But I still don’t get what ya’ said about me bein’ the worst of all in our class. What did ya’ mean by that?”
“Well, like I said, you were exactly that kind of filly I always imagined to admire me for all that I have. And you just dared not doing that. And not only that, you somehow managed to be happier than me even though you were that poor.”
Silver Spoon paused briefly. She knew she would have to elaborate on this point when she had brought up this topic. Nonetheless it was hard to put the following into words. Despite her resolve to be completely honest with Apple Bloom this one thing was more about being honest with herself than anything she had told the filly next to her so far. She mustered all her strength and added:
“But on top of all that, it’s your sister.”
“Ma’ sister?” Apple Bloom sounded confused and shocked at the same time. “What does she have to do with this? Did she ever do anythin’ to ya? Have ya’ ever even met her?”
Again, it took Silver Spoon a few seconds to bring herself to keep talking.
“No, I never met her, at least in a way that I talked to her or something like that. I only saw her a few times, like when she picked you up from school or at the cute-ceañera. And she never did or said anything to me. That’s not it. It’s just that you get along so well with her. Whenever you’re together you’re so nice to each other. You always seem so happy when you’re with her. And when she’s not around, every other thing I hear from you is ‘Applejack this’ and ‘ma’ sister that’. Like she was some saint or something like that.”
“But why’d that bother ya’ so much?” Apple Bloom inquired. Once more Silver Spoon wondered how that filly was able to stay this calm. Yes, she sounded confused but still, there was no trace of anger in her demeanor. But as comforting as this fact was, it didn’t keep the last of the short flare of joy Silver Spoon had moments ago from vanishing. She fought hard to ignore the sudden lump in her throat. With a shaking voice she forced out the answer:
“Because it made me jealous. I always wished my sister was as awesome as yours.”
Silver Spoon could see in Apple Bloom’s eyes how her mind was working on what had just been said. They looked right through her, as if the red maned filly had forgotten her company within an instant. Then, an endless moment later, the same eyes widened.
“Ya’ have a sister?”
Apple Bloom was yelling in shock, much to Silver Spoon’s bewilderment. She had expected this kind of reaction many times this day, but not to this. That end of her confession was the rather unimportant one to her. She blinked a few times while she tried to think of something to respond to that exclamation.
But all she could come up with was: “Um, yeah?”
Silver Spoon waited for Apple Bloom to say something. But when she only kept looking dumbfounded at the grey filly, Silver Spoon tilted her head.
“Apple Bloom?”
When she heard her name the yellow coated filly snapped out of whatever state she was in. Silver Spoon couldn’t make out if it was shock, astonishment or something in between. Or maybe something completely different. Whatever it had been, now she obviously realized her unusual behavior as the color of her face started to match the color of her mane.
“Oh, Ah’m… Ah’ mean…” she stuttered, “It’s just that, well...”
Silver Spoon raised a hoof to silence Apple Bloom. “Look, whatever it is, just say it. After everything I said to you not just today but ever since we’re in the same class, it will be alright.”
Apple Bloom took a deep breath and nodded. With an apologetic smile she said: “Ah’ know it’s silly. It’s just that Ah’ always imagined ya’ to be an only child. No, not just imagined. Ah’ was convinced that ya’ were. Ah’ knew ya’ were. In ma’ imagination, a rich, spoiled kid just has to be an only child. Ah’ don’t even know why…”
Silver Spoon couldn’t believe what she heard. The implied insults didn’t even bother her one bit. The whole idea that had been spread out by Apple Bloom sounded so silly. Why in the world should the number of one’s siblings be important for how they turn out to be?
An eyebrow raised in puzzlement she asked: “That’s why you freak out like that?”
Apple Bloom scratched her chin, obviously entranced in her own thoughts. “Ah’ don’t know. It’s just that a bigger sister is somepony ya’ look up to, who helps ya’ to be a better pony. In ma’ opinion it’s impossible to have a bigger sister and become somepony like ya’.”
As soon as she had finished this explanation her eyes widened. She gave Silver Spoon a look as if she had forgotten the other filly was still there. Hastily she added: “Ah’ mean, like ya’ were.”
