//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 // Story: A Diamond Comes Between Friendship? // by Yukito //------------------------------// “Class, we’ll be arriving in Manehatten in fifteen minutes! Make sure you have everything you brought with you when you leave the train, okay?” “Okay!” Cheerilee’s smiled faded as she looked over her students, and she began walking over towards two particular colts whose heads were stuck out of a window. “Snips! Snails! How many times do I have to tell you…” Sweetie Belle giggled as she looked over at the two colts being scolded by their teacher, before turning her attention back to her two friends, who were looking outside of their own window, pointing out the shapes that clouds made as they passed them. “Just fifteen minutes until we get to see Babs again. I can’t wait!” Sweetie Belle said excitedly. Her two friends turned around to face her with equally excited grins on their faces. “She said she’s been doing better at school since she got back, right?” Scootaloo asked, receiving a nod from Apple Bloom. “She’s even made friends with two fillies who also don’t have their Cutie Marks, and made ‘em Crusaders!” “Cool! That means we now have six members!” Scootaloo’s wings shot out as she hoof pumped the air. “Aw, yeah! This trip is gonna be awe.Some!” “Ten minutes, class! Make sure you double-check your belongings before we arrive!” The train carrying the students from Ponyville Elementary School pulled up to the Manehatten Platform 8, and the excited fillies and colts from Ponyville began pouring out onto the platform. Cheerilee had to use a loudspeaker to address her students over the noise caused by all of the ponies around them, and told all of her students to gather around her so that she could take the register. The Cutie Mark Crusaders looked around in awe at the sheer number of ponies around them. It was unlike anything they’d ever seen. There had to be more ponies in this train station than there was in all of Ponyville! “Apple Bloom?” Cheerilee called out. The yellow filly jumped up and waved her hoof to the teacher. “Here!” she shouted, though she could barely even hear herself over all of the noise. Thankfully, Cheerilee noticed her, and marked her down as ‘present’. “Wow… So many ponies…” Sweetie Belle said, stumbling on her hooves as she started to feel dizzy. “What do we do if we get lost?!” “We’ll be fine!” Scootaloo assured her. “If we get lost, we’ll just climb up on one of those tall buildings, and Miss Cheerilee will be sure to find us!” “That doesn’t sound very safe,” Sweetie Belle said, looking at one of the many skyscrapers that she could see from the station. “Since when has that ever stopped us from doing anything?” Scootaloo pointed out. “Anyway, it’ll be fine! Just as long as we don’t fall off.” “How about you just don’t get lost in the first place?” Diamond Tiara suggested, groaning when she couldn’t even hear herself over all of the noise around her. She could see that the Crusaders didn’t hear her either, and spoke up. “How about you just don’t get lost in the first place?!” “It’s not like we’re plannin’ to!” Apple Bloom said, before turning to Scootaloo for confirmation. “Right?” Scootaloo nodded. “But the Junior Speedsters saying is: always be prepared!” “That’s the Colt Scouts,” Sweetie Belle said. “An’ ye’re not a Junior Speedster,” Apple Bloom added. Scootaloo glared at her two friends. “Whatever, it’s still a good saying!” “Well, it’s not like it can be helped,” Diamond Tiara said with a grin. “After all, you three are always causing trouble for those around you.” Silver Spoon giggled and nodded in agreement. “They got lost at school, so of course they’ll get lost here.” “Only once,” Sweetie Belle said with a pout, her cheeks turning red at the memory. “Nopony told me they changed the classrooms around,” she added in a mumble. “Anyway,” Diamond Tiara said, “I bet you three wouldn’t even know what to do if you got lost in a place like this.” “Oh yeah?” Scootaloo challenged. “And you would?” “Yes, actually.” Diamond Tiara turned around and pointed at a large red skyscraper in the distance, one that really stood out among the rest. “Daddy says the police here are incompetent, and he doesn’t trust them with his precious little girl. He told me that, if I ever got lost during one of our visits, I should go to that building, where my uncle works as the CEO.” “Not that you’d ever need to, right?” Silver Spoon asked. “After all, unlike some fillies, you know how to behave and stay out of trouble.” “That’s right,” Diamond Tiara said with a proud smile. “Not exactly,” Apple Bloom added quietly. “What was that?” “Ah said-Hey, there’s Babs!” Apple Bloom pushed past Diamond Tiara, and waved over to the orange Earth Pony filly in the distance. “Babs! Over here!” Babs, dressed in her navy-blue school uniform, didn’t seem to take notice, and continue to chat with two other fillies, one a Unicorn, the other a Pegasus. “Darn it, ah’m gonna go talk to her,” Apple Bloom