//------------------------------// // Milkshakes and Movies // Story: For the Love of Food and Friendship // by Sparkler774 //------------------------------// Part One New Beginnings It was the day we've all been waiting for. All summer long, me, Boysenberry, and Sketch have been itching to see the movie version of our favorite fantasy novel, The Pony Bride. And after seeing trailer after trailer, teaser upon teaser, the big day was finally here. We decided to go on the last day of summer, as sort of a way to end summer with a bang. So when we all arrived at the Cinema, we couldn't help but gape in awe of the magnificent movie poster we've been starting at all summer. "This is it," breathed Boysenberry, barely audible. "The big day," continued Sketch. "The day we've all been waiting for," I said. We stared in admiration of the poster bearing a picture of the beautiful princess Buttercup and the dashing pirate-lover Stronghold standing together on a hill, unable to tear our eyes from it. "Well, why are we standing here???" said Boysenberry suddenly. "Let's go buy our tickets!" We all trotted up to the zitty counter-pony, purchased our tickets and sprinted into the theatre just in time for the trailers. "I can't believe this is happening," I murmured. All Boysenberry and Sketch could do was nod. We sat in silence as we watched the previews for a monster movie, a spy movie, and one of those kissy-face rom coms with no plot. And finally, the Feature Presentation. *** The blinding light of the late afternoon sun struck us as we walked out of the Cinema an hour later. We had all been struck dumb with the breathtaking magnificence of the movie. I couldn't speak, and apparently neither could my friends until Boysenberry piped up. "THAT. WAS. AWESOME!!!" My voice started to work again. "I know, right? I loved the part where Stronghold told Buttercup about him being the Dread-Pirate Robber!" "Really? I liked the part where Inigo had that sword fight with the guy who killed his father!" said Sketch, grinning. "Please. The best part was obviously when Fezzik and Inigo take Stronghold to Miracle Max's!" said Boysenberry. The sky had turned a stunning shade of orange-gold, the clouds around the sun a reddish pink. I love sunsets. "Come on, guys, let's get a malt at Sugarcube Corner before it gets dark." said Boysenberry. "Last one of the summer and all." Sketch and I agreed, and we all trotted into the ice cream parlour. I ordered a chocolate, Boysenberry vanilla, and Sketch strawberry. "Here you go, kids!" said Pinkie Pie, handing us our milkshakes. "On the house. Special occasion, you know, last day of summer!" "Thanks, Pinkie!" we all said at the same time. We grabbed a booth, and began drinking our treats. "So, what now?" asked Sketch, staring down at his shake. "What do you mean?" "I mean, school starts tomorrow. Secondary school. A whole new chapter of our lives. What's gonna happen?" None of us answered for a while. "Well," I finally said. "I... I really don't know. It's a little hard to see the future, Sketch." "I guess..." He trailed off, and went back to slurping his strawberry malt. "Well, I don't know about you guys, but this is the year where I am finally going to outshine my siblings at something." said Boysenberry proudly. "Oh yeah? How?" I asked, curious. "Well, you see," said Boysen, pausing to take a long drink of her ice cream. "None of my siblings have ever made it past the sixth grade. Even my sisters are only beginning seventh this year. Knowing them, they'll probably try to drop out or something so that they won't have to deal with two more years of school." "So?" "So," said Boysenberry, beaming. "With them barely trying in school, and me trying extra hard (along with some extracurriculars here and there), I'll be the golden child in my family for a change. And if I make Honor Roll this semester, my parents promised to take me and me only out to dinner at my favorite restaurant! See what I mean?" Sketch and I nodded. "What are you guys going to try this year? There'll be a ton of after school clubs and stuff like that here." said Boysen. "I'm going to try out business club, and book club, and technology club, and... oh, I don't know what else. What about you?" Along with our schedules, we received a list of the after and before school clubs that were being offered to sixth graders. "I think cooking club would be fun." I said. "And book club would be nice to join. I'm really not sure. What about you, Sketch?" Sketch stared at his hoofs and mumbled something. "What? I couldn't hear you." said Boysenberry. "I said, I don't think I'll be doing any of that." he said, still very quiet but just loud enough to hear. "Aw, why not? You should join art club or cartoon club and show them how to really draw!" said Boysenberry. Sketch blushed. "N-no. Bad idea. Dad would kill me if I ever joined any kind of art club." "Well then, don't tell him! He never has to know." said Boysen. "And don't be so afraid to put your stuff out there! Trust me, you're really good!" I nodded in agreement. Sketch really is a good artist. He shook his head. "I don't think so." I shrugged. "Your