//------------------------------//
// Lullabies of love  
// Story: Seven minutes in heaven 
// by Boomstick Mick 
//------------------------------//

	 Silver Spoon's affection fueled her eagerness to catch up with Button Mash as the rapid, rhythmic pattering of her hooves echoed through the lamplit streets of Ponyville. She forced herself well beyond the threshold she would have had if it had not been for her pure focus and power of will that had all but given her wings.

She looked to her right and noticed that she was now passing the school. Saddle Court would be coming up any minute now. 

Lowering her head, she spiked her pace in a sudden burst of speed as her determination renewed her with a seemingly boundless amount of stamina. Her silver, voluminous hair, now unbound, whipped wildly behind her like a thrashing cat of nine tails that flashed like white gold in the moon light. The few onlookers that were out and about in the twilight hours stood in awe at the quadrupedal silver bullet that blurred past them.

The faster she moved, the faster she could be with him.  

She was beginning to think that she might even be able to catch Button before he gets to his house, despite the considerable head start that he had on her. That would be the best case scenario. An awkward bout of questioning from the colt's parents concerning her business with their son at this hour was not something she was prepared for.

The path continued on until Stirrup Street took her through a community of houses, and several side roads that branched off into various neighborhoods. She was no longer in the opulent suburban atmosphere to which she was accustomed, but if she was going to be Button Mash's friend, or, hopefully more than just that, she would need to familiarize herself with the area. Her middle class surroundings were at least reasonable. At least she wasn't in the center of some downtown slum, where there could be a mugger, or some creeper prowling around every corner.

The street signs stood towering like iron sentinels as she passed them: Galloping Grove, Bronco Boulevard, Winnie Way, Trottingham Terrace, Steed Street. Finally, she could see it. She read out loud the name of her destination, as if the very sign beckoned to her with words emblazoned in shimmering gold. "Saddle Court." Her heart thumped rapidly in her chest as the reality that she was about to admit to Button that she liked him was setting in. Though where it would go from there, she couldn't be sure. 

She hooked a sharp left down Saddle Court, keeping to the left side of the road. 

There he was, just turning off the street to approach his house. It was the fifth one on the left with the odd-looking bird bath in the front yard, just as her stubby little informant had told her. She made it.

It felt like the exhaustion from her brisk run had caught up to her. Her nerves had seemingly cut off the supply of adrenaline that had been driving her. Breathing, panting, wheezing, she approached him at a steady trot. She began to wonder about things that had never crossed her until she finally saw him. What would he think of her hair? This was the first time he'll be seeing it when it wasn't bound back in a braid. She hoped the run hadn't ravaged it too fiercely. 

It felt like her nerves were twisting her gut. The butterflies in her belly were now like a swarm of raging vampire bats gnawing at her innards. Still she forced herself to press on. She wanted to call out to him, but she didn't know what to say. Her mouth opened, but nothing came out. Her voice was caught in her throat. All she could do was approach until he noticed her. 

Button had already cleared half of his yard. Silver desperately wanted to catch up to him before he could enter the house. Meeting his parents would require energy that she just didn't have at the moment. They'd probably see her messed up hair and think she was some kinda ragamuffin from off the street accosting their son for change. How could she admit her feelings to Button Mash in front of such a scrutinizing audience? It would be impossible! 

Her legs burned, but she needed to move faster if she was going to catch him. She was just about to burst forth in a sprint when a dark figure atop the house could be seen. It moved like a shadow, its form dark and Indiscernible like a silhouette. It was as silent and black as the night it's self. It leaped from the roof, arching over Button, who seemed none the wiser of the figure's presence. It rolled soundlessly as it touched the ground with the grace of a master parkour runner. 

The amber light from one of the street lamps illuminated it's figure very briefly, revealing a pony in some sort of - what looked like - a ninja outfit. It was a mare, it had to be. The black formfitting suit that covered her body from head to hoof contoured to a thin and rather lithe form that couldn't have belonged to a stallion. 

Silver became so distracted by the enigmatic figure that she stopped dead in her tracks in puzzlement. "What in the hay is that?" 

The cowled mare grabbed Button from behind, covering his mouth before he could have the chance to yelp in surprise. There was a brief struggle, then the shadow managed to throw him to the ground.

Silver Spoon's eyes widened as panic began to grip at her heart. Button Mash was being attacked! She looked around in the hopes that somebody else may be present. Somebody bigger, stronger, more capable of fighting off an assailant like the one that had converged upon the hapless colt.

Button scrambled to get to his hooves, but before he could rise, the mare leaped on top of him, pinning him. 

