Dear Diary,
My new house is amazing! It’s big and there’s lots of places to explore! The first thing Peaceful Skies showed me when we got there was my room. He said it “wasn’t much”, but that’s not true at all! It’s way bigger than my old room. There’s a window and a big dresser and even a mirror.
I asked Peaceful Skies where we are. He said we’re in a place called “Manehattan”. There are a lot of ponies around and a lot of big buildings! It’s not like Cloudsdale at all. There are all kinds of ponies everywhere. Unicorns and Earth ponies and even a few pegasi.
Good news, Diary! I already made one friend! Her name is Button Nose. She’s an Earth pony. She’s a friend of Peaceful Skies. She smells like cinnamon. She says she’s going to teach me a whole bunch of cool things. I don’t know what that means yet.
Peaceful Skies asked if he could buy me a new diary, but I said no. He already filled my room with all kinds of books. Most of them have really strange titles. Peaceful Skies says he read a lot of them when he was my age. I can’t wait to read one of them. Mom only let me read history books. Those were really boring. If she saw all these books she’d be mad. Mom always said it’s not healthy for a filly to live in a fantasy world.
I started reading “Hairy Trotter and the Unicorn’s Stone”. Peaceful Skies said that book is for “big ponies”, but I can read it anyway. It’s about an Earth pony with a long mane who finds out he can do magic. Wow! Does that mean maybe I can do magic, too? I’ve never actually tried it. I asked Peaceful Skies and he said I can do anything I want if I just try. One day I’m going to be a world famous wizard like Hairy Trotter. That’s way more fun than being a Wonderbolt, right?
That’s all for today, Diary. I’m really tired.
Dear Diary,
My new school is really small. There can’t be more than ten ponies there.
The teacher’s name is Miss Windfall. She’s a pegasus just like me and she’s much nicer than Sky Writer! I had to introduce myself to the whole class, which made me really nervous. I talked about how I used to live in Cloudsdale. They asked me a lot of questions about it. Most of them had never been there.
I sat next to a pony who had really thick glasses and some metal things on her teeth. I don’t like those metal things. They look sharp and dangerous. I asked her what they were, but she wouldn’t answer me. Maybe she didn’t hear me. She seemed to be really enjoying the lesson, even though it was just some boring math stuff. I wish I liked school as much as she does.
Miss Windfall got another pony to show me around. The school isn’t very big, but there’s a playground in the back and a lunchroom. The pony that showed me around was named Rainflower. She’s an Earth pony. She told me that there are a lot of schools in Manehattan. She said most of the schools are only for important ponies, like ponies who want to become fashionistas. I wonder if I have what it takes to be a fashionista. It can’t be too hard. Rainflower says most of the ponies in Manehattan are fashionistas.
Peaceful Skies and Button Nose are so nice to me! Peaceful Skies says he’ll help me get better at flying. There aren’t any flight schools in Manehattan. Once I’m old enough, I’ll be able to have my own private trainer.
The first Hairy Trotter book is amazing. My favorite character so far is Fumble Fours. He’s so funny and I like his beard. I bet we’d be best friends if he was real. I don’t like Professor Snake Eyes, though. He’s mean to Hairy and his friends all the time. That’s not fair. I hope Snake Eyes becomes friends with all of them. I also hope the next Hairy Trotter book comes out really soon.
Goodnight, Diary!
Dear Diary,
I’m sorry I didn’t write for a whole three weeks. Don’t worry, Diary. I didn’t move again or anything like that. I kind of forgot all about writing because of something that happened. But it wasn’t a bad something! Well, it kind of was.
I asked Rainflower about that unicorn who never speaks. Rainflower told me her name is Vinyl Scratch. She’s a “teacher’s pet”, whatever that means. Rainflower said she was “mute”. That means she doesn’t talk at all.
Anyway, I decided to bake Vinyl a cake. I’d never baked a cake before. Cakes are way harder than muffins. There are a lot more ingredients and you have to wait longer. Plus you have to make frosting so it’ll look pretty. I wanted this cake to be extra-pretty, so I added even more frosting than I was supposed to, plus a whole bunch of sprinkles! Peaceful Skies helped me with the baking part. I’m not allowed to use the stove by myself yet.
The next day, I took the cake to Vinyl. I was sure she would love it. She didn’t want to take it at first. But I followed her around the playground until she finally took it. We ate it together during lunch. Cake isn’t a very good lunch, but Vinyl loved it!