said, readying herself to push through the crowds. “Aaand, they’re already getting into trouble,” Silver Spoon said, brining up her left forehoof to check a watch that wasn’t there. “That’s got to be a record.” “Apple Bloom,” Scootaloo called out, reaching forward to grab her friend’s tail with her teeth. She let go when Apple Bloom stopped to turn around. “Miss Cheerilee’s getting ready to move on.” The four other fillies turned their attention back to their teacher, who had finished taking the register and was telling everypony to stay close together. At some point, she had told them what to do in case they got lost, but the Crusaders must have missed that whilst they were talking. “We’ll see her later,” Sweetie Belle said. “Our schools are going to meet up at the theatre later, right?” “… Right!” Apple Bloom said, her face lighting up as she remembered the reason they were here in Manehatten in the first place. “Great,” Diamond Tiara said in a sarcastic tone. “The blank flanks have been doubled.” “Even worse,” Silver Spoon said, pointing over to Babs, who was now talking one-on-one with a Unicorn colt. “She has a coltfriend now. That means there are seven of them.” Apple Bloom stared at the scene in shock as she watched her cousin talking with this unknown colt, her mouth hung wide open. “N-No way!” “Ewww,” Scootaloo said with a cringe. “Please don’t tell me we’re gonna have to put up with those two being all lovey-dovey when we hang out with each other.” “I don’t know…” Sweetie Belle said. “Something doesn’t feel right. I don’t think they’re going out with each other.” “Y’sure ‘bout that?” Apple Bloom asked, feeling somewhat relieved for reasons beyond her. “How can ya tell?” “Because I’ve seen how differently Rarity acts when she’s flirting with somepony for real, or just to get a discount,” Sweetie Belle said with a frown. “Trust me, I can tell.” “Hey!” Diamond Tiara shouted, causing the three Crusaders to face her and find that the group was moving on. “At least try to keep up.” “Blank flanks!” Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon said in unison, giggling as they wandered off with the rest of the group. With frowns on their faces, the Crusaders followed after the two rich fillies, trying to keep their distance from them. Once outside of the station the three friends were once again in awe as they took in their surroundings. The buildings were so tall that they felt dizzy just trying to see the top, and they were so cramped together, just like they had heard. Ponies were moving about all over the place, some slowly moving up and down the street, others running about and bumping into each other, before moving on without so much as an apology. There were taxis all over the place, too, as opposed to there only being a few in Ponyville. “BLANK. FLANKS!” Despite the noise pollution caused by all of the ponies around them, the Crusaders could hear that even without Diamond Tiara shouting it at the top of her lungs. Their snapped their attention back to the two rich fillies, who were some distance down the street from them. They quickly caught up to them, and continued admire the scenery as they passed through the city. Every now and then, Diamond Tiara would call out the same insult to them: “Blank flanks!” And every time she did, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle would shoot them hard glares, before the three picked up the pace to catch up to the group. Apple Bloom, however, noticed something. Whenever Diamond Tiara called out to them, the three of them had to run to catch up to the rest of the class, since the three of them kept stopping to admire the scenery. At first, the farm filly thought that it was just a coincidence, but whenever they weren’t getting distracted by the scenery, she noticed the pink filly occasionally glancing over in their direction, looking for only a moment before quickly turning back to her friend. ‘Is she… making sure we don’t get separated?’ Apple Bloom quickly shook the thought from her head. No way. That couldn’t possibly be it. After thirty minutes of walking through the huge metropolis city, the class arrived at the Manehatten theatre, where they, along with a class from a Manehatten school, would be watching a film together. The film was a part of their school’s curriculum, where they were to write a review on a piece of media chosen by their teacher. Cheerilee and her friend Bright Mind, a teacher from Manehatten, decided to get their two classes together for a joint screening of a recently famous movie, Shrek, and then afterwards they would take the students into town, where they could do some sightseeing and some window-shopping. “Hey, where’d Sweetie Belle go?” Apple Bloom asked Scootaloo when she realised that the third Crusader had gone missing. The two began looking around for their Unicorn friend. “There she is!” Scootaloo exclaimed, pointing a hoof at the glass entrance of the theatre, where they could see Sweetie Belle standing outside, talking to somepony. Before