Silver Spoon sighed: “I wish you were right. My sister isn’t anything like that. She always makes fun of me. She always finds something to tease me with. The nicest thing she ever did for me was naming my bunny.”
“Yer bunny? Ya’ mean that stuffed bunny?”
“Yes. I got it from my father when I had a terrible cold.” Silver Spoon stuck the marshmallow holding branch she still had in her hooves into the ground and started rummaging her saddlebags. “And when my sister brought me some hot soup that day, she saw it. She wanted to know what its name was, but I hadn’t thought of one. Then she said Mr. Snuffles would be a good name. And I liked it, so my bunny got its name.”
“Really?” Apple Bloom’s voice was pure disbelief. “That’s the nicest thing she ever did for you?
Finally Silver Spoon had found the stuffed animal they were talking about. She held it in front of her face. In the gleaming flicker of the camp fire its eyes looked like they were alive, filled with sadness and sympathy.
“As far as I can remember, yes. It’s so strange, even I know that. But that day was one of the happiest days I can think of. Even if I was sick. Everypony were so nice to me. Everypony took care of me. Even my sister.”
A warm feeling spread inside her chest, like she was happy but at the time she wasn’t. It was more like a physical memory of being happy. A kind of joy she was missing more than anything.
“And that’s why Mr. Snuffles is so important me. As long as I have him he will remind me that my sister is actually a nice pony and give me hope that she’ll be as nice to me as she was then someday again. Not just she, everypony.”
Once more, silence fell between them. Silver Spoon held Mr. Snuffles to her chest and closed her eyes. In that moment, with the crackling, warm fire right next to her, some birds calling out to each other for their evening gathering, small animals rustling in the grass all around her, and the – sometimes annoying, sometimes soothing – chirping of crickets, Silver Spoon was finally able to voice a question that was burning in her soul for a long time:
“Why am I so lonely?”
She heard Apple Bloom move, then she felt the filly’s arms around her shoulders. For the second time in two days she realized how soothing the warmth of another pony’s hug was.
“Yer not,” Apple Bloom said quietly, almost whispering into her ear, “not anymore. Diamond Tiara is still yer friend. Ah’ know Cheerilee will always be there for us. That Bon Bon seems to really like ya’. Ah’m sure ya’ sister will be as nice to you as she was eventually. And don’t forget about yer parents still being there.” Silver Spoon wasn’t sure but she thought she heard a slight tremble in Apple Bloom’s voice. She was amazed how much sympathy that filly was able to bring up for her after all. “And if it count’s fer anythin’, now ya’ll have me as a friend.”
“No,” responded Silver Spoon, “it doesn’t count for anything. It counts for everything. You have no idea how much this means to me, that you’re able to say this.”
For a few seconds she savored the embrace, then slowly pulled away from Apple Bloom to look her into the eyes. Even though she felt tears slowly running down her cheeks she managed to smile at her.
“I still have no idea how and why, but I don’t care anymore. What matters to me right now is just that you feel that way.”
“Ya’ just wait and see,” smiled Apple Bloom, still one hoof on her shoulder. “When Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle are back, ya’ll have two more friends.”
“Are you sure? Maybe Sweetie Belle, but Scootaloo hates me…”
“No, she doesn’t hate ya’. Ah’ know it looks that way but trust me, she doesn’t. And it isn’t so much ya’ she has problems with – not that big problems that is – it’s Diamond Tiara. She has never really gotten over what happened at the school newspapers. Ah’ don’t know what Diamond Tiara told you about that time…”
They had never talked much about her actual work at the newspapers. Mostly because Silver Spoon wasn’t interested in such things. She had taken a few looks at the newspapers her father kept reading and they were boring. The books she had were far more entertaining. But Diamond Tiara had told her how she had to leave the newspaper. She had been furious, foaming about Apple Bloom and her friends. And that was all Silver Spoon could really remember about this topic.
“Well, she told me she had to quit as the chief editor because you three… what was it she called it… saberstashed her.”
Cocking an eyebrow Apple Bloom asked: “We did what?”
“You know, worked against her. You tried to make her look bad.”