Unfortunately, something really bad happened. I didn’t understand it at first, but Miss Windfall explained it to me. Now that I think about it, Vinyl ate way more of the cake than I did. I only had one or two pieces, It turns out Vinyl isn’t allowed to have sweets. They make her act really weird. She started acting weird during class. She kept twitching and stuff like she wanted to jump out of her seat. Then when the bell rang, she did jump out of her seat. I’ve never seen a pony move that fast! Not even a pegasus! Vinyl started running around the classroom like she was on fire. Everypony started to laugh because it was so funny. And when Miss Windfall started trying to catch her, it was even funnier! But then Vinyl crashed into the teacher’s desk. She hit the desk really hard and we all heard a cracking sound. Then Vinyl fell down and didn’t move. Miss Windfall had to get the school nurse. The last time I saw Vinyl, she was being carried out of the classroom on a stretcher. She was moving a little, but she looked like it hurt a lot.
Miss Windfall said she doesn’t blame me. I hope Vinyl is okay. I haven’t been back to school since then. Miss Windfall said it was alright if I took a little vacation.
Peaceful Skies says I have to go back at the end of this week. He’s been teaching me all kinds of new flying stuff to make up for me missing school. I don’t think I’m ever gonna get the hang out of it, though. I can do the basic stuff, but I’m not very good at anything else. At least I don’t have to learn drills or anything. Fly High always said half the stuff he taught us wasn’t even useful unless you were gonna be a Wonderbolt or something.
I hope Vinyl is there when I go back to school. I still wanna make friends with her.
Thank you for listening, Diary. I needed to write all this down.
Dear Diary,
I’m back at school, but Vinyl isn’t. Miss Windfall says she’s doing fine and she’s going to be back eventually. I sent Vinyl a Get Well Soon card and a letter.
Miss Windfall gave the class a big project. She says a whole bunch of schools in Canterlot are doing it. She wants us to write a letter to Princess Celestia. And the best part is that it can be about anything! At the end of the year, Miss Windfall is going to collect all of our letters and send them to Princess Celestia. I hope she likes my letter. Maybe I should ask her how to become a princess. If I became a princess, I could create a lot of new fun holidays!
I’m going to visit Vinyl at the hospital tomorrow. I want to bring her something special. I remember when I was in the hospital. It was so BORING. I bet Vinyl doesn’t have anything to read. I’m going to let her borrow my Hairy Trotter book.
You’re my best friend, Diary!
Dear Diary,
My hospital visit with Vinyl was today. The hospital in Manehattan is way bigger than the one in Cloudsdale. There must be two hundred ponies in there! There are these things called “wards” and all the nurses look mean. The nurse who took me to Vinyl’s room kept frowning at me like I was in her way.
Vinyl’s mom and dad were already there when I came in. I was alone because Peaceful Skies had to work and Button Nose had to visit somepony in Canterlot. Peaceful Skies drew me a map to the hospital so I wouldn’t get lost. I found it pretty easily because it’s not too far from where I live.
Vinyl was happy to see me. Most of her body and her hooves and her horn were bandaged. She looked kind of like a mummy. It was really hard to figure out what she was saying. I gave her the book and she was surprised. Her mom said Vinyl had never read Hairy Trotter before. She usually just reads books about math and science and magic. Since she couldn’t hold it in her magic, I took the Hairy Trotter book and read the first few chapters for her. She loved it a lot!
Then visiting hours ended. That made me sad, but I promised Vinyl I would come back next week and read her the rest of the book. Vinyl’s mom and dad were happy. They thanked me for coming and said I was a good friend. They even said they would walk me home if I wanted because it’s getting late. I said I didn’t need them to walk me home because it’s not too far away.
I know I should be waiting until I’m at home to be writing this, but I was so excited that Vinyl was okay that I started writing right there in the waiting room! That’s where I am now. It’s a good thing I always keep my diary in my saddlebag.
I’m going to head home now, Diary. It’s starting to get dark. I don’t like the dark. I’ll write in you again when I get home! I promise!
Dear Diary,
I’m kinda in trouble. Again. It’s not bad trouble like it usually is. I did something I shouldn’t have and Peaceful Skies got mad at me. He’s calmer now, but I can tell he’s still a little mad.
I got lost after I left the hospital. I didn’t mean to! But it was getting dark and I was scared. There were so many ponies around. I tried to follow the map Peaceful Skies gave me, but I just couldn’t figure out which way was home. It turned out I wasn’t going in the right direction, because I walked until Celestia’s sun had completely gone down and I still wasn’t home. I was really really scared.
