The cool children

by therandomone95

5. What it takes to be better

Chapter 5: What it takes to be better.

"Okay, here we are." Said Button's dad as he took Button to the playfields.

'What are we doing here?' Asked Button to his dad while checking his surroundings.

"We are making my job easier, that's what we're doing here." Said Button's dad as he analyzed the place.

'Hey, you're supposed to make my life better, like helping me get better grades or get Sweetie Belle to like me. So why are we-?'

"I am sorry but that filly does not see you as a potential coltfriend."

'What?'

"At least not yet. Becoming the type of pony that can impress her is going to require more than just... Making you look better." Said Button's dad as he finished examining his surroundings. "I brought you here because you also need to work on your physical appearance and stamina; when I entered your body I analyzed your stamina as the supposed "Earth pony" that you are and I have to say, you're dangerously close to being overweight."

'Wait, really? My mom says I'm fine.' Said Button as he took a good look at himself with sad eyes.

"That's because your mother tries to protect you in every way possible, physically as well as emotionally, and I'm not her so I can be as honest as I want to." Said Button's dad before clearing his throat. "You looked like an overweight kid with an infantile hat that does nothing else than play videogames all day; and if something happened to you you would just go running to your mommy. How does that sound?"

Button just stared at him while trying to process what his dad just said. At first he tried to deny it, thinking to himself that there was no way his situation was THAT bad. And yet the longer he thought about it the more he realized...

His dad was right.

He thought about his life, he thought about his grades, which of course wouldn't impress Sweetie Belle. Button thought about his habit of playing videogames for entire days in some cases, which would just make Sweetie Belle leave him if they somehow became a couple. He thought about his physical appearance, and even if Button didn't think that he was fat probably others would, and Sweetie Belle would be disgusted if he got any fatter. And the final nail in the coffin was his attitude, Button still cried for his mom if something happened to him, if Sweetie Belle ever found out about that she would just stay as far away from him as she could. There was no denying it now; Button needed help in a hurry.

'Wow, I AM a bit of a loser.' Button thought as he looked down.

"Now you're starting to see my point. Very well. I took you here because you don't have any other friends; you need to socialize as well as try to improve your skills in physical activities."

'What?'

"You need to get into a game of buckball and make more friends." Said Button's dad with an unamused expression on his face.

Before giving his dad a sheepish grin, Button walked over to the colts playing, and he noticed a couple of colts that he recognized almost instantly.

'Snips? Snails? What are those guys doing here?' Asked Button to his dad, who just shrugged.

Button approached the two colts who were resting on a bench. "Uh, hey guys." Said Button when he was close enough to them.

"Button Mash? What are you doing here?" Asked Snips, looking at him with a surprised expression on his face.

"I was going to ask the same thing to you." Said Button to Snips, both still in surprise.

"Oh, well, my buddy here got me into buckball because he showed me that this game is the most exciting thing ever! Besides, working and getting together with your team is just so wholesome to me." Even Button without the help of his dad clearly saw that this was a lie, and he gave Snips a questioning look. "What? I'm being honest." Button's questioning look turned into Applejack's famous eyebrow stare. "I just really love the excitement." Button's eyebrow raised; knowing he had nowhere to run, Snips sighed and finally told the truth. "Aw, alright, Snails got me into buckball because I heard that lots of players are stinking rich if they're good enough, but that's a secret!"

Button stopped glaring at Snips, but Snips instantly asked back. "And why are YOU here? I hope you're not trying to steal my money!"

"I, Uh... I come here quite often, and I would like to play against you just this once." Said Button automatically.

"Oh yeah? You're on!" Said Snips while he stood up. "Let's go, Snails!" Snips looked to his friend, who was distracted the entire time. "SNAILS! Did you hear anything we just said?!" Asked Snips, which briefly frightened Snails, snapping him out of whatever he was thinking.

"Oh, sorry! I was just looking at how pretty this ladybug looks." Said Snails, showing his friend the bug that was below the bench they were sitting on.

"I don't know how you're so good at buckball if you do stuff like this." Said Snips, grabbing Snails and dragging him to the playground.

'Did you just make me accept a match of buckball against those guys?!' Asked Button to his dad, who appeared in front of him.