“Really? That’s how she sees it?” Apple Bloom laughed disbelievingly. “Did she ever say what it exactly was what that we did?”
Silver Spoon tried to remember. But that question had never been brought up. Her friend had just kept on rambling about how unfair she had been treated and Silver Spoon had just accepted it.
“No, not really. She just said it was your fault Cheerilee replaced her as chief editor with Featherweight.”
“Did she also tell ya’ that she blackmailed us into writin’ horrible things about each and everypony? That she would print really embarrassin’ stuff about ma’ friends and me when we wanted to quit?”
“She’d never do that!” Silver Spoon exclaimed in shock. She didn’t want to believe her friend could do something so terrible. Unquestionably, what they both had done in the past was mean-spirited, but neither of them would have ever done more than make fun of Apple Bloom’s little group.
“Ah’m really sorry and I know ya’ don’t want to believe me, but it’s true,” Apple Bloom replied with an apologetic look. “Ah’ know we started that whole Gabby Gums mess ourselves but it was her who forced us to write more when we wanted to stop it.”
“What mess? Who is Gabby Gums?”
“Our pen name we made up to write all those articles. Haven’t you read them?”
“No, I don’t read newspapers. It’s too boring.”
“Okay… Well, we wrote about all those embarrassin’ things nopony wants anypony to know about. And everypony loved it. Everypony except those who we wrote about, as ya’ can imagine. When we noticed how upset those ponies got, we wanted to quit but like Ah’ said, Diamond Tiara blackmailed us and we had to go on. Until we told everypony who we were and that we were sorry. That’s when Cheerilee made Featherweight the new editor in chief.
“And this whole blackmail thing Diamond Tiara pulled off is the reason why Scootaloo really hates her now. I mean, she never liked her to begin with but before that, Diamond Tiara just annoyed her. Since then…”
Silver Spoon interrupted her: “Okay, let’s say this is true, which I still can’t believe. What did Diamond Tiara know about you that she could use to blackmail you?”
“She had some photos of us on which we could be seen in some stupid situations. Well, the ones of Sweetie Belle and me weren’t that bad to be honest but still very embarrassin’. The one of Scootaloo on the other hoof was terrible.”
“What was it?” Silver Spoon wanted to know, but Apple Bloom shook her head.
“Please understand that Ah’ can’t tell ya’. She would never forgive me if Ah’ did. All Ah’ can say is that it showed somethin’ she’s really sensitive about. Somethin’ she has a hard time talkin’ about even to us, her friends. If it was to be made public in a newspaper, Ah’ don’t know what she would do.”
“And what does all of that have to do with me?”
“Honestly, nothin’. But that’s ma’ opinion. Scootaloo on the other hand somehow sees ya’ and Diamond Tiara as the same filly, Ah’ think. To her it doesn’t matter who of ya’ is responsible for what, she’ll just blame both of ya’ for it.”
Silver Spoon wanted to say ‘But that’s not fair, blaming me for something I’m not responsible for.’ But before she had opened her mouth a little voice inside her soul that sounded strangely like Bon Bon asked ‘Isn’t that like making fun of somepony because of something they aren’t responsible for? Like having no cutie mark?’
So instead she asked: “Do you think I can ever change her mind?”
Apple Bloom smiled: “Ah’ know ya’ can. We can. Ya’ll just need to be patient with her. She’s a very loyal and caring friend, that’s why she was so furious after what happened between ya’ and me. Ah’ think she still is angrier about all that than I was at the time it happened. But believe me, once she gets to know ya’ she’ll be the best friend ya’ could ever wish for.”
“If I’ll ever get the chance to get her to know me…” Silver Spoon mumbled.
“Don’t worry, Ah’ll help ya’ with that. As long as ya’ don’t give up, she’ll come around eventually. Trust me.”
On one hand Silver Spoon wanted to trust her. On the other hand she still had her doubts. Scootaloo always seemed so thickheaded and in some way, aggressive. But before she could finish her thoughts Apple Bloom all of a sudden changed the topic:
“Just wanted to warn ya’, Fluttershy is comin’ over.”