"Sithis beckons for your soul, little one!" Hissed the mare in a shrill, terrifying cackle. She produced a long, crooked blade from within her sleeve and held it above her head.

Silver didn't know what was happening. Her body reacted before her brain could. This wasn't an action of her mind. It was her heart that drove her to the suicidal course of action she was now taking. Her life flashed before her eyes as she approached in a mad gallop, eyes wide in terror. Bounding across the yard, she leaped on top of Button Mash, wrapping her arms protectively around him and burying her face into his chest, waiting for the sensation of that cold steel to rip through her spine and end her life. "D-don't hurt him! Please!" she whimpered, her voice muffled by Button's body. She tremored and hugged him tightly. A second passed. Then another. Then several more.

"Uh, Button?"

"Yes mom?"

"Are you going to introduce me, or...?"

"Uh... Mom - Silver Spoon. Silver Spoon - Mom..."





The quivering mirror that was the surface of ginger ale in Silver's glass shook as the filly grappled with herself to regain her faculties. She knew that she was no longer in danger, but she just couldn't stop trembling. "A-a-a b-b-booth babe, h-huh?" she stammered. "W-what is that, e-exactly?"

Button sat at the other end of the couch, a concerned, yet slightly amused look on his face. "Basically, my mom is kinda like a model."

Button's mother sat in between them, speaking in a comforting tone as she reached over and rubbed the filly's back with a caring hoof that only a mother could possess. She still wore that terrifying costume, but her hood was now drawn back, revealing an exquisitely beautiful face that one would think could definitely belong to a model. "Video game companies pay me to cosplay at conventions and events for promotional purposes." She explained with a soft voice, every word flowing like honey. "With the release of Elder Scrolls VI: Black Marsh on the horizon, the company I work for sent me this Dark Brotherhood costume to wear at the Electronic Gaming Expo coming up in a few weeks... I just wanted to show off my new costume to my son, I didn't think I'd actually scare anyone... I feel terrible about this!"

"I'll be fine, Miss Mash," Silver Spoon assured. "I-it all just - it all just happened so quick."

Button's mom smiled. "You, dear, are one brave little filly. Trying to shield my son from danger like that. It's just so sweet, I think my head's going to explode!" She lashed herself toward the shaken filly with the sudden quickness of a snake snapping at a field mouse and threw her arms around her.

"My body just moved on it's own!" Silver winced under the mare's affectionate, albeit superfluous grip.

"Mom, she's fine!" Button protested. "You're making her feel uncomfortable."

"Oh, I see how it is!" Button's mother accused, releasing the filly from her constricting embrace. "You get a cute little visitor, and you just want her all to yourself, don't you?"

"Visitor? It's not like I knew she'd be coming by. I didn't even know how she found out where I lived... Unless she followed me without me noticing."

Silver Spoon didn't like the accusatory statement. It didn't maker her angry so much as she just didn't want to be seen as some sort of stalker in the eyes of his mother. "No, that's not—" 

"Amazing!" Cheered Button's mom. "You, my dear, would make an exemplary assassin!" Her eyes gleefully widened as an idea came to her. The frantic mare squealed with delight, bringing her shaking hooves up to her mouth. "You would look so adorable in a little Dark Brother outfit of your very own! Have you considered a career in being a booth babe? It's nothing as boring as just standing around and looking pretty. It's really fun if you can get into character." Button's mom placed a proud hoof over her chest and declared, "I myself have become somewhat of a celebrity at the annual EGE."

"Uhm... I really don't know if I'm old enough to—"

"Some say that the name is politically incorrect, and the job is demeaning, but it's no different than modeling! Between you and me, I think the bureaucrats and feminazis are just running out of things to complain about. I mean, do you ever hear them complaining about the scantily clad mares being objectified in the sports magazines? No, you don't. So why pick on the cosplayers? I'll tell you why: because they just love to get high off their own flatulence!" 

"Mom!" Button interrupted.

"What is it, sweetie?" asked the impulsive mare, her irate demeanor instantly transitioning to a rather coy curiousness. 
This mare, Silver thought, is a female Button Mash!

"I know this is a pet peeve of yours, but you usually get angry when you talk about it. You might scare Silver again."

Button's mother raised an admonished hoof to her mouth. "Oh, I'm sorry." She placed a hoof on Silver Spoon and said, "Sweetie, I'm not scaring you, am I?"

Silver could only smile as she realized from whom Button must have inherited his spastic personality. Her nerves evened out as the trauma from the encounter that had occurred earlier began to fade. "I'm not scared." She said with a shy smile. "You're actually kind of funny. I think a fun mom is the best kind of mom to have."

