//------------------------------// // Day 1 October 25th Saturday: Diamond Tiara’s Birthday // Story: Diamond Tiara's Birthday Wish - 366 Days of Fun // by Theo Vellum //------------------------------// The ringing of the alarm wakes me from my beautiful sleep. Ugh... I hate that alarm... Maybe I'll just ignore it... It rings again, honestly I just want ten more Ugh! Fine, I’m getting up! Clicking the receiver, and letting out a huge yawn, I slowly get out of bed. You may be wondering just who is this fine young filly getting out of bed this morning. Well, that’s me, Diamond Tiara! I bet you are humbled by my noble presence. ... Ok, so I’m not exactly a noble yet, but I’ve got the royal dignity of one! “OwowowowOW!” Please ignore me falling down the stairs like an idiot, I was just excited because I suddenly remembered what today was! It was my birthday! And here I was sleeping in like an idiot... Oh, Diamond Tiara, you always get so excited on your birthdays. You can hardly blame yourself though; birthdays are the best days in the entire universe! And by extension, my birthday oughta be celebrated the right way... “PRESENTS! Daddy! Where’s the presents, TELL ME, DADDY!” My father, Mr. Filthy Rich, chuckles as he pats me on the head. “Don’t worry, my little birthday girl; good things come to ponies who wait.” “But if I get my presents early, the good things will come to me even faster! That’s basic logic!” “Now, Diamond Tiara... Isn’t a better idea to wait for our party guests first?” “It’s my birthday, so what I say goes!” He looks back to his morning coffee and takes a sip. Ugh! I hate when he does that, it means he’s contemplating a compromise that I know will be “better for both of us.” It would be much better if I could open my presents now so I can decide what me and Silver will play with first ahead of time! I mean, it’s so obvious! He looks back at me after a few moments. “Three. You may open three presents before they get here. But I-” I was already gone. Now I just need to get to those presents and... ... Oh. I walk back to the kitchen where Dad has a smirk on his face. “I’m not telling you where the presents are until you hear my side of the agreement, my little birthday angel.” He read me like a book. “Now, if you open those three presents early, you will have to wait an extra hour after the party starts to open your other presents. Do you understand?” “Half an hour!” “Fifty minutes.” “Forty Minutes.” “Forty-five, no less than that.” Drat... I thought I could make him go lower than that. “Alright, Daddy! Now where are the presents?” “I had to step it up this year, so instead of hiding it in a place you would look, I hid them in the floorboards under your bed.” Darn... He’s getting good. “Thanks, Daddy!” I sprint off to my room, nearly knocking into Randolph on the way. But then I get an idea... “Oh, Randolph, are you any good with cramped spaces?” Despite appearances, Randolph is very good at what he does. He was able to not only get into the underside of the bed easily, he could also tell what were actual presents and what were just clothes just by shaking the box. Luckily, he was able to pick out three he thinks I’d like, he always comes through in a tight situation. “Thank you Randolph, I’ll send word to Dad to give you a pay raise.” “No, that is not necessary, Miss Tiara, a child like you deserves the best after all.” Randolph then does a few flips out of my room, if I had to describe him... I’d say he’s that funny Uncle I’ve never had. He’s been with us since I was an adorable, angelic, little baby, and he’s pretty fun to be around. Ask him anything and he’ll usually have a pretty cool story to tell about it. I sometimes have to question whether he makes up some of the stories he tells though. Anyway... Back to the presents! The first one is from my cat, Dazzle. Yes, I just said it’s from my cat. Believe me when I tell you he is no ordinary cat. He is almost as perfect as me! It’s a bit weird though... I haven’t seen him at all since I woke up. Oh well, time to open the present! I lift the top of it and... “MRRRRROWWW!” “EEEK! Dazzle! What are you? I mean... What... HUH?!” As soon as I opened the present, Dazzle jumped out and gave me a very scary face. It looks like he’s not very pleased I decided to open her present early... Darn! He and Randolph must have known this would happen! I can hear Randolph giving a big laugh from down the hallway. The second present I open is from Button Mash. I... Kind of once beat him in a video game by complete accident, he’s taken to having a friendly rivalry with me ever since. It’s another remake of Street Fighter II, what a surprise... Not really. I accidentally beat him at this game in particular, and since he got beaten he’s obsessed with us playing fighting games to prove he can beat me. To be honest... I never really cared for fighting games. But for some reason, I don’t know why, I’m really good at them. It’s probably because I am perfect at handing out backhanded compliments or something. I haven’t really offered to play any games with him for a while now. He takes everything way too seriously. And the third present is from Randolph... Of course it is. He wouldn’t miss out on giving me awesome presents! Let’s see... ... ... ...The high pitched sound that followed could only be heard by dogs. Then the giddiest sounding filly you’ve ever heard shouted out loud to everyone on the Rich property, “I. Have got. FOUR TICKETS TO NEXT YEARS GRAND GALLOPING GALA! THANK YOU RANDOLPH! THANK