“Huh? Why would you need to warn me about that?” asked Silver Spoon and turned around. She was right, Fluttershy was on her way over to them, carrying a tray with drinks.
“Don’t want ya’ to get startled by her. It would upset her too much,” chuckled Apple Bloom.
Even though Silver Spoon had met their host only once she had a good idea what Apple Bloom meant. After what she had witnessed yesterday she could see the pegasus raveling in self-reproach just because someone had to live through half a second of minor shock because of her. Thanks to Apple Bloom’s effort Fluttershy was spared such feelings and delivered the self-made lemonade with her usual warm smile. After she had set down the tray in the grass she sat down right next to it.
“I hope I’m not interrupting you?”
They shook their heads. Even if she had, Silver Spoon would have never been able to tell her so. Whatever it was, something in her eyes just made it impossible for the little filly to say anything that might upset or even oppose her. And on top of that Silver Spoon wouldn’t want her to lose that mind-soothing smile.
“Good, I really wanted to take this chance and tell you how happy I am you are finally able to get along so well. And that, if you all want to, you can come here for another camping night together with Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo when they are back.”
“Thanks, we’ll do that, Fluttershy,” Apple Bloom responded before Silver Spoon had a chance to say anything.
“Okay, then just one more thing and I will leave you alone. Is there anything special you want for breakfast tomorrow?”
This question took Silver Spoon by surprise. She looked back and forth between Fluttershy and Apple Bloom. The former still kept smiling like a grandmother – a very young grandmother – who wanted to give her favorite grand-child an extra special present. The latter looked expectantly at Silver Spoon. She blinked a few times. It was the first time she had been asked what she wanted to eat. Up until now it had always been the duty of her house’s chef to decide what would be served. Even when they went out to eat in a restaurant it were her parents who decided what menu was to be ordered.
“Err… I guess whatever you make will be fine…” Silver Spoon managed to say, only to be cut off by Apple Bloom’s excited shout:
“Let’s have pancakes!”
Fluttershy hesitated for a brief moment. Then she asked Silver Spoon: “Is that okay for you?”
“Yeah, sure,” nodded Silver Spoon, not really convinced herself.
“Fine,” smiled Fluttershy like somepony had given her a wonderful gift. “I’ll then be inside if you need anything. Have fun you two, but please, don’t stay up too late.”
With that she turned around and went back to her house.
As soon as she was out of sight Silver Spoon asked: “Pancakes for breakfast? Really?”
“Of course, there’s nothin’ better than hot pancakes with lots and lots of syrup in the mornin’,” grinned Apple Bloom. “Ya’ never tried that before?”
“No,” admitted Silver Spoon, “and I have never thought about it. Our kitchen staff is responsible for preparing any food. Nopony has ever asked me what I wanted.”
“Really? Not even for yer birthday?” Apple Bloom asked skeptically. 
“No, but our chef always knew what I liked best somehow.”
Still, Apple Bloom didn’t look convinced. She wasn’t shocked like before, but her look told clearly that she couldn’t quite process what she had been told.
“What’s wrong?” Silver Spoon wanted to know.
The answer came hesitantly: “The whole thought just feels strange to me. Having somepony cook ma’ meals for me?”
Now it was Silver Spoon’s turn once again to doubt what she had heard: “What, you cook your meals yourself?”
“Yes, of course,” Apple Bloom nodded. Then a wave of realization went over her face. “Well, not Ah’ maself, Applejack won’t let me come near the oven since Ah’ tried to get a cutie mark in cookin’. But she or ma’ brother do the cooking, sometimes even Granny Smith will do it. But Ah’ would never imagine somepony else, somepony not from our family doin’ the cookin’ for us. That would just feel… wrong.”
“Wrong? Do you think what we’re doing is wrong?” Silver Spoon did not even have to try to keep her tone free from any accusation. She was too curious to find out how Apple Bloom saw her and her way of life by now.
“No, of course not. Ah’m sorry, wrong might have been the, well, wrong word. It’s just that it’s so different from what Ah’m used to, Ah’ just can’t imagine maself living like that. I guess it’s the same the other way ‘round, ain’t it?”