"You hear that?" The cocky mare said with a roguish smirk. "She. Thinks. I'm. Funny." She then playfully stretched her bottom eyelid down with a hoof and stuck her tongue out at Button, causing him to smile and roll his eyes.

Now that the shock of the terrifying events were behind Silver, she remembered why she had come, but she couldn't just ask Button's mom to go away and leave her alone with her son, not in her own house. That would be an egregious breach of etiquette, especially to a lady who was so nice. She had to just keep the conversation going until the opportunity to be alone with him presented itself. "So," she said, "what does your husband do?"

Button's mom smiled. "My hubby's a journalist."

"Journalist? Like, for a newspaper?" 

"More like a magazine," Button put in. 

"A magazine?" Silver said with budding enthusiasm. The filly was addicted to celebrity gossip magazines. Her mind began to draw pictures of the interesting and well-traveled stallion that must have been Button Mash's father. He must get to travel all over the world, and meet so many interesting ponies like Photo Finish and Sapphire Shores. She envied such a life.

"Yeah, a gaming magazine. It's called MassiveBomb. They're based out of San Prance-sisco."

And just like that, Silver's expectations were dashed just as quickly as they were raised. "A gaming magazine," she said with a forced smile, not wanting to sound disinterested, even though she was. "What exactly does he do for this 'gaming' magazine?"

"Game publishers send him free games to review in the mail, and he writes about them. He also goes with my mom to conventions and events to interview designers and write columns about the latest and upcoming titles. I think where his career truly shines is in the weekly radio show he does with the MassiveBomb staff. You can tune in to listen to them every Tuesday on the Frisky Media station."

"A radio show? That sounds kinda cool. What kinda things do they talk about?"

"Video games," replied Button and his mother simultaneously.

"Wow..." Silver Spoon tried her hardest to keep from rolling her eyes. "You guys really live, eat, and breathe this..." She paused and looked into the reflective surface of her ginger ale as she thought of an appropriate word, but the only label she could think of was "stuff" in an involuntary condescending tone.

Button and his mother traded a look that was difficult to interpret. 

"Stuff?" Button said.

"Well, yeah. I mean— I don't know. I've never really played a video game in my entire life. They just seem kinda dumb."

Both Button's and his mother's jaws dropped. 

Silver continued. "I don't want to sound rude, but it's just not my thing. I don't understand the appeal in these toys. I didn't even realize you could actually make a living off of these pointless things unless you're some hotshot CEO or stock holder, who profit off of children and middle-aged unemployed basement dwellers..."

"The gaming industry is the fastest growing market right now," Illustrated Button's mother in a very matter-of-fact and deadly serious tone. "Wherever there are consumers, there will be profit to be made. And furthermore - like any connoisseur who's passion may be painting, fine wine, poetry, or pottery - ours are games. They're just as legitimate as any other art form!"

"I guess that makes sense?" Silver shrugged, taken aback by the sudden seriousness in the mare's tone. 

There was an uncomfortable silence in the room. Silver Spoon feared that she may have offended Button and his mother over her statement. Thinking back on it, it was a bit of a snobbish thing to say. Video games weren't just silly kiddie toys to these ponies; It was their way of life. What right did she have to criticize their career choice?

"What's wrong?" Button asked.

"Oh, nothing. I just hope I didn't offend either of you. I shouldn't have said what I said. It was mean."

Button's mother smiled forgivingly. "Sweetie, don't worry. I don't feel offended. And you don't really come off as mean to me, I think you just lack understanding of that which you are not familiar with. All of us suffer from that."  

Silver Spoon looked abashedly down into her cup. "Well... Still, I'm sorry. I was being presumptuous." 

The filly suddenly yelped when Button's mother scooped her up in another attack hug. "It's so cute how you use big words like that!"

"Mom, you're gonna scare her."

"I can't help it, Button; this little girlfriend of yours is just too adorable! We so need to take her to EGE with us. Get the Mash culture ingrained in to her. She'll come around to the dark side if we pull hard enough."

"Mom!" Button roared, bringing a halt to his mother's playful behavior. 

"What's wrong, Sweetie?"

"She's not my girlfriend. Leave her alone, okay? I don't even know why she's here!" He looked at Silver Spoon, then quickly looked away, embarrassed. "I'm sorry, Sil. But why are you here? I'm surprised that you'd ever want to be near me again after what happened earlier."

Silver glanced uncomfortably at Button's mother, then back to him. "I wanted to see you again," she answered vaguely. 

"Why?"

"Because, I just did, okay? I... Wanted to talk to you about..." She looked again into the inquisitive eyes of his mom. "About... stuff..."