YOOOOOOU!” Needless to say, poor Dazzle’s ears hurt a lot after that escapade. I was practicing the new Street Fighter II remake for the inevitable challenges I would receive from my friends, and Button Mash. Sounds of 16-Bit punching, kicking, and awesome theme music could be heard from upstairs. *bing dong, ding dong, ding dong, bing dong* Not now... Have to beat Dazzle! I’m so clo- “NO!” I look over to Dazzle, who puts the controller down and gives me a smug look. I know he’s thinking he smoked me. Well he didn’t! Just cause I won zero and he won over fifty times doesn’t mean I was smoked! I was just steamed at the worst! “Hey DT! Are you losing against Dazzle again?” I notice Dazzle make a slicing motion to his throat real quick. But I’m not going to yell at Silver Spoon for that, I am losing... Just not that badly! “No! Of course not! I just lost... on purpose!” “That’s still losing, DT. But anyway, the party guests are arriving. In fact we should be hearing from Button Mash any minute n-” “Hi Diamond Tiara! Did you open my gift?” I sigh inwardly. How Silver Spoon is able to stand him I will never know. He’s not really a bad pony, but... I just don’t like him. It’s not that he doesn’t have a cutie mark yet in case you were wondering. I wouldn’t really use that against him anyway. He doesn’t care about his cutie mark, and I guess I can respect that. I mean, that kind of not caring is on a level I wouldn’t understand. The only way I can really get under his skin is by beating him at his favourite games, but that got old real quick, and now he just won’t leave me alone! What’s worse, him and Silver Spoon are getting really buddy buddy! I think Silver Spoon actually has a crush on him! She says it’s just in my head, but I can see him eyeing her sometimes! He better watch out, or he’s going to have a real street brawl on his hooves! ... Yeah, I’m overprotective. So what? “Diamond Tiara, Equestria to Diamond Tiara, are you in there?” Mashed Potatoes over there is starting to get on my nerves. I know what he’s going to say next. Something along the lines of... “Want a rematch?” I’m sure of it. “You know, I happen to have gotten you a certain gift... I can see that you’ve beaten your cat over fifty times now.” Other way around, but I won’t dispute that claim. I’m pretty sure Dazzle is glaring at him right now. “So you’ve gotten pretty good, but I’m better!” “Vague video game references will get you nowhere, propeller head. Just get to the point so I can shoot you down.” Button Mash makes an indignant face at me, he seems to finally be catching the signal, instead of it going over his head every time. “Ok then, how about this? This is it! All or nothing! Tomorrow we play fifty matches in Street Fighter II Hyper Super Expanded Ultra Edition! Whoever wins the most matches in the end... Get’s a video game system and five games of the other person's!” ...Ok, he’s desperate. “I’m sorry, Button Mash, but no means no.” I begin to walk down stairs, then he utters those words. “What are you, chicken?” ...What did he call me? “What did you call me?” “Chi-cken. Braw-braw-braw-brawk!” “How dare you call me a flightless bird! My name is Diamond Tiara and-” Silver Spoon had been looking between us with a confused look. “I don’t get it. I thought he called you a chicken, not Scootaloo.” ...We both facehoof, and with that the tension has lowered back down. I can now think about this rationally. Let’s see... I’ve got plenty of old games that I don’t play anymore. And at least two systems I have got spares of since the incident with the thief, banana peel, and the rice. I don’t really have all that much to lose from this. If Button Mash wants to do this, it might finally get him off my back... “So what’s it going to be, Cubic Zirconium?” ...Ok, I did not expect him to know that word. Either way, that’s the last straw. “Ok, you're on. Tomorrow, High Noon, don’t be late.” “Wouldn’t dream of it.” Button Mash looks gleeful as he heads down ahead of us, Silver Spoon walks up to me, she’s biting her lip. “Are you sure about this, Diamond Tiara? I have seen him play that game recently, he’s honestly gotten really good.” I shrug, it will be no big load off my back if he wins anyway. It’s more a matter of pride than anything. For now, I need to greet the guests (and Button Mash) with my noble presence. Oh... I hope they’re ready... For the most fabulous party ever! Later... After the party. “Worst. Party. Ever.” I glare over at Silver Spoon for the fifth time that day. “It’s not my fault, how was I supposed to know that when I invited Button Mash, he would invite Pinkie Pie, who invited everypony in Ponyville?” “It’s not just that! Did you know I caught that dragon sneaking into my precious jewel box? And you know what he was doing? HE WAS EATING THEM! I mean, how is that a thing?!” Steam was practically coming out of my ears. I must have looked pretty frightening to her. But I had a right to! It wasn’t even just that! First the CMC crashed the party! Then Pinkie Pie ate the entire cake! The entire THREE FOOT cake! Then that Rainbow pony stole my spotlight by doing some cool tricks outside. No one even commented on my new birthday dress! Then apparently it turns out the one pony who could not show up was our resident princess! UGH! “Grrrrrr. Everypony in this town is CRAZY!” “Does that include your dear old Dad, my little birthday girl?” I look above me to see my own Dad glaring down at me disapprovingly. “Um, no Dad, I just thought...” “I know, you're just