I thought for sure I was going to be lost forever. But then I saw somepony I knew! It was Ms. Windfall. I was so excited that I ran right up to her and begged for her to help me. I started crying and she comforted me. She’s such a nice pony. She said she’d take me back to her apartment and I could stay there for the whole night.
Ms. Windfall’s apartment was nice. There were a lot of things made of glass, which made me nervous. She had a pretty figure of a ballerina pony that she let me hold. I was so scared I was gonna drop it, but Ms. Windfall said it would be okay because I’m just a filly and it wouldn’t be my fault. I think Ms. Windfall is a lot nicer than my mom. I love Mom, but she never let me hold anything made of glass.
Ms. Windfall made me hot chocolate. While I was drinking my hot chocolate, Ms. Windfall told me a whole bunch of stories about when she was a filly. She told me about how her dream was to become a Wonderbolt. When she was about my age, she had a really bad accident. Her wings don’t work like they’re supposed to anymore. She can fly, but she’ll never be a Wonderbolt. She got really sad when she told me the story. But then I told her that I would never be a Wonderbolt either! That made her smile for some reason and we laughed for a long time.
I didn’t sleep much that night. I fell asleep on the couch next to Ms. Windfall, but I kept waking up. I thought I heard my mom calling my name. I guess it was just a dream. I miss Mom. But I’m sure she’s doing fine. Last night, I wished on a star that Mom would find a good coltfriend and be happy forever. Since I wished it on a star, I know it will come true!
I was able to go home the next day. Ms. Windfall found out where I lived and took me there right away. Peaceful Skies was mad. But he didn’t lock me in my room or anything. Even though he yelled, I don’t think he was mad at me. He was just worried because he had no idea where I was. He cares about me a lot. I don’t know why. But I’m happy that he cares so much. I gave him an extra-big hug to make up for worrying him so much. I’ll bake him an extra-special cake on his birthday. I don’t want him to worry about me anymore, so I’ll have to prove I can take care of myself!
I’ll write in you sooner, Diary. I promise!
Dear Diary,
I went to the hospital to see Vinyl again. This time I went with Rainflower and Button Nose.
Vinyl was a lot less bandaged than she was the last time I saw her. She was sitting up in bed and reading a magazine about music. She also wasn’t wearing her glasses anymore. She looks weird without her glasses. I told her that her eyes were pretty and her cheeks got all red. Then I told her all about what’s been happening in school. Not much has been happening, but Vinyl was interested in all of it.
I spent the rest of the visit reading out loud to Vinyl, Rainflower, and Button Nose from the Hairy Trotter book. Having so many ponies watch me made me nervous, but Rainflower said I had a nice voice and Button Nose said I was a great reader. We got all the way to the part where Hairy gets lost in the enchanted forest with his best friend Running Weasel. Then the nurse came in and said visiting hours were over. I think Vinyl’s going to finish the rest of the book by herself. I hope she tells me what she thinks.
Nothing else happened today. Sorry about this short entry. Hopefully I’ll do a longer one next time, Diary!
Dear Diary,
I’ve spent the last two weeks trying to write my letter to Celestia. But nothing’s coming to me! I want my letter to be perfect. What do you think princesses like to talk about, Diary? Hair ribbons? Hot chocolate? I bet Princess Celestia gets all the hot chocolate she wants. If I was a princess, I’d drink hot chocolate with every meal.
Peaceful Skies told me about a school for the culinary arts. That means a school for ponies who want to cook. He said I was too young to go to it now, but when I’m a little older I might be able to go! I’ve gotta get real good at my cooking, though. And the school is all the way in Canterlot, so I wouldn’t see Peaceful Skies or Button Nose for a long time. He said I don’t have to decide now.
I have bad news and good news about Vinyl. The good news is that she gets out of the hospital tomorrow! She’s all healed up and she can walk fine. Button Nose says she’s lucky. The bad news is that she’s moving away! I don’t know where she’s going. Her parents said they want her to go to some fancy school for talented unicorns. I’m glad we became friends, but I’m gonna miss Vinyl.
It’s raining again. Peaceful Skies says the weather is nice here. In the winter it gets really cold. In two months, it’s going to be Hearth’s Warming! I wonder what Peaceful Skies and Button Nose are going to get me. Mom never got me a present for Hearth’s Warming. But every year, she would take me to see the Wonderbolts’ special Hearth’s Warming Eve show! It was the best part of the year. I want to go to the show this year too, but with Peaceful Skies and Button Nose!
Happy (kinda almost) Hearth’s Warming, Diary!