they could go over to her, an orange Earth Pony ran up to Sweetie Belle, and began yelling some things at the stallion that she was talking to. Said stallion ran off, and the orange filly that the two Crusaders could identify as Babs led Sweetie Belle by hoof into the theatre. “What were you thinkin’?” Babs asked sternly, pulling the Unicorn filly into the theatre lobby. “Ya can’t just go talkin’ ta any random pony that offers ya candy!” “But he seemed nice enough, and he said he liked my mane.” “This isn’t Ponyville! There are a lot of crazies out there, and ya gotta-” “Babs!” Apple Bloom shouted, and before Babs could move out of the way, she charged at her cousin and pulled her into a big, tight hug. “How’ve ya been? Ah haven’t seen you in like, forever!” “AB! You’re… crushing… me…” Babs said as she tried to pry the excited filly off of her. Apple Bloom quickly loosened her grip and backed off, but kept her hooves on Babs’ shoulders and gave her a big, friendly smile. “Good ta see you again. You too, Scootaloo.” Scootaloo lifted a forehoof up and offered it to Babs, the Manehatten filly grinning as she bumped her hoof into the Pagasus’. “This is so cool! We get to spend the day together after this screening!” “I hope you don’t mind,” Babs started, “But I kinda told my new friends that they can join us.” “‘Course we don’t!” Apple Bloom responded. “But, where are they? I don’t see anypony else from your school with you…” The three Crusaders looked at the theatre entrance, and then around the lobby. “Ah, yeah… I kinda got excited when I saw Sweetie Belle outside, and ran off ahead of everypony-” “MISS SEED!” a voice boomed as the theatre doors suddenly swung open. Everypony in the lobby immediately turned their attention to the doors, to see a group of foals dressed in the same school uniform being led inside by a well-groomed stallion in a navy-blue suit. “How many times must I tell you to stay with the group? Detention when we return to school!” “Aw, come on!” Babs pleaded, running up to her teacher. “We were right there, it’s not like I ran too far ahead of ya!” “Young filly, rules are made to be followed, to keep us safe, and maintain harmony in Equestria. More importantly, it’s my neck if anything happens to any of you.” The teacher shook his head, and walked past the filly. “If you’re unhappy with your punishment, perhaps an alternative… Say, no free time after the movie finishes?” Babs’ eyes widened, and she quickly shook her head. “Detention’s fine, sir!” she said with a salute. Bright Mind grinned, but kept his face forward so that his students didn’t notice. “Very well then. Now, there will be fifteen minutes before we head inside, so until then… you may talk to your friends.” Babs’ face lit up. “Thank you, sir!” she shouted, before running over to her friends from Ponyville, followed by a Pegasus filly and a Unicorn filly. Bright Mind joined his old friend Cheerilee, who was giggling to herself at the little display that she just saw. “You find something amusing, Lee?” “Don’t you think that was a little harsh?” Cheerilee asked, still giggling despite his use of the nickname she so despised. “Not at all. Those three are a nightmare, and Babs is always the worst of the lot… I’m telling you, if I don’t straighten them out for every little mistake they make, it’s going to come back to bite me later.” “Still, you’ve always been a little strict with your students. That’s why the foals in Ponyville never liked you very much.” “And you, on the other hoof, are far too lenient. You don’t even issue a school uniform? I understand that Ponyville is a small town, but even so…” “Well, let’s just agree to disagree,” Cheerilee said with a wink. “Today, we’re here to just hang out and have fun, like in the old days.” Bright Mind cleared his throat and adjusted his tie. “That sounds like a fair arrangement.” Meanwhile, Babs trotted over to the Crusaders from Ponyville to introduce her two new friends. “This is Flitterheart…” She waved a hoof over a confident looking purple Pegasus filly with a two-toned blue and dark-blue mane. “And Snowcatcher.” She waved her hoof over to the blue Unicorn filly with a pink mane, who looked a bit more timid than her two friends, even hiding behind Flitterheart’s leg as she introduced herself. “H-Hello,” Snowcatcher said, waving a hoof towards the three fillies from Ponyville. “Sup?” Flitterheart asked, offering a hoofshake to the three fillies. “Babs has told us about you guys. Any friend of hers is a friend of ours, right Snow?” “Y-Yeah,” Snowcatcher answered quietly, shifting her attention towards Sweetie Belle, who was giving the filly a big smile. She smiled back nervously, and tried to think of something to say to break the awkward tension she was feeling. “Hey Bloom, ya think you could make two more of those capes for these guys? Y’know, so they’ll be full-fledged Crusaders?” “Y’all will have ta ask Sweetie Belle. She’s the one who makes ‘em.” “Ya don’t say,” Babs said, looking over at Sweetie Belle, who