"Yes I did, what's the problem with that?" Replied Button's dad with a smirk.

'It doesn't matter if those guys are good or not, I haven't played buckball! Never in my life! And I don't even have a team!!' Said Button, looking visibly nervous.

"Relax, Button, you can't be that bad, besides, I don't think you should worry too much about the team thing."

'Why not?'

"Look who is over there." Button's dad pointed at a certain part of the playground, and there, Button saw Rumble. Button didn't waste any time and he quickly rushed over to where Rumble was.

Rumble was taking a break when he saw somepony approaching him. When he took a better glance at them he saw that it was Button Mash trotting towards him. When Button stopped before Rumble, Rumble asked:

"Hey, Button, why are you here? I never thought you'd be the sporty type of pony."

'Oh crap, now what do I say to him?' Asked Button to his dad, and he saw that his eyes turned white.

בואו נצטרף עכשיו

"OW!" Said Button and Rumble at the same time, feeling a sudden burst of sharp pain in their brains. "Wait, you got one?" Asked Rumble with surprise in his eyes.

"Um... I... Uhh..." Button tried to anwer but he didn't know what to say.

"Button... This is awesome!" He heard Rumble say, and before Button could ask what was awesome about having a sudden pain in their brains, Rumble kept going. "So you want me to be on your team? Of course! I'll help you get started with your buckball game! Just wait a minute here, I'll go and search for a unicorn to be with us."

Button was dumbfounded, first there was this pain that he felt inside his brain. But not only did he feel it, Rumble also felt it; and now Rumble had acted like they were best friends forever when they hadn't spoken to each other for years! Button was starting to hyperventilate but his dad appeared in front of him, snapping him out of his thoughts.

'What was that all about?' Asked Button to his dad.

"That was just me getting you another friend." Said Button's dad smugly, to which Button just stared at him. "You see, I am made of a very distinctive type of magic, and I can sense it when I'm around it. You remember when your friend Spike told you that Rumble had taken the same potion you bought? Well, since his "assistant" is made of the same type of magic as me, we joined forces, making you two friends instantly."

'So now he will act like he is my friend?' Asked Button, getting intrigued by this situation.

"Well what is friendship but a bond between two ponies, really? Now you and Rumble have a bond, it's just magical." Button was about to question this but his dad faded away as he saw Rumble coming back.

"Okay, we're ready to play, and you?"

"Oh yeah, pffft, there's no way those guys can beat me!"

One painfully bad match later...

"Okay, they might've beaten me but I wasn't that bad, right?"

"Dude, we literally lost 50-0, I have never seen anyone play so bad; have you ever played buckball, or even played something like this?" Asked Rumble with no amusement whatsoever.

"No?"

"I'm amazed, even with my help you're uncapable of being sporty. This is going to be harder than I thought." Said Button's dad with a frown.

"HA! I told you this was going to be easy!" Button heard Snips say as he approached with Snails.

"Yeah, yeah, don't mention it." Replied Button with a grunt.

"You know what? Maybe you lost big time to us, but I appreciate the effort; so I, Snips, will let you hang out with me and my buddy Snails. And for no additional charge we'll help you get better in Buckball! How's that sound?"

Button looked over to his dad who shrugged. "Just say yes."

"Yes, thank you!" Exclaimed Button with a smile.

"And something else, we have planned a little party tomorrow at my place, and we didn't think we should invite you. But you know, maybe you won't be so bad. What do you say?"

"Yes. I'll go!"

"Good, we have to go now, but we'll see you there!" Said Snips, waving goodbye at Button. Snips looked at Snails who was levitating the hoofball baskets around him in a completely zen-like controlled motion. "Hey! We gotta go!"

"Oh yeah, right!" Said Snails, dropping the baskets and rushing to his friend's side. As soon as the two colts left the playground, Rumble approached Button.

"Hey, you know what? Maybe I can teach you sports! Not only buckball, what about hoofball or Basketball?" Said Rumble automatically.

"Oh, yes, and maybe you can come to my place sometime to play with me? With our "special friends" we only need our minds to play." Replied Button, not quite realizing what he said.

