GBOYHVerse: Tarnished Diamonds
Chapter 6
Common Ground
By Godzillawolf
Considering the group was currently sitting in her grandfather's lavish, incredibly expensive living room with oh so many things she could brag about (as they were both a sign of her family's wealth and would one day be hers), Diamond Tiara should have been having a good day. She was not.
'I knew I should've taken us to Great Auntie Impossibly's place instead...' thought the little pink filly. Granted, Impossibly Rich was rarely ever home, but at least she didn't call her Tarnished Rich! In fact Impossibly was the one who suggested she change her name first chance she got!
“Wow, this is the biggest living room I've seen!” Sweetie Belle exclaimed, looking around it. Compared to even the Tiara household, the living room was quite expansive, and lined with portraits and countless expensive odds and ins.
Dusty Rich chuckled, sitting down in an incredibly expensive and luxurious chair next to the fireplace. “I'll take that as a compliment, Miss Belle.”
“It was!”
“Thought so,” the 'Grand Patriarch' (as his twin sister, the Grand Matriarch in her own words, put it) of the Rich Family replied. He motioned with his hoof. “Take a seat, I've got plenty.”
The Crusaders nodded and prepared to jump on the couch as a collective unit.
“Wait!” Diamond yelled, dashing over. “You bl-I mean you three need to clean your hooves! That couch costs more than that entire silly tree house of yours!” she shouted, managing to catch herself at the first twinge of her recurring stomachache. If she had to put up with the three so much as stepping hoof in her family's retirement estate (which would inevitably be hers), she wasn't going to let them disrespect it!
“Oh relax, Tarnished,” Dusty interjected, prompting a blush from his granddaughter. “If they get it too dirty, I can always buy another one.”
Diamond Tiara had a tirade pop into her head...so she quickly bit her tongue and took a seat with a huff, Silver Spoon seating herself next to her. That is after the glasses wearing Earth Pony made sure her best friend saw her clean her hooves off.
“So, little ponies, you want to know the story of Ponyville's founding from the Rich's point of view, huh?” asked the elder Rich, giving a smirk. The fillies nodded. “Well best start at the beginning. You see, it might surprise you, but the Riches weren't all that rich back then.”
The group gasped in shock, Diamond's jaw dropping.
“That's...that's a joke, right Grandpa?” Diamond Tiara asked, looking stunned.
The elder of her family gave a grumble. “No, Tarnished, it isn't a joke! You see this is why I keep calling you Tarnished Rich! You forgot why you got that name in the first place!”
Diamond tried to hide her face as that got a couple chuckles from some of the CMC.
“No, we weren't rich. Your great grandpa's first store was a tent!...You see, your grandpa was traveling Equestria, putting up shop wherever he could find it,” said the elder stallion, looking at a picture hanging over the mantle of his father and Dusty himself (who at the time looked like a colt aged Filthy Rich), along with his little sister Spoiled (who was at the time just a baby being held by their father) and twin sister Impossibly (or as Dusty insisted on calling her even to this day, Musty).
“...Is it just me or does that pony remind you of Fluttershy?” whispered Scootaloo to her friends, pointing to Impossibly Rich. Sure enough, with her long mane and tail and general body shape, one could mistake the mare for Fluttershy, if not for her more haughty expression.
“Maybe that's why Photo Finish was able to make her such a big star?” Sweetie Belle questioned.
The Rich family walked along the roads between towns, Stinking Rich pulling their simple carriage and his children in the back either minding baby Spoiled or organizing the merchandise.
“Manehattan...”
The twins helped their father unload the tent and merchandise in a street corner in Manehatten. Young Musty Rich gave an enamored look at the nearby to passing starlets and high society types while her brother merely rolled his eyes...
“Rainbow Falls...”
The group set up shop at the Rainbow Falls Traders Exchange. While their father did business, Dusty had to pull his twin away from a shop with fancy jewelery and expensive brooches.
“...even some new frontier towns.”
Musty Rich gagged at the dusty condition of a town not unlike present day Appleloosa or Dodge Junction. Dusty tapped her on the shoulder and pointed towards a long line of ponies at their father's humble tent, and thus requiring their attention.
“The stallion bought whatever he felt he could resell, and you bet he could resell it like nopony's business...”
Dusty watched in admiration as his father managed to sell a fancy, up tight railroad owner an old, but still perfectly functional engine that would be perfect for one of his trains. Despite a long drawn up negotiation process, he handled excellently. Managing to match the rich pony's fancy words with ones equal in 'class' to impress him, and showing a good bit of knowhow on the engine's workings. Musty was more interested in sweet talking the owner's young colt.
“...but between keeping a bunch of kids safe and sound and traveling all over, it wasn't exactly the road to riches my sister seemed so keen on us traveling. We had enough to live on, but getting a hoofcarved piece of driftwood as a present was worth celebrating cause it was the best pa could give us sometimes.”