Dear Diary,
I asked Peaceful Skies what I should write to Princess Celestia about. He said I should tell her about my hobbies and what I like to do for fun. But what do I like to do for fun? I like to bake and talk to other ponies, but that’s it! I don’t want Princess Celestia to think I’m boring.
Today after class I asked Ms. Windfall what she does for fun. She likes to knit and bake and play checkers against herself. That last one made me giggle a little. I told her I’d play checkers with her if she wanted. That made her smile bigger than I’ve ever seen her smile before.
Rainflower has a garden and she likes to read books about plants. Maybe I can start a garden. It looks easy to me. You just have to put stuff in the ground and hope it grows. I’m good at hoping and digging!
Button Nose said that when she was my age, she didn’t do anything for fun. She used to help her parents take care of ponies like me. I asked her what she meant. She said her and her parents took care of ponies that didn’t have homes. I was confused when she said that. I mean, I have a home! One day, Mom’s going to show up at and take me back to Cloudsdale. Maybe Button Nose and Peaceful Skies can come too.
I really want to have a hobby like everypony else!
I’m gonna find one real soon, Diary! I just know I will!
Dear Diary,
I started a garden! Rainflower gave me some seeds and Peaceful Skies helped me plant them. I don’t know what the seeds are gonna grow into. Rainflower said it’s a surprise. I hope it’s something pretty!
Rainflower said she already finished her letter to Celestia. I asked if I could see it and she let me. It was really long. It was all about how happy she is that she gets to live in Equestria and what a great job Princess Celestia is doing being in charge of everything. There were a lot of big words. Rainflower gave me a dictionary and a thesaurus to help me with my own letter. I read some of the dictionary and it didn’t help at all. I learned a lot of cool new words, though!
That’s all that’s happened since my last entry, Diary. Its been a really boring week again.
I’ll write in you when something cool happens, Diary!
Dear Diary,
I have a new friend! His name is Claws. That’s a weird name for a pony, right? Well, Claws isn’t a pony! He’s a kitty! I was out watering my garden and he just showed up at the fence! I tried to get close to him, but he ran away. I asked Peaceful Skies about it and he said it was probably a stray.
The next day, I saw Claws again. He was standing by the fence staring at me. This time I didn’t try to get close to him. I held out the sandwich I was eating and Claws walked right up to me and took a bite! He was really dirty. He looked like he hadn’t had a bath in a fortnight. I let him have the rest of my sandwich. Then he left. I noticed he had really sharp claws, so I decided to call him “Claws”.
Claws kept coming back every day for a whole week. Every day Button Nose made me an extra sandwich and I gave it to Claws. I also set out a bowl of milk for him one night and when I came back it was gone. I think me and Claws are gonna be good friends. I’m writing this while I wait in the backyard for him. He’s been visiting me every night too. I leave the gate open and he comes in and just sits with me. I talk to him about stuff. I like to tell him stories about Mom.
Mom’s never had good luck with coltfriends. They’re always so mean to her. One time she had a coltfriend named Static Bolt. He had a colt my age named Wispy Wind. Wispy Wind was really mean to me. He used to throw his toys at me and call me all kinds of names. And every time I said something to Mom, she said I was making it up. One time I got mad at Wispy Wind and threw his toy train at him. Mom and Static Bolt got mad at me. They yelled a lot. At first they yelled at me, then they started yelling at each other and then Static Bolt left with Wispy Wind. Mom said she was sorry and bought me a big cake. I had to eat it by myself, though. Mom went to her room and didn’t come out for a whole two days. I never saw Wispy or Static Bolt again. I’m glad, but I wish I’d apologized to Wispy.
I think I hear Claws! Write in you later, Diary.
Dear Diary,
Button Nose took me shopping for Hearth’s Warming today. She gave me a whole thirty bits and said I could buy anything I wanted! I bought Claws a shiny purple ribbon. I don’t know if he’ll wear it, though. He still won’t let me pet him or anything. I bought Peaceful Skies a pretty picture frame with all kinds of gems and fake shells on it. I saw a camera in his bedroom once. I don’t think he uses it.
I hope Button Nose and Rainflower like their presents. I found the biggest tub of caramel popcorn to give to Button Nose. I wanted to get Rainflower something for gardening, but I decided maybe she would like a book about Cloudsdale.
I used my last five bits to buy Ms. Windfall a tiny silver statue of General Firefly. I learned about General Firefly in school back in Cloudsdale. She was the one who gave the Wonderbolts their name.
