//------------------------------// // Chapter Four: Operation Breakout Diamond Begins! // Story: The Tiara weighs Heavy // by Foal Star //------------------------------// It had been a week and a half since Diamond Tiara moved schools, and The Cutie Mark Crusaders were all looking somewhat worried as they started classes one morning. As Cheerilee went about the lesson for the day, the three seemed unable to concentrate, looking at the empty seat where Diamond Tiara usually sat. During recess, the three were talking about her at the new playground. They then turned to see Silver Sppon approaching them with a downtrodden look on her face. Looking rather worried, she came over and asked, “Um, Cutie Mark Crusaders?” “Yes?” they asked in unison.  The filly fidgeted with her ponytail and said, “Um,…can I ask for your help?”  Scootlaoo looked over, eyeing her suspiciously, and asked, “Sure…but…” She held up a hoof. “I know I’ve bullied you three a lot, and I don’t have any right to ask for your help, but I'm desperate and worried.” Scootaloo turned to her friends as the other two got up, and Apple Bloom then asked, “Um yeah, go ahead. What’s the problem?” Silver Spoon rubbed a hoof over the other, then said, “Ca…can you help find out where Diamond Tiara went? I asked her mom the other day, and she told me she was sent to boarding school for her bad behavior. I tried digging around but found nothing; it's like she just disappeared!?” The three fillies gave each other worried looks, and then Sweetie Belle said, “You don’t think that Spoiled Rich would hide her from everypony on purpose?” Silver Spoon angrily threw a hoof as she explained, “You all saw how she was when Pipsqueak became class president. Even though Diamond stood up to her mom, things might have worsened with her." The little filly's demeanor changed, and she calmed and pleaded, "Please, if you can do anything to help find out where she is …I…I just want to make sure she’s ok.” Apple Bloom looked anxious as she didn’t know if they could do it. Sweetie Belle said, “We’ll see what we can do and find out where she went.” “That's enough just so I can send her letters,” Silver Spoon whispered. She then trotted off and sat beneath a tree alone, still depressed. Apple Bloom then took her fellow crusaders aside, cleared her throat, and said, “I know it’s been some time since we have seen Diamond Tiara, and I'm worried, too.” The little unicorn spoke up. “You’d think she would have contacted us, especially after we became friends!?” “Well, we all just became friends. We were not that close?” Scootlaoo replied.  Sweetie Belle tapped a hoof to her chin, adding, “Ok, maybe she wouldn’t send us letters, but Silver Spoon!? Sure, they had a falling out after Diamond lost the election, but I bet she would have sent her at least a letter by now!” Scootaloo looked a little angry as she said, “I agree. It smells like her mom is trying to keep her from having connections here.” Sweetie Belle looked worried as she asked, “So if Spoiled Rich is keeping where Diamond is going to school a secret, how can we figure that out?” The three sat together, pondering what to do as the yellow-coated earth pony threw a hoof and chirped, “What about sneaking into her house?” Sweetie Belle went wide-eyed and shouted, “That’s a horrible idea!? We would get into so much trouble if we got caught!”  The little orange-coated pegasus sighed, ‘But it might be the only way to learn what happened to her and see if she needs our help.” The three looked at each other with unsure looks, and then Apple Bloom stomped a hoof. “Listen, I know we had our problems with Diamond Tiara, and I still have mixed feelings about helping her. But she’s changed, and we all saw that she’s trying to make amends for all the bullying she’s done. We gotta at least try to find out where she is.” Sweetie Belle was looking apprehensive about the idea and said, “Well, alright, but if we get caught, we are all seriously grounded.” Scootaloo spoke up. “That's it then. We just don’t need to get caught.” “But how?” “I know a way.” The three squeaked as Silver Spoon was now behind them, and she stood there blushing as the little filly pushed her glasses and stammered, “Sorry, I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation.” Scootaloo sighed in relief and said, “No, it’s fine; actually, we need some help getting into Diamond’s room to find clues about what happened to her.” The grey-coated earth pony's face lightened as she said, “I know of a way in; Diamond and I would sometimes sneak over to each other's houses if we were in trouble.  The yellow-coated earth pony took out a hoof and said, “Okay, you help us get into her house, and we’ll find out where Diamond Tiara is.” “It’s a deal,” the two shook on it. As they all started talking and planning to sneak into Diamond’s house.  Later that evening after school, Silver Spoon led the Crusaders through the back of the house, hopping over the cobblestone wall and trotting around the swimming pool. The three were all beneath Diamond’s massive home, and the Crusaders looked up in awe at such at how big the house was up close. Silver Spoon just trotted along as if it were normal. Looking behind, she eyed them and asked, “What's the hold-up?” “Nothing,” the three replied as they hurried over to her. Silver Spoon pointed to the second-story window, “that window is where Diamond Tiara’s room.” Apple Bloom looked around and then asked, “Okay, so how do you sneak in?”  