Stinking Rich sat next to a humble little Hearth's Warming Tree in their carriage, Dusty feeding little Spoiled her bottle while the father carved a piece of wood. A few moments later, Musty Rich was given a hoofcarved little statue of a star pony she liked. For once, Dusty's twin actually happily took something so humble.
Diamond Tiara face was an expression of horror at the explanation, Silver patting her on the back comfortingly.
“Golly, Ah never would've thought the Rich family started out like that!” Apple Bloom exclaimed in surprise, murmurings among the foals of surprise stirring.
'Great! Now they've got something to hold against me! I'll never hear the end of this!' Diamond thought, imagining the tables turning and now being on the receiving end of insults and being constantly reminded of this embarrassment until her dying day. After all, it's what she'd do!...Or would have done, if her stomach would let her and she wouldn't end up becoming...her. The spoiled filly gave a shudder as why she'd stopped bullying the CMC came back to her mind.
Dusty gave a chuckle. “Hard to believe, but it's the honest to Celestia truth. It was a humble beginning...but then one day, while we were visiting Canterlot, we met Princess Celestia. And I tell you, meeting her for the first time isn't something you forget! She's such a presence...”
The tent was set up in the street of Canterlot, the uppity unicorns walking by with their noses in the air and paying them no heed...
Until a white hoof picked up a purse. The family's jaws collectively dropped as they saw said hoof was attached to the Princess of the Day herself, standing above them with a warm smile. Musty Rich gently hoofed Spoiled to her brother with neither's expression changing, then promptly fainted.
“Hehe...Such a wonderful mare. Now if I had to guess, I think she could tell we were struggling to get our financial situation in order, and, being Celestia and all, wanted to help...”
After making a sale to the highest pony in the land, more ponies filed in to purchase as if a switch had been pulled. Celestia tapped her chin, talking with Stinking Rich as he made his sales. The Dayarch pointed off into the distance at a little spot where a wisp of smoke was going into the sky.
“And told us about a special discovery a little group of farmers had made in Everfree Forest she was sure would be the surefire seller dad needed to get our start...”
Stinking Rich arrived in Ponyville, and soon began speaking with Granny Smith and collecting baskets of Zap Apple Jam...
“As you can guess, that was your Granny, Apple Bloom! That Zap Apple Jam was just the most amazing thing! And one of the most profitable things too. Enough that soon supply outpaced demand and we made the deal we have to this day.”
The Rich Family gradually built their first store, working hard together (even Musty, despite her complaints). Slowly, buildings began to crop up around them. First a couple, then slowly more and more buildings until a town was formed.
“Of course, as the orchard began to grow, the other apple products began coming in,” Dusty Rich explained with a smirk. “And dad began to make a chain of stores with some of our cousins, just like your family did. I bet a lot of the ponies and businesses that came to form Ponyville came from two big families spreading word of mouth about how good a place to live this place was...Hehe, ironic, isn't it? Two of the biggest families in Equestria and they both got their start in a little patch of land next to Everfree...”
The Crusaders clapped their hooves at the story...while Silver Spoon merely continued to comfort her humiliated friend. Diamond had never felt so mortified in all her life...and what was so much worse is she couldn't take it out on those Bla-annoying ponies! Not without...without becoming her...
“Ah...never thought about it that way...” Apple Bloom admitted, giving a thoughtful look at the pictures lining the walls...then to Diamond Tiara. For a brief moment, she saw Diamond as the little farm pony and herself as the rich filly.
“From the looks of it neither did Tarnished...” Dusty muttered in an annoyed tone. “So anything else you need for your project? I've got some old scrapbooks I could lend you...” he said, letting his butler hoof him one of them. “Thank you, Alfred...” he replied, giving a grateful nod. The old stallion opened the scrapbook and gave a laugh. “Hehe, oh I forgot about that!”
“About what?” Scootaloo questioned.
“The time I asked your Granny out on a date, Apple Bloom! Had quite the crush on her when we were young! Asked her out as soon as I was old enough! Wanna here about it?”
Apple Bloom and Diamond both blushed so vividly they almost looked the same color for a moment. “NO!”
The two blinked, looking to one another in confusion.
“Ah mean no thanks...Ah think we have enough now...”
“Y-Yeah...besides, it's not really got anything to do with Ponyville's founding...so...” Diamond Tiara continued, in minor shock she and Apple Bloom were actually on the same page about something...
After taking a swim in Dusty's pool (which made the Tiara's pool look like a puddle in comparison) and being treated to imported ice cream that was probably worth more than the Crusaders collectively made in a month in allowance per cone, the Crusaders and two rich fillies were on their way home. And did so in even more awkward of silence than they'd came in.
Diamond set with her back to the Crusaders, watching the passing scenery with a scowl on her face. Expecting any minute for them to lay into her with the information they were now in possession of. Why wouldn't they? It's what she'd do.