choice, but there's still no denying you've got skills." We finished our malts and left a tip on the table for Pinkie Pie. The sun had dipped lower into the sky, and it was starting to get dark. We walked over to the three way street, each road taking us to another's house. "So stick to the plan, guys- we meet here at 7:45 sharp, and walk in the school together." said Boysenberry. "Got it." I said, and Sketch nodded. "Good. See you guys tomorrow!" "Bye!" We separated, each of us going to our houses. When I walked in through my front door, the familiar smell of homemade bread and vanilla greeted me. "Mom, I'm home!" I yelled. "Where are you?" "In the kitchen, honey! Dinner will ready in a half an hour!" I ran into my room and flopped on top of my quilt. Today was a good day. *** Okay. So I'm going to stop right now and tell you a couple of things you'll need to know. My name is Silver Spoon. Right now, I'm eleven years old and and going to Ponyville Intermediate School- at least I will be, tomorrow. I know what you're thinking- "Oh, Silver Spoon, you mean that filly with the glasses that hangs around Diamond Tiara." Let's get one thing straight about that- I used to hang out with Diamond Tiara, but not anymore. To make a long story short, we had a pretty big falling out and kind of broke it off as friends, permanently. We haven't spoken since the fight, and I've only seen her a few times this summer. But it hasn't really bothered me, surprisingly. I've been too busy having fun with my new friends, Boysenberry and Sketch. I'm still getting used to the prospect of having more than one best friend, especially one that's a colt, but it's a good kind of different. Boysen and Sketch are just about as different as you can imagine. Boysenberry is the fourth of seven kids (one older brother, two twin older sisters, two younger brothers, and a baby sister), and you can imagine how that's shaped her personality. She's savvy and headstrong and really tough, and never lets anyone walk all over her. She's already pretty smart on her own, but she tries harder at school than anypony I've ever known. Her cutie mark is three berries, but she doesn't want to work in the fields. No, she's working towards becoming the CEO of the Berry family business. Along with the the Apples, the Pies, and the Lulamoons, the Berry family is one of the largest and most wide spread in Equestria. But having six brothers and sisters can take a toll on a bank account. Her family moved here to Ponyville last winter because her dad finally got enough money to set up a small cafe and fruit stand in the marketplace. She and all of her siblings work part time there after school and on weekends, except for her older brother Blue, who works there full time. Boysenberry is a huge overachiever. If she gets an A on a quiz, she'll study all night to make sure that next time it's an A+. Sometimes she stresses herself out and goes absolutely berserk (and believe me, that's when she gets really scary), but will usually calm down after a short freak out session. She plans everything ahead of time, and is good at it too. She's had this back to school thing planned since July. Boysenberry's the kind of person who will never, ever lie to you about anything. If I needed a completely honest opinion about something, she's the pony I turn to. Sketch, however, is a totally different story. He's very sweet and chivalrous, but painfully shy, especially around adults and teachers. It took him a long time to get used to me, but when he did, he became one of the friendliest and kindest colts I've ever met. He taught me how to play Grand Prix Racers on his Joy Boy, and one time I actually beat him. He even introduced me to his other friends, Featherweight and Button Mash (They were both kind of wary at first, but Button liked me right away when I told him that I like video games. I still don't think Featherweight trusts me all the way yet). But even though he's kind of timid, he's always ready to stand up for his friends. Sketch is the best artist I know. When he draws, it ends up looking more like a photograph than a sixth-grader's pencil drawing. Me and Boysenberry keep telling him to join art club or something similar, but he never does. It's probably because of his dad. Sketch's mom died from cancer when he was only seven, and has been living with his dad and older brother ever since. His dad is a huge sports fanatic, and his brother, Puck, is at Vanhoover Tech on a hockey scholarship. Sketch is always being pressured to go out for sports by his dad, even though he's not the least bit athletic. He doesn't approve of Sketch's interest in art because he thinks art is for sissies. And me? Well... I'm not really sure what you want to know about me. I like reading mystery novels and cooking, particularly desserts. I've spoken fluent Prench for as long as I can remember, and I plan on going to culinary school once I'm older, and then opening my own cafe in Canterlot or Prance. And that's all you really need to know about me for now. I promise, tomorrow will be more exciting. It's the first day of school, after all. Good night.