as frustrated as I am at how bad this party turned out. But don’t worry, I’ve already set up reservations for you, Silver Spoon, and me for a birthday dinner. I bet you can never guess where it is...” I wrap my mind around it. What could it be? What could it be? ... *click* ... Could it be...? “Gustave le Grand’s Gourmet Garden?!” Both Silver and I echo these words. “Oh my, you guessed it! It’s not like you’ve both been nagging me to take you there for months now! How did you ever guess?” I don’t care about the sarcasm, all I cared about was... “We’re going to the Gourmet Garden! EEEEEEEEEE!” I can’t believe we finally got time to all go there! Father hardly has time to take me anywhere! Now this is what I’m talking about! So far, the only good thing about this birthday has been getting to hang out with Silver and Dad, and the presents of course! As it turns out, Dad called for a private carriage to bring us to the restaurant by pegasus flight. It’s been a while since we’ve done that! It’s always great to see all the little specks from above, and see the stars up close as well! We were just about to take off, when I notice Apple Bloom doing some tricks on Scootaloo’s scooter. Hm... How can I tease slash humiliate them this time…? “Hey, Apple Bloom! I bet you can’t fly as high as Scootaloo on it! But I honestly wonder how Scootaloo flies on it at all! Is there some kind of trick to it?” They give me an annoyed look, I can’t tell what they're whispering about in the distance, but whatever, I got my daily dose of blank flank teasing in today, it’s honestly so much fun to get them angry! As we take off though, I notice Apple Bloom speeding through some nearby ramps, she looks pretty ticked off. “Hey! Apple Bloom! What are you doing? You shouldn’t be going that fast! You don’t have to prove yourself to her!” Ok... When Scootaloo tells you that you’re going too fast, even I know you should listen to her. Just what does Apple Bloom think she’s doing? I felt a little shake. It seems we’re taking off now. I guess I won’t get to see how she screws up this time. “Woooooah! I- I’m going to crash!” I look just in time to see Apple Bloom flying in my direction. Time seems to slow to a crawl, and I barely manage to just duck in time. I look back, and see Apple Bloom land safely on the ground. Why that little, I oughta... Ow... What’s with this headache? I didn’t get hit with anything... Oh, she pushed my Tiara into my head a little... That little... Ugh, too painful for insults right now. I think I’ll just let this one go. “That filly should be more careful. More importantly, are you two hurt? Do we need to go h-” “NO!” We are not letting this chance pass by. “Well, if you two are sure, we could always go tomorrow, but I suppose if you want.” Dad, you are way too overprotective at times. We take off, and as I look out onto the setting sun I think to myself. “Please, oh please let the rest of this birthday go smoothly.” I can only hope... By the time we arrive at the restaurant, Princess Luna’s night had already started. Once a month, me and Silver usually go stargazing. It’s not just for fun, mind you. It’s also for extra credit in Cheerilee’s class. Princess Luna usually rearranges the stars once a month, and we take it upon ourselves to try and spot any new constellations together. Cheerilee thinks it’s a great idea for extra credit, and it also gives us an excuse to spend more time together. The restaurant itself is mostly in a garden, but there are some inside sections in case it starts to rain or something equally stupid. There are several tables for the customers in the garden, as well as one big table for the more important or special guests. That’s where we’ll be sitting. The birthday dinner, to my utter surprise, goes splendidly! There’s a private band at the restaurant playing classical music, there’s also a free buffet for birthday goers so we were able to eat as much as we wanted from the buffet, and it would be a crime not to mention the wonderful decor! So many exotic plants from the Griffon Kingdom, and exquisite statues of the restaurant's owner as well. The craftsmanship on those must have taken ages! Unfortunately, they didn’t have that many cherry cakes with pink frosting. We were almost full by when the cake we ordered came to the table. We ordered a simple cake because we were getting really full. It’s too bad this restaurant doesn’t allow pets. Dazzle sure would have enjoyed it here. I will make sure to order some take out for him before we leave. And at last... The moment of truth. The birthday wish! Eleven years is a very special year around the schoolyard. It’s the transition year between a kid and a tween. As such, there is a very big importance to the birthday wish for this year. You have to make it count! I could wish for any old thing to happen, but I’ve really got to think on this. Think... What has been the best thing about this day so far? What would you like to be able to do from now on? I think really hard on my wish, and then I blow out the candles. What did I wish for? Well... I wished that I could have lots of fun with my friends and family every day from now on, and my entire family would be brought together again and again for all kinds of fun things. This will be my best year ever, and I will make it so that we can all spend it together! And that’s how the most exciting and fun year of my life started... Now let me tell you about the next three sixty four. This promises to be a most exciting year! Day 1 END