“...Think she's okay?” Sweetie Belle whispered to her friends. Apple Bloom looked too distracted by her own thoughts to notice.
The rich pink filly didn't react, as she was too busy having an in-depth argument with herself at the moment.
In a miniature pillar of hellfire appeared on her left shoulder, revealing a miniature, but beautiful looking Nightmare version of Diamond wearing diamond barding. And two little devil horns poking out of her mane. “Come on, just one little insult won't hurt! Just to blow off some steam and make those Blank Flanks forget all about Grandpa spilling all those embarrassing secrets! You know know they're just waiting to let you have it over that!”
Diamond Tiara got a devilish smirk.
A flash of heavenly light appeared on her right shoulder, revealing...a tiny angel Breezie Diamond Tiara. She said something...but Diamond didn't seem to hear her. After several more times, she produced a megaphone. “Don't! If you're mean to them, you might end up becoming her! and then you'd hurt momma, daddy, and Silver Spoon!”
Diamond Tiara shuddered with a fearful look on her face.
“Oh come on, it's like sneaking an extra piece of cake when no pony is watching! When has that ever hurt anypony?!” her shoulder devil asked.
“Randolph only gets cake if there's some left over! I'm sure he cares!” replied the shoulder angel.
Her counterpoint scoffed with a glare. “Who cares about Randolph?!”
“He cares about you!” replied the little angel. “He takes care of you when you're sick! Remember when you had the flu because momma was...sick and daddy was too busy?!”
Diamond Tiara didn't know why she suddenly felt sick to her stomach.
“Ugh! How are you even here? Didn't Diamond lock you in a nice little case somewhere?” asked Diamond's shoulder devil with a snarl.
“Fear let me out,” replied the angel smugly. “And she's got my back! Right Fear?!”
Diamond suddenly saw a vision of her adult self, a second Checker Monarch, towering above her in her in the window with a cold, sadistic smirk.
The spoiled filly gave a scream and fell backwards, landing on the carriage's luxurious carpeted floor...then blinked, finding all eyes on her. Her eyes wandered back to her shoulders and then back to the window, finding nothing in either location. “...I really need to get some sleep...” she muttered under her breath. Her sleepover with Silver had helped...but not as much as she'd have liked.
“Are you okay, Diamond?” asked Silver, helping her up.
“Y-Yeah! A bird just hit the window...” Diamond Tiara replied, dusting herself and letting her best friend help her up.
“I hope the bird is okay...” Sweetie Belle commented with a frown.
The spoiled pink filly gave an indignant look. “The bird?! What about me?!”
Scootaloo rolled her eyes. “What about you? This carriage's carpet is so soft, I'm surprised you didn't fall asleep while you were down there!”
Diamond Tiara snarled. “While my family's carriage does have the most luxurious and soft carpeting available, and probably costs more than your entire year's allowance, that's not the point! The point is I am so much more important than some random bird!”
The trio of Cutie Mark seeking fillies rolled their eyes. “Whatever...” muttered the orange pegasus. “You're alright, so why can't we worry about it?”
The little filly ground her teeth, face turning slightly red. “Ugh...if you want to get under my skin so bad, why are you beating around the bush!”
The trio looked to each other in confusion, then back to her. “What do yah mean?” asked Apple Bloom, the filly cocking her head.
“You know! What Grandpa Dusty told you! Go ahead! Make fun of me already if you're going to!”
“...Why?” Sweetie Belle asked, cocking her head.
The two bullies' jaws dropped at the same time. “W-Why?! What do you mean why?!”
“Why would we lay into yah over that stuff?” asked Apple Bloom questioned, cocking her head. She gave a slight thoughtful look as she was reminded of the story...
“Because...because I make you mad and you take it out on me! That's how being mad at somepony works!” was the pink spoiled filly's angry response.
“...So basically, what you do all the time?” Scootaloo snarked.
“Exactly!”
“Well we're not mean like you, so not gonna happen,” the orange pegasus replied with a glare.
“They're right, it ain't nice tah treat somepony bad just because you're angry at somethin',” Apple Bloom replied.
Scootaloo didn't let it slip that part of the reason was because it was what Diamond Tiara wanted them to do. But the others made good points too.
“You...you blank flanks just don't get it!” Diamond Tiara roared, seeing red. “This isn't how it work!”
The Crusaders prepared to give their rebuttal...
“Good job, you really are a lot like I was when I was a kid. Keep up the good work. Some day you might be just like me.”
...when Diamond Tiara suddenly doubled over and looked sick...and scared. She instantly reached for the bottle of ginger ale and started sipping it. She shot the three...then just set down the now empty bottle and turned back to the window.
A few more miles passed, Apple Bloom sitting and returning to her own thoughts. Thinking about what Dusty Rich had said. “...Hey...Diamond...” she finally asked.