Silver Spoon then looked around, making sure no one else was watching. Then she went wide into the house and pressed a stone. It sunk in and slid out as a secret staircase opened up. The three fillies looked at it in shock as Silver Spoon rolled her eyes and then said, "It’s just a way to get into the wine cellar.” The little earth pony then pulled out a crudely drawn map with a crayon and pointed it at the bottom. “Just go through the wine cellar into the kitchen, sneak around, go to the living room, there you'll find a staircase; once on the second floor, go three rooms down, and take a left; that's Diamond's room. Just avoid Randolph. He’s old but will rat on you if he catches you.” “Got it!” the three responded as they trotted through the stairs, going through a damp room dimly lit with giant barrels and glasses filled with various colored liquids, including red, purple, and white. As they trotted through, Scootaloo's head went around on a swivel as she thought out loud, " So this might sound silly, but what's wine?” Sweetie Belle looked rather curious at the liquids and sniffed the air, wrenched at the smell of rotting fruit, and said, “Well, my sister drinks it once in a while, and when I asked, she said it's juice for grownups.”  Apple Bloom then chimed in, “My sister has a special  Cider that she says is only for grownups, too. She then starts acting weird after drinking a lot.” “Yeah, my sister does the same thing; we better just stay clear of it.” Sweetie Belle chimed.  The three then snuck through Diamond Tiara’s house, going up the wine Celelar as suggested, and they came into a fancy dining room; they then carefully trotted around towards the living room and up a flight of stairs, going down a hall and entering a bedroom. Despite never being in Diamond’s room before the second the three entered, they knew it was her room. Diamond’s room was relatively spacious and filled with expensive furniture for a filly her size: a wardrobe filled with dresses and a trophy case; her canopy bed was covered in expensive plush animals, and nearby was an entire shelf filled with tiaras. As the three trotted around, they saw that there were pictures of her winning pageants on the walls or in front of rich ponies, but she was always with her mom, sticking her nose up with a snobbish sneer. The three spent a few minutes just trying to find anything, but the problem was that it was too clean, and they had almost no clues as they searched for anything. Apple Bloom peered under the bed and picked up some pink feathers. She looked at them, thinking they were from some bird, but she saw how big they were and recognized they had to be from a pegasus and whispered, "Odd? Does Diamond have any Pegasi friends? The other two looked at each other and then shrugged as Apple Bloom stowed the feather away. Scotaloo was looking under a desk and then found a pamphlet about a boarding school called Coldstone Academy: “Found something!” The three came over, and then Apple Bloom read it aloud: " Coldstone Academy, the Boarding School for Disobedient Fillies.” They all then opened it and looked to read, “Is your little filly acting bratty due to her wealth or status? Is she openly rebelling against you or acting like some common foal? Well, this is the perfect boarding school for you; here, your daughter will gain a high-quality education along with strict discipline and learn how to engage with high society. Starting at twelve thousand bits a year, your little brat will be turned into a perfect little filly who will obey your every word. You will be refunded if you are unsatisfied with our program or wish to remove your filly from the school.” “This sounds more like a prison than a school.”  Scootaloo blurted as she looked over the pictures, horrified to see angry, rebellious fillies in the “Before” and the pristine-looking fillies in the “After” section.  Apple Bloom threw the pamphlet in disgust, “No kiddin’, how could any parent send their foal there!?” The three then heard arguing, and the three ran into a closet and closed the door as Filthy came in shouting, “I cannot believe you sent her to boarding school without telling me!” “Darling, she needed it. Have you heard of some of the things she’s done!? Bullying, Running that awful gossip column, blackmailing other students, you even said it yourself: she needed more discipline.” “I meant grounding her! Taking away some of her privileges when she does something wrong, not rewarding her like you do every time! Whenever she did anything like what you just said, you blew it off or congratulated her! And now you suddenly care!?” “Maybe I thought she would grow out of it. Besides, it's not like you did anything to stop her.” “Of course I did! But you undermined me every time. Also, I did have her hang out with Granny Smith when I found out she was insulting her in class.” “Oh, so the one time you disciplined her, you had her learn a lesson by humiliating her.” “Humiliating her!? She was talking bout old Granny Smith like…like she was beneath her, and all I did was have her bounce around in some bunny ears with her and Apple Bloom. I was trying to show how calling her names in front of her classmates was wrong.” “You don’t consider that humiliating!?” Filthy clenched a hoof to his face, then snapped, “You're changing the subject. This isn’t about what I did, and even if I was in the wrong, sending her to boarding school in her last years of grade school away from her friends? How could you do that?” “It’s good for her; she needs to be humbled and learn to live without our money for a while.” Spoiled seductively put a hoof on his shoulder and began to rub it. “You’re just tired. Why don’t you lie down? You sound rather stressed.” Filthy threw his wife’s hoof off his and then turned away, “I…I just need a moment alone.” Spoiled held her nose up, then scoffed, “Fine, suit yourself. Walter.” “It's Randolph, mam.” “Whatever, butler, I need a drink. Fetch me a glass