That was when Button's mother raised her eyebrow in a knowing grin, positioning her head in a way that only Silver could see it. "Oh," she purred mischievously. 

That was all she had to say, and Silver knew that the mare was fully aware of what was going on. 

Silver Spoon's eyes went so wide, they surpassed the boarders of the rims of her glasses as she shook her head pleadingly. "Please - don't say anything!" she mouthed in a barely audible whisper. 

"What's going on?" Button asked. "What'd you just say to my mom?"

The smile on the young mother's face was so soft, so gentle, so understanding, that it could have soothed anyone. She was like an angel of serenity. That smile completely vindicated herself of any intent to betray the filly's secret. "Young love," She sighed with a dreamy, far away expression, as if she were going back in time and recalling tender memories of her own experiences. She then smiled at Button and said, "Hey, why don't you show your little friend your room?"

"Mom, I doubt that she cares to see my room, or anything that's in it."

"Actually!" Silver jumped in, pouncing upon the opportunity that Button's mother had provided for her. "I wouldn't mind!" She looked gratefully at the generous mare, who returned the look of gratitude with a wink.

"You wouldn't?" Button asked in surprise. "I really don't think there's anything in there that's going to interest you. It's just more of those 'dumb digital toys' that you don't care about."

"Yeah, well..." Silver Spoon bit down on her lip as she grasped for an excuse. "I came a long way. You might as well show me around."

"You still haven't told me why you came here."

"Precisely!" said Silver Spoon. "I'll tell you why I came here after you show me your room."

"Why can't you tell me now?"

"Button!" his mother interjected. "You're being rude! I raised you better than that. Now, I want you to take this little filly to your bedroom, and I want you to close and lock your door! I don't want to so much as—"

Silver winced at Button's mother. If she kept going on like that, she feared Button may become suspicious. 

"Too much?" she asked.

"Too much!" Silver whispered. 

"Oh! I meant!" she cleared her throat. "I want you to bring this filly to your room. We will not be calling it a bedroom, because that sounds too intimate! I mean, come on, you're both children, for Celestia's sake!"

Button's face was the very portrait of confusion. "Okay?"

"And you will not lock that door, however, you may close it... That is, if you'd like some privacy! In which case, if you don't want privacy, leave it open, or else!" She looked at Silver Spoon for signs of disapproval.

She could perhaps have acted a little less suspicious, but her terms were at least agreeable. 

Silver Spoon gave a satisfied nod.

Button's mother smiled in return.

"Okay, well, if you want to see my room so bad, come on. I'll give you the grand tour," Button surrendered before hopping down from the couch.

Silver followed closely, wondering why the colt seemed so reluctant to be alone with her.





"Well, this is it," Button opened his door, ushering Silver Spoon inside of his room with a gesture of his hoof. "Casa de Button."

Silver Spoon shyly entered the room, her head down. Her heart was racing again. She'd never been in a boy's room before. In a way, it was exhilarating. This was the moment of truth. There was no turning back now.

The anxious filly looked up and examined Button's room once she was inside. The walls were littered with game posters from every generation. Some of them were old and tattered, some of them brand new, some of them, the vintage ones, were framed like precious, historical government documents. Not a single inch of white from the four walls were exposed. There was even a collection of maps torn out from strategy guides pinned to the wall, all of them intricately designed fantasy worlds with imaginative names like Hyrule, Azeroth, Nozgoth, Middle-Earth, Tamriel, and The Dragon Realms. The room was like a massive collage of all that is and ever was gaming. 

One wall of the room was entirely dedicated to the storage of Button's massive game collection. Book cases, wooden media centers, and particle board shelves lined side by side accommodated discs and plastic cartridges of all shapes, colors, and sizes. There must have been literally thousands of them!

Button's bed was at the opposite end of the room from the door. She hopped up and sat on it, eyeing the large projector screen that could be seen over the headboard of the bed. On each side of the screen was a large monolithic speaker, as there were two smaller ones mounted to the wall above the bed. It looked like a state of the art surround sound system. 

Silver Spoon knew Button Mash was a gamer, but she hadn't realized to what extent he took his hobby until she had stepped into his room. "This must be what culture shock feels like," she said to herself in amazement.

"You say something?" Button asked in a low tone.

Silver Spoon snapped out of her distracted haze and turned her head to the colt. He seemed nervous - almost frightened. The whole incident with the Joyboy must have really disturbed him. Silver beckoned to him by patting a spot next to her on the bed, trying to be playful about the situation. "Come up here and talk to me." 