Button Nose bought two tins of peppermint candy. She said I could send one to Fly High and one to Mom if I wanted. I’m definitely gonna do that! And I’m gonna write each of them a special message to put inside the tin! Fly High has been sending me loads of letters about life in Cloudsdale. Mom hasn’t sent me any letters, but I’m sure she’ll love the candy.
Button Nose said that we’re all going to the Hearth’s Warming Eve play in Canterlot this year! I’ve never been to it before. I wonder if it’s as exciting as the Wonderbolts show. Peaceful Skies said it’s all about the history of Equestria. History is boring, but hopefully the show will be fun. I invited Rainflower and she promised she’d come.
I don’t think what I planted is going to finish growing before it gets too cold. Rainflower says it’s probably because I’m not an Earth pony. Earth ponies are good at getting things to grow fast.
Bursting with excitement, Diary! I hope I can contain myself!
Dear Diary,
It’s the day after Hearth’s Warming. I’ve been sitting here in my room all day thinking about everything that’s happened this year. Isn’t it crazy that the year is almost over, Diary? It feels like it just started.
The Hearth’s Warming Eve play in Canterlot was amazing! Canterlot is really bright. There were lights and ponies everywhere. There were giant candy canes everywhere and everything smelled like cinnamon. Button Nose gave me ten bits so I could buy a snow globe and a cupcake shaped like a Hearth’s Warming tree from one of the shops.
I thought the play would be boring, but it I liked it. I learned a lot about history and it really made me think. All the different types of ponies used to not like each other. But then they all came together and learned to like each other. Peaceful Skies told me it was because of something ponies call “the magic of friendship”. I didn’t know friendship was magic! Maybe I can do magic after all.
Everypony loved their presents. Even Claws! Claws was really suspicious of the ribbon at first, but after a while he got closer to investigate. I tied the ribbon around his neck and he seemed happy about it. He didn’t hiss or scratch me or anything like I thought he would. He even let me pet him a little before he ran off. I hope Claws doesn’t get cold out there.
One unexpected thing happened during Hearth’s Warming. It was after I gave Peaceful Skies his present. He gave me a hug and said he loved it. Later, while everypony else was drinking hot chocolate, I snuck into his room and took the camera off the shelf. I wanted to take a picture of him and Button Nose so he could put it in the frame. But Peaceful Skies came in before I could leave with the camera and started yelling at me. I started crying and he said he was sorry. After I was calm, Peaceful Skies took the camera from me and explained why he was so distraught. The camera belonged to his brother who died a long time ago. He’s never used it even though he likes photography. I felt bad for Peaceful Skies, so I gave him a hug and said his brother would probably want him to use it. I don’t know why, but Peaceful Skies started to cry after I said that. Then I had to calm him down!
After Peaceful Skies calmed down, he showed me how the camera worked. Then he took a picture of me and put it in the frame! He said he’s going to keep it forever.
I got a lot of great presents for Hearth’s Warming. Peaceful Skies gave me a brand new diary because I’m running out of pages in this one. I don’t want to give you up and start using a new one, Diary, but I’ll probably have to. The new diary is even bigger than this one, so I’ll get to write a lot more. I’m not gonna throw this one away, though.
Button Nose bought me a cookbook filled with all sorts of neat recipes. Some of them seem hard, but I bet I’ll get the hang of them. There’s a muffin recipe I really want to try.
Rainflower got me a special plant that grows all year-round. I put it on a flower pot on my windowsill so it gets to see the seasons pass. I named it “Sprout”.
The best part is that Fly High sent me a present! It’s a big cooking pot with all kinds of pretty flower symbols on it. Fly High said in his letter that he bought it while he was in Canterlot visiting his daughter a year ago. It’s so beautiful! I can’t wait to cook with it!
This year was really fun and weird, Diary. I’m almost sad it’s over. And you know what, Diary? Even though I miss Mom, I can’t really be too sad. Button Nose and Peaceful Skies are nice to me. I have friends who care about me. I have a cat named Claws and a plant and a cookbook and a nice school. Plus the next Hairy Trotter book is coming out next year! I’m almost out of space in this diary, so I want the last thing I write to be meaningful before I start writing in the new one. I’m going to write something Peaceful Skies said to me once, way back when I first came to live with him and Button Nose. He said it to him after I woke up from a really bad nightmare I don’t remember.
You should never be afraid of the dark. Because eventually the sun will rise. And when it rises, you’ll realize that the monsters weren’t monsters at all. Monsters love the darkness because they want to hide who they are. But when the light comes on, they’re not so scary.