"Great! Then I'll see you at the party tomorrow!" Said Rumble as he turned around.

"Wait, you're gonna go too?" Asked Button, to which Rumble turned his head to look at him.

"Well duh, everypony in our class will go!"

"And around what time it'll be?"

"Around two o' clock. You better be there!" Said Rumble as he finally trotted away. Button was trying to process what had happened in the last minutes; he got three new friends, he was invited to a party he didn't even know about and now he was closer to Rumble than anyone else before! Button stopped his train of thoughts when he saw his dad appear in front of him.

'Wait, what just happened?' Asked Button to his dad, who looked rather proud of himself and Button.

"We are progressing, that's what just happened." Said Button's dad, giving himself a pat on the back.

'Wait, but how-?'

"It looks like I'm gonna have to explain it to you again. I am more than just a little help, I can save you! I can see right through the attitudes of everypony to reveal who they really are! And I can use it to our advantage, for example; when I saw Snips I could definitely tell he was very selfish, and he would use every advantage he has available to boost his status, his finantial situation, or anything, really. And the other colt? You shouldn't need to worry so much about him, Snails has potential but Snips pretty much thinks in his place."

Button thought about it and he saw that his dad was right, even if Snips was disgusted by him, he would try to be his friend to gain something out of it. And Snails never really struck Button as the leading type, but he was always around Snips, maybe because they compliment each other in a way.

'And also, what about that party?'

"It's curious, most of us just have to help with a stammering problem or with physical appearance, but this is going to require more work than ever. You don't need to worry, we're going to find you something nice to wear and you'll be ready to go."

Button was about to question him, but his dad was already trotting off downtown. Button saw no other choice but to follow him and see what was going to happen from here on forward.

As Button walked through Ponyville he dotted upon the events of the afternoon, he had made three new friends, he was starting to gain ground and he would probably be handsome by the end of the day. He hated to admit it, but Spike was right, they made the right call after all. He was still far from being the cool guy, but maybe now he wouldn't be so left out. He felt lonely before, because his mom couldn't come with him to school, but now someone else would help him out! Even if he had lost big time at that buckball match things turned out well! It wasn't such a bad day after all.

Button suddenly felt strange when he was almost downtown, like if there was somepony trying to talk to him. Button looked around but he saw nothing, so Button just shrugged it off, not giving it much importance, so Button turned and headed for a clothing store. Such a shame he couldn't see or hear a certain spotted colt, who was waving at him and yelling, trying to get his attention. Eventually, said colt stopped waving at him, having been ignored twice in a day he decided to go home and do something else for the rest of the day.

------------------------------------------------------------

"That ice cream was delicious! Thank you, girls!" Said Spike as he walked through Ponyville with Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon.

"It's nothing, Spike." Replied Diamond Tiara.

"Yeah, I'm just glad you guys could make a truce." Said Silver Spoon, looking at her two friends.

Spike had been conversating with Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon for a while at the ice cream parlor, and he discovered that they actually weren't such bad fillies, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon had to put on a dominant look and a matching attitude mostly because they needed it so that some other rich pony doesn't take advantage of them for being so young. And they were relieved that they had found someone who could understand them and not judge them.

Eventually the fillies and the dragon had to leave since the day was almost over and Luna would soon decorate the sky with its characteristic dark glow and beautiful stars. Their walk together eventually stopped when they reached the point where they had to part ways.

"Well, this is where I have to go." Said Silver Spoon with a small smile.

"I'll see you tomorrow!" Said Diamond Tiara, waving goodbye at her friend.

"Yes, I'll see you too! Bye, Silver Spoon!" Said Spike, also waving at her.

"Goodbye, Tiara, and goodbye to you, Spike." Said Silver Spoon, her last part with a seductive tone while batting her eyes at Spike, its message reached Spike, since he seemed to blush slightly. Silver Spoon looked at Diamond Tiara and she was relieved when she saw that she was distracted thinking about something, meaning that she didn't notice it.

Silver Spoon parted to her home, leaving Spike alone with Diamond Tiara.

"Hey, Spike, can I tell you something?" Said Diamond Tiara.

"You can tell me anything." Said the fake Rarity, appearing besides Spike, suggesting him to say the same words.