“...What?” the rich filly asked with a low growl, having been trying to forget the Crusaders existed.
“...Both our families started off the exact same way...in the exact same place...” the youngest Apple sibling explained, looking thoughtful. “...Don't that mean if things were different, either of us could've ended up like the other?”
Diamond Tiara gave a gasp of surprise, eyes widening.
The group set in silence for a few moments, no pony sure exactly how to reply to that.
“...Hmph! Well I suppose I should be glad my Great Grandpa was smarter than your Grandma, huh?” was the rich filly's smug retort.
Apple Bloom snarled. “Mah Granny is plenty smart!”
The look on the yellow filly's face made Diamond feel...strange. It wasn't sick like when she bullied them, or empty like when she'd bullied...well, anypony else but them. It was more...inbetween. Not bad enough to make her stop, but empty enough to not give her the satisfaction she wanted. Still, at least wasn't bullying them, so it was perfectly fine. Right?
“Not as smart as mine!”
“Is too!”
“Is not!”
Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo groaned and facehoofed. The former then cocked her head, noticing Silver just sitting there looking...more worried for Diamond than smug. For about two seconds that is, before joining in with her partner in the argument between the two fillies.
Diamond Tiara sat in front of her mirror in her room later that night, the rich filly trying to just keep calm. The day had been stressful. And humiliating. And angering. And generally all around unpleasant to the point she was lucky she was still sane.
“You did a good job, Diamond Tiara...you barely insulted the Crusaders despite spending the entire day with them...and Grandpa Dusty's slip ups...” she told herself, trying to keep some measure of poise and grace to her. “...Now you just need to keep it up...for...however long this project goes...”
Their big projects could take a week or two to do, and that was not counting the days where ponies presenting. And Cheerilee, being the nice teacher she was, did often let the other students put finishing touches on their projects while others presented. And then there was practicing their parts of the presentation. Which all in all means she was going to have to put up with this for a lot longer than she hoped.
“Think you can keep it up?”
Diamond looked around in confusion. “Hello? Who's there?”.
“Down here...”
The young filly gave a scream, falling backwards out of her chair at the sight in the mirror. Checker Monarch stared back at her from the reflective surface. “N-No...”
“Yes...” said Checker Monarch, emerging from the mirror and stepping onto the floor. The mare looked down at her, looking rather personable and affable. Like she'd been at her meeting with her family before then. “Exactly how long do you think you can stay as a good little filly?”
“A-As long as I need to!” Diamond replied, trying to remain composed. “I'm not going to turn into you!”
Checker gave a cold laugh, switching into an emotionless expression. “You really think the world works that way? You should know better...after all, the word 'bad seed' exists for a reason. And bad seeds grow up into bad plants. I'm sure even your little nemesis knows that.”
The little filly backed away, but it felt like the ground just wouldn't let her get away. “I'm nothing like you!”
She suddenly found herself on a platform at eye level with the insidious mare.
“Hmm...” the corrupt corporate executive said, circling her like a shark. “Really? Wouldn't know it from looking at you...” she said, suddenly looking insane and maniacal as she had when she'd snapped on stage.
Diamond's eyes widened as a mirror was placed in front of her, the image reflected being herself in an identical suit to Checker, with mane and tail styled to match. She also briefly saw a flash of blue in the mirror, but couldn't make it out clearly.
“Oh, and can't forget the accessory, can we?!”
In a flash, Silver Spoon appeared beside her in the mirror: looking broken and almost like a slave.
“NO!” Diamond Tiara screamed, eyes flying awake, once more asleep back in her room. She sat up, feeling her body and mane, finding them completely normal. The filly...simply curled up in bed and whimpered in fright.
Applejack gave a yawn, waking up the next morning. Getting up, the farmer just grabbed her pa's hat and put it on before heading down stairs to get breakfast started. Her mane could wait until everypony's breakfast was made, and even then it only took a few moments to bundle it into a ponytail.
The farmer heard a knock on the door and grabbed an apple muffin (she always kept a freshly baked one ready). Opening it, she found Derpy looking back at her in full mailmare garb. “Howdy Derpy!”
“Hi Applejack!” Derpy called back cheerfully.
“Trade ya,” Applejack replied, throwing her a muffin as Derpy passed her her mail.
Derpy never stayed very long, the wall-eyed pegasus being a very dedicated pony when it came to her job, but she was a friend. Especially after helping save Trixie.
After bidding her farewell, Applejack went through her mail...and stopped on a letter from Manehatten. “Huh? Letter from Cousin Sunflower Seed? Well Ah'll be...”
'Dear Cousin AJ:
Hey, Cousin, long time no see. Hope you're doing well. Things are doing well here in Manehatten...but Cousin Babs is havin' some trouble with bullies at school...''
To be Continued...