Button Mash sighed reluctantly before turning around and shutting his door. Then he turned an explicitly mortified gaze to Silver, not daring to come any closer. "Before you say, or do anything to me, I just want a chance to explain myself."

"Explain yourself?" Silver asked, cocking her head sideways in bemusement.

"I didn't want to say anything in front of my mom, because I was too embarrassed, but I think I know why you're here."

"You do?"

"Yeah, you came here to make sure that I deleted you from the plaza before anyone else could see it, right? It's understandable that you're upset, and I'm sorry. My Joyboy is almost dead, but I'll delete you as soon as it's charged, I promise. You can't even begin to imagine how embarrassed I am. I've never felt so bad about anything in my entire life!"

At this, Silver Spoon, not knowing what else to do, jumped down from the bed and approached the perturbed colt. "You don't have to delete it, if you don't want to. There's nothing to be embarrassed about, okay?"  

"Look, there's no point in trying to hide it anymore, so I'm just going to say it!" Button suddenly blurted as he reeled away from her into the corner and averted his eyes like a vampire reacting to a cross. "I like you a lot. I've tried not liking you, but that just made me like you even more. I do my best to act calm and collected in front of you. That's why my nose is always in my Joyboy whenever you're around: it helps me focus my thoughts. Without it, I just deteriorate into a ball of nerves. The other times... I just act goofy and make a complete fool out of myself! The only reason why I came to Diamond Tiara's party was because it was another opportunity to see you, even if I thought it would only be from a distance." The unsettled colt turned his sullen expression to the corner behind him, as if he were too ashamed to so much as look Silver Spoon in her eyes any longer. He sat with his head lowered between his shoulders, and his tail curled around his flank, locking himself in his own little shell of insecurity. "I know I don't stand a chance, and I never will. I've accepted that, so go ahead. Laugh at me. Laugh at me like you always do!"

Silver stood motionless, bereft of speech. She was aware that Button liked her, but she could never have predicted how tortured he was by his own emotions. The revelations he had just revealed to her, one after the other, it was too much to digest all at one time. It was her fault that she was so unapproachable. Silver had no one else but herself to blame. She was so mean to him all this time, she just wanted to take it all back. But that was impossible. The only silver lining that she could find in her situation, was that now, she had her opportunity.

"Button..." Silver said with as much sweetness as she could muster. 

The colt clenched his body in preparation for the verbal assault he must have thought was coming his way. 

"I feel the same way about you. I like you, too. I like you a lot..." The ten ton weight in Silver's chest felt like it had evaporated with those words. her confession wasn't nearly as theatrical as she thought she would be, but it should do the job of conveying her feelings well enough. All she needed to do now was wait. 

...

Nothing happened. Button acted as if he didn't even hear her.

"Button?" Silver approached him and placed a hoof on his back, which made him tense up as if he had just been jabbed by a red hot poker. "I like you. And you like me. So this works out for both of us, right?"

...

"Button?"

"Silver," Button said, "just stop it."

"Stop it?"

"Just knock it off. Please. I don't want to play this game with you."

"What?" The baffled filly blinked.

"You think this is funny, don't you?" The colt sniffed. "I'm not falling for this trick."

"Button, I'm not playing any tricks on you! You think I would joke about something like this?"

"I don't know what to think right now. I just want to be left alone."

"Button, please, I'm not trying to trick you! What kind of trick do you think i'm trying to play on you?"

"I'll bet you told Diamond Tiara about the Joyboy incident, and now you're setting me up for something."

"I didn't! I'm not even friends with Diamond Tiara anymore!" 

"Am I really supposed to believe all of this? The same night you found out that I like you, you suddenly break your ties with your best friend, and you decide you like me back? Silver, I don't want to sound rude, but this all just sounds a little too perfect, don't you think?"   

Silver could feel a tear welling under the corner of her eye, but she fought it back. "Button, look, I know I've been horrible to you over the years. And I don't deserve a second chance, but if you could just give me the benefit of the doubt... I don't know what else to say. I'm really sorry about the way I've treated you. I really like you, okay? This isn't some ploy to lull you into a false sense of security!"

"Like the time you invited me to eat with you at lunch, and you tricked me into drinking that spoiled milk? I was sick for a whole week after that..." 

"Button, I said I'm sorry. That was just—"

"Like the time Diamond snuck up behind me and shoved me into the storm drain, when you asked me if I could reach your glasses for you? Like the time you told me you left a gift for me in the playground behind the school, only to have a group of boys ambush me and pelt me with dirt clods?" 