of wine from the cellar.” “Yes, mam, do you wish for anything in particular?” “A nice red, something sweet. Screw the glass and fetch me a bottle.” “Right away, mam.” As the two walked off, Filthy came over, went to bed, sat there for a while, then looked down and picked up the pamphlet on the ground; he then began to read it, and his eyes went wide as he threw it. “How could my wife send our daughter to such a horrible place?” His eyes were now filled with tears. What kind of father would let this happen…I…I must get her back, apologize, and stop this madness.” The stallion got up, fixed his tie, and left the room. As soon as the stallion left, the three came out of hiding, and Apple Bloom took up the pamphlet. “So it seems like her dad is going to help.” Sweetie Belle whispered, “Maybe, but Spoiled might try to stop him…” Scootaloo looked uncomfortable as she said, “I'm going to be honest, guys; I think we should leave this. We know where she is, and she might not be in the best place in Equestria, but she’s safe…We’re getting involved with something that maybe we shouldn’t be.” The three took a pause, all now looking just as uncomfortable, but Apple Bloom spoke up. “Look, Scootaloo’s right; maybe we shouldn’t if Mr. Rich is going to get Diamond back, but let’s discuss this after we get out of here.” As the three were about to leave, Scootaloo stopped and said, “Yeah, one problem: they sent Randolph to the wine cellar. Now we’re kind of stuck…” Sweetie Belle went to the window and saw Silver Spoon outside; she opened the window, quickly jotted down a note, created a paper airplane with it, and threw it. The paper airplane did some circles as it landed near Silver Sppon. She caught and read it, then turned it around, wrote on her back, folded it into a paper airplane again, and threw it back. Apple Bloom caught it and read it: " Use the bedsheets as a rope behind the wardrobe.” There, the three quickly found a bunch of sheets together. They tied it to the massive canopy bed and opened the window, and they all slid out. Once they were all on the ground, Sweetie Belle lit her horn with all her might, levitated the sheets back into the room, and closed the window. The four fillies then ran off, hoping over the cobblestone fence before anypony noticed them. Later that afternoon, the four were talking about what to do in the Cutie Mark Crusader treehouse. Silver Spoon, still looking the most worried of the four, asked, “So you guys think Mr.Rich will help Diamond get out of that awful Boarding School?” Apple Bloom nodded and said, “Yeah, it seems so. You should've seen him. He seemed so sad learning his daughter was sent away; it seems Mrs. Rich sent her there with him knowing, and he seems committed to getting her out.” Scootaloo slammed a hoof on the ground and snapped, “But Spoiled might try to stop him; we need to investigate this school and help push him to get her out.” “But that would mean we would need to go there? But how!?” Sweetie Belle blurted. Scootlaoo tapped a hoof to her chin. “Well, it's the weekend, so we can just say we're having a sleepover.” Silver Spoon stood up, smiling as she exclaimed, “That's a great idea! I'll help buy you three tickets to the boarding school and cover for you, saying you’re sleeping over at my place!” Apple Bloom sighed, “Sure, that sounds like a good idea, but I feel like I should tell my big sis where I am.” Silver Spoon eyed her and said, “You think your sister will be okay sneaking into a boarding school? Even if it's to help a friend, I doubt you will be allowed to go if you tell the truth.” The three looked at each other with worried expressions as Scooaaloo sighed, “Look, this is all to help Diamond get out of that “School.” we can get her to write a letter explaining what’s happening to her and show it to her dad. If he isn’t convinced about getting her out now, he’s sure will after hearing what his daughter has to say.” Scootaloo started to get excited as she said, “Alright, that sounds like a plan. We should make a code name for the mission.” They sat there pondering. Sweetie Belle’s face brightened, and she blurted, “What about Operation Breakout Diamond!” The three giggled as Apple Bloom gave a nod. “Yeah, that works.” The three fillies put their hooves together and shouted, “Operation Breakout Diamond is ago!”  As they threw their hooves in the air, Silver Spoon started to tear up and cry. The three turned as she wiped her tears. “I'm sorry; it's just…Diamond and I, we’ve been so horrible to you, especially you, Scootaloo. How could you ever forgive us, let alone help us?” The Cutie Mark Crusaders all took a moment, taken aback by what to say, but Scootaloo spoke up, “Honestly, I considered not helping all day; even now, I remember what you did to me when we were trying to bear the flag for Ponyville in the Equestria Games. I'm also still angry about how you treated my friends and other ponies. But maybe we’re trying to show you and Diamond we can be better, and you can be too.” There was another pause, and a rather uncomfortable silence now loomed over the four. But Silver Spoon got up, wiped the tears from her eyes, and said, “Yeah, you're right, Scootaloo. You don't know it, but you and your friends help change me as well." she then gave the pegasus a hug, and the two sat there in each other's embrace. Then the little grey earth pony stepped back and said, "Well, I'll go get those tickets…. I guess you all have to get going and tell your families.” Apple Bloom nodded and said, “Right, we’ll meet up at Silver Spoon’s house tonight, then go to that horrible boarding school tomorrow, agreed?” “Agreed!” the other two shouted as they all left the tree house and went their separate ways.