"You can tell me anything." Said Spike, repeating her words.

"Tomorrow around two o' clock there will be a party at Snips' place, do you want to come... with me?" Asked Diamond Tiara with a bit of hesitation.

"Umm... I..." Said Spike, looking at the fake Rarity who looked like she was starting to lose her patience.

"I'D LOVE TO! JUST SAY IT!" Said the fake Rarity, trying to keep calm.

"I'd love to!" Finally said Spike.

"Oh! Thank you!" Said Diamond Tiara, looking relieved.

"So I guess I'll see you tomorrow?" Said Spike, ready to go home.

"Y-yes, of course!" Said Diamond Tiara.

Suddenly, without any warning, Diamond Tiara approached Spike and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. The kiss lasted for about one or two seconds at most, but it was enough to leave Spike completely dumbfounded.

"I'll see you tomorrow!" Said Diamond Tiara, trotting away with a blush she hoped nopony would notice.

Spike was completely shocked, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon were the main reason Spike dragged himself to school with no excitement whatsoever, and now Diamond Tiara gave him a kiss on the cheek?! Not to mention the looks Silver Spoon gave him just moments ago. Spike looked at the fake Rarity, and he saw that not only did she look calmed, she looked thrilled to see that!

'What was that?!' Asked Spike to the fake Rarity, who looked pleased with her work.

"That was progress! I have to admit, I didn't think you had it in you for a moment, but now-"

'But now Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon like me a bit more than I wanted!' Spike cut her off, trying to stay calm but failing, since he was now hyperventilating.

"Hey! Listen to me!" Tried to say the fake Rarity, but Spike remained firm.

'No, you listen to me!' Exclaimed Spike. 'You were supposed to make me better so that APPLE BLOOM likes me! Not freaking Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon!'

"But this is necessary!" Said the fake Rarity, now being the firm one.

'Oh yeah? How?'

The fake Rarity sighed. "Look, when I entered your brain I had access to your memories, and I took a good look at your life and the ponies around you. Most of us just have to deal with simple problems like stuttering problems or looks, but you are going to be the toughest job yet."

'What do you mean by that? And what does that have to do with my question?' Replied Spike, while his pride was taking a punch and his attitude softening.

"For starters, you're a dragon, and ponies have a natural fear of dragons since they are greedy creatures who have the power to destroy entire villages. I need to change that fear into some emotion like love or respect. Second, to solve this we're going to require more than just... working out a few things. You need to reboot your reputation and supercharge your social standing."

'Huh?'

"You need to get popular, and those were popular girls who like you, whether you have the same feelings for them or not doesn't matter, this is the chance to be the most popular and respected guy in your area! You just need to go where they lead." Said the fake Rarity while making a photo appear from nowhere. "Or tell me, do you want to stay like this forever?"

Spike looked at the photo the fake Rarity showed him, it was the picture from the yearbook. Spike saw Apple Bloom standing at the front and he smiled, she was always looking so sure of herself. He also saw Rumble at the center, he certainly wished he could be like that. But when he saw himself, he was sad when he realized how pitiful his life had been thus far. He was standing with Button Mash and Pipsqueak on the very edge of the photo, they were almost cut off.

"Spike, if this is going to work you need to do as I instruct, we have a plan and all you need to do is follow it. You start with Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, and then we progress, you become the guy who could impress Apple Bloom and you pull off a gesture to show her how much you love her, what do you say?"

Spike was in an ethical dilemma, one part of him was telling him to not do it because it was wrong, but the other part of him was telling him that this was indeed necessary to be better.

'UGH! There are too many voices in my head! I just need a minute to process! Could you just get out of my head for like, five minutes to let me think straight?' Said Spike, overwhelmed by the situation he was in.

There was a brief pause before the fake Rarity spoke. "Of course..." And with that, the fake Rarity vanished, and Spike felt like a part of himself was missing, but he didn't care, he just wanted to think of everything that had happened so far.

Spike thought about his life, how he was always Twilight's assistant, and how he sometimes had to stay behind to clean after her or re-shelf the library. He also remembered his friends, Button and Pipsqueak, they were cool guys in his eyes but they were just as helpless as he was. And despite all of that, Spike never cried, he always carried a smile in his face even though he wanted to cry sometimes.