He then whirled around to face her. It wasn't truly evident how distraught the colt was until Silver Spoon could see his face. She couldn't believe how expressive he was with his eyes. Those shimmering orbs of his, so fearful of betrayal, yet so longing for that which he thought was so far out of his reach, welling out a constant barrage of tears that left behind moist, salty streaks that branched out all the way to his chin until they dropped into the carpet. 

"That one time, on hearts and hooves day," He began. "when my cubby was empty, save for one card. It was from you. You can't begin to imagine how happy that made me... Until I opened it."

Silver Spoon winced, the streaks from her tears leaving lines of dark grey down her face. She was afraid this one was coming. "Please don't say it," she whimpered.

"I opened it, and inside of it, it read 'nobody loves you!'"

That was when Silver realized that she would never gain his trust. She could apologize a million times, and it wouldn't matter. Groveling in vain was the only option she could think of. "Button, I know you don't believe me. But I'm sorry. I don't blame you for not trusting me, but if you could give me the benefit of the doubt... Just this one time. If you could just open up your heart to me and trust me just this once, I promise you, you won't regret it. Tell me what I have to do."

"Can you turn back time?"

"Button, that's ridiculous, you know I can't do that."

"Then there's nothing you can do, I guess."

"Just give me a reasonable demand, Button. Something that's within my power. I'll do anything that is within my ability!"

The disconsolate colt wiped his eyes and shook his head. "The only thing I ever wanted from you was a smile. Believe it or not, I wanted to see you with Rumble even more than I would have wanted you to be with me - because I knew how happy that would have made you. A smile can't hurt. A smile doesn't betray, or judge, or mock, or condescend. It's simply a smile. That was all I wanted from you, and it seems like even now that's coming with a price."

"I'm not trying to make you pay some price, Button!"

"I don't care, Silver. I know I already said it, but I like you. But I don't want to like you. I just want to be over you."

"Button..." 

"Sil, just leave, okay? Please? I just want to be left alone." Button Mash walked over to his door and opened it, ushering Silver Spoon out. "Just let me be. That's all I want."

Eyes dripping, heart heavy, Silver Spoon nodded. There was nothing she could say, nothing she could do. His impenetrable barrier of distrust that she had so sadistically built around him was a reality she had to force herself to face. The only one with a sense of humor more sadistic than her's must have been cupid's.

She could just imagine that diaper-clad, trigger happy Pegasus just laughing his plot off at her right now. Silver Spoon stopped just as she was at the threshold of the doorway. She turned her head and looked at Button, who was holding the door open, avoiding eye contact. 

An idea came to her. If she couldn't convince him verbally that she loved him, she would show him physically. She could just nuzzle him. Just grab him, pin him against the wall, and nuzzle his brains out! He would accept her feelings for him then! He'd have no choice but to believe her!

"Button~" she said, her tone dripping with the seduction of her renewed vigor.

"What?"

Silver Spoon smiled as a new thrill came to her. She crouched low with her forefronts, her posterior wiggling in the air, like a playful kitten ready to pounce.

"What?" Button asked again. "What do you want now?"

Silver Spoon breathed heavily. She couldn't move. It was like an insurmountable force was holding her back, anchoring her hooves firmly to the floor. She couldn't summon the nerve to follow through with her plan. Curse her feminine modesty! 

"What are you doing?" Button asked.

"Nothing," Silver sighed in defeat. After walking out through the door way with her head hanging, she looked back and watch that door slowly close. He didn't even so much as glance at her. 

Feeling numb, tired, and emotionally defeated, Silver Spoon made her lonely way down the hall and into the living room where Button's mother was sitting on the couch. She sat with a controller in her hooves. The television across from her illuminated with a portrait of Link and Zelda standing across form each other in a courtyard as the title 'The End' was splayed across the screen. 

The mare on the couch stretched with a self satisfied smile. "This game just ages like a fine wine. No matter how many times I play through it, it just gets better and better," she sighed contently before shooting Silver Spoon a smile. "I love happy endings, don't you?"

"I suppose," Silver replied glumly as she made her way to the door.

"What's wrong, Sweetie? Did it not work out?"

"No," was silver's terse reply.

"That's ridiculous," Button's mother said incredulously. "You're such a sweet girl! And you're cute, too... How could my son possibly have turned down a catch like you?"

"I'm not as sweet as you would think, Miss Mash... It's a long story."

"Well, I don't have anywhere to be right now."

Silver Spoon turned to face her - that beautiful, warm smile of her's. She didn't like being smiled at like that. She didn't deserve anyone's kindness. It was far more preferable to be treated like the cretin she knew she was deep down, but she gave in. The smile of Button's mother was too powerful. It promised her everything she wanted, which was simply to feel comforted. And that face of her's was nothing if not comforting.