Silver Spoon nodded: “Yeah, I think so. I never quite got how other fillies could stand having to tidy up their own rooms. The only times I have to do that is as a punishment.”
Apple Bloom stared at her for a moment. Then she started to laugh.
“Okay, ya’ got me. That is something I’d like somepony else to do for me.”
“Really? So you don’t like cleaning your home yourself?” Silver Spoon asked in sincere surprise. She wasn’t trying to mock Apple Bloom or make fun of her in any way.
“Of course not,” was the amused answer. “Who does?”
“I don’t know, it’s just that so many ponies do it. It’s just that I always thought…” Silver Spoon’s voice trailed off. Too late she realized that once again, she was going to say something she better shouldn’t.
Unfortunately she couldn’t make Apple Bloom unhear what had already left her mouth so it was to no surprise that the red maned filly asked: “Thought what?”
“That poor ponies were just that…” She paused again, still not knowing how to end this sentence best. Or at least, as inoffensive as possible. All she could come up with was: “…strange.”
This earned her the skeptical look she had already expected. She tried to explain herself: “Yes, I know they can’t pay somepony to do those things for them. But then again, I don’t know how they can stand doing it all on their own. It’s so boring and tiring.”
“They don’t exactly have a choice if they want to have a clean home. Ah’ guess it’s not that hard to live with when yer used to it.”
This wasn’t the snappy or sharp retort Silver Spoon had anticipated. Yet again, Apple Bloom had managed to laugh off a topic Silver Spoon had already deemed to be a mood killer. This gave her the confidence to say something she wanted to bring up for some time now:
“Being poor seems to take a lot to get used to…”
“Of course it does. But, could ya’ do me a favor? Please stop callin’ anypony who can’t hire somepony to do their housework for them poor. That sounds like they can barely feed themselves.”
Even though Apple Bloom still kept a neutral tone Silver Spoon was surprised by this statement.
“Huh? I thought that’s what those ponies were called. At least my sister and mother do so. Is it really such a bad word?”
“I wouldn’t say bad, no,” Apple Bloom shook her head. “But inappropriate. I guess most ponies would get offended if ya’d call them poor just because they’re not as rich as yerself.”
“That might explain… a lot.”
“Guess so,” Apple Bloom responded once again with an air of joy that felt almost unnatural to Silver Spoon. “But don’t ya’ dare getting’ all depressed over it again. Ah’ told ya’ before and Ah’ tell ya’ again, Ah’m not mad at ya’ for anythin’ anymore.”
Silver Spoon gave a weak smile. As much as she wanted to adhere this advice there were still many fears tugging at her mind.
“Yes, you aren’t. But what about all the others? Not just Scootaloo, I mean all of them. Will they even give me a chance?”
Apple Bloom rolled her eyes but kept her encouraging smile: “Of course they will. Ah’ did and if Ah’ can do it, they can, too.”
“And that’s what I’m afraid of. I told you before, you are unbelievably nice and forgiving. And somehow you made me see things a lot differently within just a few days. Even so much that I still don’t know how you were able to give me a chance in the first place. Even go so far and inviting me to go camping.”
“Ah’ guess most of that honor goes to Fluttershy. If it hadn’t been fer her convincin’ me of givin’ ya’ another chance or rather, one real chance at all, Ah’ now would hate ya’ more than ever. But she really has a way of makin’ ya’ see things from another point of view.”
“So maybe we should ask Fluttershy to invite all of our classmates over for some tea?” Silver Spoon grinned.
Apple Bloom responded chuckling: “Maybe, if everything else fails. But seriously, stop worryin’ about that now. We’ll find a way to let them see yer not who they think ya’ were. But there’s somethin’ else ya’ should worry about fer now.”
“Huh? What do you mean?” Silver Spoon asked. She twisted her mind but couldn’t think of anything Apple Bloom might be referring to. She gave the yellow filly a helpless, questioning look, who in return chuckled and pointed at the branch still sticking in the ground besides Silver Spoon. She took a closer look at it. There was still a long forgotten marshmallow pinned on top of it.
“Guess it’s cold by now, but ya’ can still eat it.”