Nevertheless he was happy with the life he had, he had good times with Twilight and with his friends, he felt happy just being who he was. But then he remembered how many times he felt satisfied compared to the number of times he was made fun of.

Spike thought about Twilight and Rumble, Twilight was just another bookworm in Canterlot when they lived together there, just her parents, his older brother Shining Armor and his big sister Twilight Sparkle, and those were the happiest days of his life. But since they moved into Ponyville Twilight got popular and treated him as an asistant. Now those good days seem gone forever.

Rumble wasn't so different, he had told Spike that he was in school since day one, but Spike had never noticed or even seen him, and suddenly one day Rumble appeared and was on the top of the school social map. He is not a loser anymore, and he was doing the same thing he did.

Spike realized how his entire life he knew what it was like to be the loser, and he had the opportunity to be something else, maybe the cool guy? Maybe the hero? Maybe the leading dragon? Whatever he could be, Spike knew that he had won the right to earn something in return since life was always being hard on him, now he had the chance to turn things around and give life a kick in the butt.

Spike was done with being the freak of the town, the one who can't give his opinion, the weirdo, the sucker...

The failure.

Specially since Spike came to a realization that crushed his pride. When he said that life was being hard on him he knew it wasn't entirely true. It wouldn't be right to blame Twilight or her friends, and neither it would be Button's or Pip's fault...

The problem has always been him.

His entire life Twilight had told him that he should 'listen to his heart and hear his instincts', but if that was the right thing to do, then his heart and instincts sucked just as much as he did. Now, he had another voice to listen to, and it didn't seem to let him down thus far.

Today he could make a perfect excuse to Twilight about his scream, he got a shirt and a jacket for free, and he even made friends with the most popular girls at school! They even seemes to like him back. How could he possibly say no to a couple of girls that are not just popular, but are also rich and good looking?

Spike started to consider the idea of being in a relationship with one of them, how bad could it be?

'Rarity...' Said Spike, calling for his assistant, who appeared in front of him, waiting for an answer. 'I'll do it, I'll date them if I have to.'

"And?" Asked the fake Rarity with a raised eyebrow.

'And I won't question what you want me to do'

"And?"

'And... I was wrong, you DO know what to do.'

"Very well, now let's go home." Said the fake Rarity, softening her gaze and turning towards the crystal castle.

'Wait, but what am I supposed to wear for the party?'

"Oh, don't worry about that. It's a house party between foals, none of them will actually care about what you wear, but I recommend you tame your spikes a little bit." Said the fake Rarity with a smile.

Spike chuckled for a bit. 'Thank you.'

And so, Spike walked to the crystal castle as the sky was about to turn dark, all in all, this day was a not too heinous day, now he had a party to attend to, and new popular friends! Spike now would never be the loser again. And he knew it perfectly.

However, there was a feeling that he couldn't shake off; when he was processing his situation earlier he felt something else inside his brain, it couldn't have been the fake Rarity since she vanished like he told her to do, right?

Spike decided not to think about it, he only wanted to sleep right now so he would look perfect for the party, and possibly a date with Diamond Tiara or Silver Spoon. Finally things were starting to look up for him and there was nothing that could ruin this for him now.

Right?

Comments

[Kyanos_nachten]

I wish this fic has more views. I dont review a lot of stories And I am a bit too fan of sweetiemash pairing also I dont have words to say what I am thinking so. I think this fic is good, but seeing the view counts made me fear that this fic will be on hiatus or have a bad ending. Sorry if i am not helping with my comment

[therandomone95]

10193338
Nah, it doesn't matter. I've had little views on my fics since I started writing about three years ago and I still do it just because I want to.

Regarding THIS fic in particular, I am not too bothered by the views, I just want feedback to see if it's worth finishing it. If the feedback is mainly bad then I'll cancel it or I'll end it as soon as I can, but thus far it's been alright.

If you really want to help me, just share it with some other people or add it to the groups you think it could belong to. Because that way the story will have a bit more feedback and I can see whether or not I should continue.

Thanks for the comment!