With a sigh she sat next to her on the couch, and for the next ten minutes, she spilled her little heart out. She confessed to every rotten thing she had ever done to her son, and the events that had just recently transpired. The party, Diamond Tiara, Button's crazy plan and why he did it, her feelings, and finally, the conversation that had just occurred in his room. It felt surprisingly therapeutic to talk to someone about it. 

"So you're the reason why my son used to run strait to his room when he came home from school," the attentive mare concluded.   

Silver nodded guiltily before blowing her nose into a tissue. "I don't want to be the mean girl anymore. I'm sorry for everything I did. I know that 'sorry' is not a magical word that will just absolve you of anything and everything you do, but still, I don't know what else to say. I'm sorry... Miss Mash, if there is anything I can ever do to make up for all the damage I've done, please let me know. I'll never rest easy until I've paid my penance."

Button's mom turned thoughtfully to the Ocarina Of Time end game screen frozen on the television. She focused on the screen until her morose expression slowly upturned into that wide, goofy smile of her's. "There is something you can do as penance!"

"Anything. What is it? I swear I'll do anything! I've given up hope on being with Button, but I still need to make things right."

"Sweetie, I know you're a good girl. The way you tried to protect my Button when you thought I was actually trying to hurt him? That truly moves me in ways you can't even begin to comprehend. Despite all the nastiness, I can forgive you, and you only need to do one thing for me." 

"What's that?"

"You can march back into Button's room and give it one more try!"

Silver Spoon rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Miss Mash, have you been listening to anything I've been saying? He pretty much told me that the only way I can fix things is to turn back time."

Button's mother, without so much as a word of what she was doing or where she was going, shot up from the couch like a rocket and dashed down the hallway, leaving the perplexed filly alone, but only momentarily. She returned to the living area after only moments had passed with a cardboard box in her possession.

"What's that?" Silver inquired apprehensively. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

The mischievous mare stripped off the duct tape that sealed the flimsy container and folded open the lid. She gazed into the box with a look of affection and nostalgia. "I have a plan," She said with a crooked smirk. "It's a very strange, very unorthodox plan. You might not understand it at first, but you're going to have to trust me, and do exactly what I tell you to do." She reached into the box, ceremoniously took Silver's hoof, and bestowed upon her a magical device that the filly was all too familiar with.





The up beat tune of Jungle Hinjinks thumped from Button's surround sound as the colt sat at the edge of his bed and immersed himself in the two dimensional digital world that was Donkey Kong Country. The muscle bound gorilla burst forth from his tree house and began to lay waste to any and all enemies who would dare stand in the way of him reclaiming his beloved banana horde. The older, more challenging games, such as the one he was playing, was how he unwound when he was upset. A good old 2D side scroller from his mom and dad's era presented enough of a fun and challenge to distract him. But not this time, it would seem. 

Slinging barrels at wasps and goring morbidly obese bipedal alligators with Rambi the rhino's horn was usually therapeutic to the young stallion when he was depressed, but not this time. He just couldn't get Silver Spoon off of his mind. 

There was that tiny little voice in his head that kept saying 'what if.'

What if Silver Spoon was sincere this time? What if she truly liked him as much as she insisted that she did. He kept trying to disregard it. It wasn't worth the risk. She'd taken a sick pleasure in breaking his heart on at least a dozen occasions. There was no way she could just do a complete one eighty over the span of an hour. Things like that just don't happen in real life.

It was true that she threw herself on top of him to shield him from the 'assassin' who attacked him, but that had to be Silver Spoon taking advantage of the situation to fortify her little ruse. She couldn't have actually thought he was being attacked. An assassin from the Dark Brother Hood coming after him? Even with his diminished sense of reality, he knew that the prospect was asinine. If any organization were to premeditate and carry out an attack on him it would probably be the Mythic Dawn... 

Still though, she looked and sounded like she was scared out of her mind as his mother brought her into the house. And she was crying when he refused to accept her feelings for him. That girl's acting ability was stellar.

Button was so distracted by his thoughts that he didn't even notice the enemy on the screen before it killed him. 

"Oh, come on! I died on the first level?" He smacked himself in the head with his controller. "I can't even beat Jungle Hinjinks now?" If his father had been home to see that embarrassing display of modern casual-gamer fail, he'd never live it down. The game brought him back to the selection overhead map, and Button, being the stubborn one, entered the level again. It was around that time when he could here the slow and steady creek of his door opening. Probably his mom checking on him, or his dad letting him know that he was home. He didn't even bother to look away from the game screen.

