My magical skills were increasing exponentially with barely any work on my end. The sudden increase began when I started using the Arcane Circles and the more I just used them, the more powerful I became with all of my magic. It was because of this that I had calmed down with my studies. I was still learning new spells and mastering the ones I already knew, but I didn't have to work twenty-four/seven anymore. After a couple of weeks (assuming I keep increasing at the same rate), I might be able to try making my own Circles.

I was out for a walk around Ponyville. The weather was sunny, I hadn't seen Rainbitch since I beat myself up and I had cheated my way out of helping clean up winter. Things were looking good! I had been walking for about twenty minutes when I saw four fillies supposedly making their way home from school. This wouldn't have been anything noteworthy, but one of them was Applejack's sister (What was her name? Apple Bloom?) and she looked pretty depressed. The four stopped, and two of them (a pink one wearing a tiara and a grey one wearing blue glasses) started circling Apple Bloom and the red-maned filly wearing purple glasses she was standing next to. I was too far away to hear what they were saying.

Suddenly, the tiara filly and the blue glasses filly both yelled out something incoherent, double bro-hoofed a few times and... Rubbed their butts together? What the buck are kids doing these days? They walked off and the blue glasses filly started saying stuff again. By now I was close enough to hear.

"See you this weekend!" She said in the douchiest tone I'd heard since Trixie.

"Blank Flanks!" The tiara filly and the blue glasses filly both called Apple Bloom and the purple glasses filly. They both looked pretty depressed. The two douchebags passed me so I walked up to Apple Bloom.

"Hey, Apple Bloom," I greeted her. Apple Bloom looked up, confused for a second at who I was before recognizing me.

"Oh, hey, Cloud," She replied.

"It's been a while. Anyway, what in Tartarus were those two doing? Why were they rubbing butts?"

"Tha' was Diamond Tiara an' Silver Spoon, they were tauntin' us abou' not havin' our cutie marks yet..."

"I understand how that could bring you down a bit but I don't get why you're this torn up over it."

"We're th' last in our class to ge' our cutie marks."

"So?"

"Whaddya mean 'so'?!"

"I just don't get why that's so bad."

"It mean's we don' have a special talent..."

"That's... Not what a cutie mark represents." Apple Bloom looked up with a confused expression on her face.

"Whaddya mean?"

"You realize what a cutie mark is, right?"

"Yeah, it shows a special talen' of a pony."

"Eh... Yes and no."

"Huh?"

"A cutie mark appears when a pony becomes exceptionally good a certain skill. For example; have you noticed that Applejack has a cutie mark of apples but Granny Smith has a cutie mark of pie?"

"Yeah, so?"

"Well, Granny Smith doesn't have it in her to buck the trees anymore and- Wait, why aren't you giggling at me saying buck?"

"Why would Ah giggle a' tha'?" Oh! She might not know it as a curse word!

"Uh, nothing! Forget I said that! Anyway, she doesn't have it in her to do that anymore, so it's not a skill she has. However, she does still have the capability to bake and it's something she's become good at, thus the cutie mark."

"What does 'thus' mean?"

"It's like an alternate word for 'therefore'."

"Oh. Wait, then why doesn' Applejack have an apple buckin' cutie mark?"

"Her skill isn't just bucking..." Hee-hee! Shut up! "...it's loads of apple-related stuff, which is why it's three apples representing lots of apple stuff. Big Mac is mediocre at-"

"Wha' does 'mediocre' mean?"

"Average. Anyway, Big Mac is mediocre at bucking and other apple stuff, but he's great at the things related to planting, which is why he has an apple showing seeds. Cutie marks also grant the bearer special abilities, and since your entire family has apple related cutie marks your family gets specialties in growing apples."

"Oh. Cool! Wha' do Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon's mean?"

"What are the cutie marks?"

"Diamond Tiara's is a diamond tiara and Silver Spoon's is a silver spoon."

"I assume Diamond Tiara was the one wearing a diamond tiara since she has a diamond tiara cutie mark?" Apple Bloom nodded. "Well... I assume they're both bullies?" Another nod. "Tiara's is being arrogant using her jewelry and Spoon's is seeming important or high priority at the expense of being second best."

"Ah still don' get why you didn' understan' me before when Ah was talkin' about gettin' mah cutie mark." I sighed.

"Look, here's what I'm trying to say; find a skill you like and become great enough at it, then you'll get a cutie mark. It's not just doing something once and getting one, you have to put lots of work in."

"Wow! So mah cutie mark can be anythin' I wan' it t' be?"

"Pretty much. Everypony is better and worse at everything than everypony else, so it's a good idea to choose something you're either already good at or really enjoy."

"Tha's amazin'! Oh, but we still won't have our cutie marks by Diamond Tiara's cute-ceañera..."

"So?"

"It's great tha' ah know how cutie marks work, but me and Twist'll get bullied more after we show up wi' no cutie marks."

"Why are you going to a party being thrown by somepony you hate?"

"Everypony'll be there! We'll be less popular if we don' go!"

"Popularity doesn't matter. What other ponies think of you doesn't matter. If they like you, hate you or anything inbetween, it doesn't matter. As long as you like yourself for who you are and like yourself as an individual, that's all that matters. Know in your heart and soul that you like who you are and it won't even matter to you if your entire class starts jeering at you. As long as you like yourself, the bullies are nothing."

"Wow! Tha' was a grea' speech!"

"Oh, and if you ever want payback, just tell their parents!"

"Okay! Oh, pony-feathers! Ah'm late for getting home!"

"Don't worry about it, I'll drop you two off." I flared my horn up. "Where do you need to go?"

Author's Notes:

Alternate title: My Headcanon On Cutie Marks

The CMC will still be a thing but it'll be about trying different skills to see what they like, not randomly trying to earn their marks.