"Button?" quivered Silver Spoon's voice. 

The colt's face turned pale. His heart dropped in his stomach. She's back! Why won't she just leave me be?

"Uhm, Button?" Silver's voice quivered again. She sounded nervous.

"Why are you still here?" Button Mash asked, trying to seem nonchalant.

"I uh, just wanted to, uh, show you... Something..."

"What is it?" Button sighed impatiently.

"If you could just, maybe, look at me for a second?"

"I'm busy."

"I see that, but if you could just look at me."

The colt was beginning to lose his patience. He didn't want her to be anywhere near him. He didn't want to hear her tell him that she liked him again - for fear that temptation would best his common sense.

Silver Spoon sighed "You've given me no choice..."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

There was no answer. Just the sudden, soft, and slow melody of an Ocarina, as it's honeyed verse filled the room. 

Button paused the game. Now his curiosity had gotten the better of him. He turned his head. "Silver, what are you..." His jaw dropped. The controller slipped through his grip, landing soundlessly on the carpet as the colt watched on, awe-stricken.

Her glossy lips softly kissed an Ocarina, playing its dulcet tone in rapturous symphony. Her eyelids were delicately brushed with indigo eye shadow, intensifying the allure of her violet eyes. Cherry blossom pink gloves extended from her hooves, meeting her upper arms. Decorative golden pauldrons gleamed as they rested at her shoulders. A modest golden crown adorned her head, flattering her hair that was parted down the center and brushed back. The trademark pink and white dress, emblazoned with the Hyrulian royal family crest complimented her physique with a rather comely appearance that left Button's mouth dry.

No portrait of divinity, nor any foul emulation could ever hope to compare to the vision of sheer beauty standing before him.  

The captivated colt climbed down from his bed and approached her, his eyes impassioned, his mind lost in sheer reverie.

Silver Spoon continued on in the song's entirety, playing as softly and slowly as she could to emulate the tune she had been taught only moments ago. Fortunately for her, the Ocarina was a simple enough instrument to play by ear. 

When she finally came to the ending of the song, she opened her eyes and swallowed hard as she attempted to remember the script she had written for herself.

Button stared at her dumbly, not realizing his mouth was still hanging open. 

"Button," she finally began. "You told me that if there was anything I could do to make things right between us, I could turn back time and, that's what I just did. At the end of Ocarina of time, Zelda plays her lullaby to send Link back to live out the seven years he lost while in his long slumber. And that's what I did to you. I sent you back. I sent us both back so we could relive a time where we never met. And as I stand before you, I'm meeting you for the first time, and I'm telling you that I love you. Let's start over. Let's erase the past. Let's be together." She smiled and held her hoof out to him. 

"This is real, isn't it?" Button asked in disbelief.

Silver Spoon nodded nervously.

"You're cosplaying... You're playing an Ocarina... You're actually making video game references... Is this really who you want to be?"

"I'm simply going to be me. And I want to get to know you all over again. Just as I would have you get to know me all over again. I think I'm starting to see why you like these games so much. I don't know if I'll ever be at your level of obsession with them, but I'm willing to learn as long as you're willing to teach me."

Button shyly rubbed the back of his head, still in a stupor at the site of Silver Spoon in that dress. "I want to learn about you too. The new you, I mean."

"I'll just be me, and you'll just be you. I'll have it no other way."

"It's a deal, then."

The cosplay clad filly turned red under her golden crown. "Nuzzle on it?"

Button Mash intertwined his arms around her's and pulled her closer. "Don't make fun of me if I'm bad at it."

"T-this is my first time, too." Silver stammered.

"Alright," The colt swallowed nervously and leaned forward, closing his eyes.

Silver Spoon did the same. 

They both tensed up as they could feel their noses touching. There was a brief, unnerving pause. Then slowly, Button began to caress her muzzle with his. Silver followed suit. Their embrace, which felt awkward at first, eventually became firm and passionate. 

When they finally parted their muzzles to look into each other's eyes, Button said, "So, do you want to go to EGE with us? To my parents, it will be work. But to us, maybe it could be like a first date?"

"EGE huh?" Silver replied thoughtfully. "Are you sure I'll be ready for an event like that in such a short time?"

"I can get you up to snuff." Button smiled as he looked back at the paused game on his screen. "I think we should start with the basics."

"Hold on, mister." Silver Spoon placed her hooves on the colt's face, and turned his head back to her. "We squandered the first seven minutes we had together at Diamond's party."

"We squandered?" Button said. "You backed into a corner and threatened me the entire time."

"Shush you!" Silver demanded. "Before we do anything else, you still owe me six more minutes."





The End