was blushing a little bit. “So, ya think you can do it?” “Well, sure!” Sweetie Belle answered. “But, I didn’t bring any fabric with me… I guess I can give you mine before we leave, and then just make a new one when I get home.” “I don’t mind giving you mine,” Scootaloo said, receiving a hoof bump from Flitterheart in return. “You mean that cape you brought to school with you once?” Snowcatcher asked Babs, who nodded in response. “The one the teacher confiscated?” “The teacher what?!” Apple Bloom shrieked, staring at Babs in shock. “I got it back!” Babs clarified. “‘Sides, how was I supposed ta know it was against the rules? I was wearing my uniform underneath, so what’s it matter?” “Yo, Babs!” a colt’s voice called out. Babs groaned as a yellow hoof wrapped itself around her neck, pulling her into a headlock. The owner of that hoof was a yellow Earth Pony colt with a slicked back orange mane, who was just a little taller than Babs and the other Crusaders. “Who’re your friends? You gonna introduce me to ‘em?” “Hey, isn’t that the colt we saw her talking to at the station?” Sweetie Belle whispered to Scootaloo, who nodded in response. “Babs, you didn’t tell me ya had a coltfriend,” Apple Bloom teased, a sly grin on her face as she jab her elbow into Babs’ side. “Not exactly,” Babs said, worming her way out of the headlock and turning to face the colt with an angry look on her face. “Go away, Biggs! Go bother somepony else for once!” Upon hearing this, Apple Bloom’s grin fell into a frown as she looked over at the yellow colt, who was then joined by a brown Earth Pony colt with a black mane tied into a ponytail. The way Babs spoke to him reminded Apple Bloom of the way she spoke to Diamond Tiara. “Still have no manners, huh blank flank?” Babs and Scootaloo immediately scowled at the use of that name, and Biggs laughed at the sight, giving himself a pat on the back for once again riling up the filly. “Babs, who is this?” Sweetie Belle asked with an uneasy look on her face. “Biggs and Wedge,” she answered, still glaring at the two colts. “The most obnoxious ponies you’ll ever meet.” “Obnoxious? I save that word for a group of blank flanks who run around the school, babbling on about all the ways they’ll ruin everypony’s good times,” Wedge said, turning his attention to Snowcatcher, who flinched and quickly hid behind an enraged Flitterheart. “We don’t do that! We look for ways to earn our Cutie Marks!” Flitterheart corrected. “Whatever, we all know you’re never gonna get ‘em. After all, you’ve been at it for, what, months now? And you still have found your special talents?” “We’ll find ‘em!” Babs responded. “And when we do, they’re gonna be ten times cooler than yours!” “Unlikely,” Biggs scoffed. “So, these three losers from Ponyville? Maybe you should just go live there. It seems you’ll fit right in.” “Maybe I will,” Babs said. “Then I won’t have to see your ugly faces again!” “Ugly?! Why you-” Biggs stretched out his hoof to stop Wedge. “In return, why don’t you give us those two?” Biggs pointed behind the group to Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, who were discussing something silently amongst themselves. “They seem way too cool to be hanging around dweebs like you.” “Sounds good to me,” Scootaloo whispered to Apple Bloom jokingly. Though she wasn’t expecting Apple Bloom’s response to be so spirited. “Forget it!” Apple Bloom shouted, surprising her fellow Crusaders. “Ah haven’t known you that long, but ah know a jerk when ah see one! We’re not givin’ any of our classmates to a couple of jerks like you, no matter who they are! “And y’all should be ashamed of yerselves, tellin’ one of yer own ta leave fer somewhere else. If you were members of the Apple family, you’d be bucking trees on yer own fer weeks!” “Dude, what’s with your accent?” Biggs said, seeming completely bored by the filly’s rant. “Seriously, I can’t even understand a word you’re saying.” “Who are you to make fun of the way somepony talks?!” Scootaloo asked, coming to Apple Bloom’s defence. “What’s with that high-class, condescending tone of yours, huh? You think you’re above everypony else or something?” “We are above everypony else. And we’re definitely above the likes of you three, and everypony else from your two-bit town.” “Say that again!” “What’s going on over here?” Silver Spoon asked as she joined the conversation by approaching the group. “Ugh, more blank flanks? Just what we don’t need. Right, Diamond Tiara?” “Well, at least these two seem cool enough,” Diamond Tiara said, walking towards Biggs and Wedge. “You two were giving them a hard time, right?” “What if we were?” “Ooh, nice attitude. We should totally hang out after this lame-o movie is finished.” “It’s not that lame…” Silver Spoon mumbled, receiving a strange look from Diamond Tiara. “… Uh, yeah… What she said.” “Hmmm… Sure, why not? Beats hanging around any of the losers from our school. What’re your names?” Diamond Tiara frowned at the yellow colt. “Don’t you know it’s impolite to ask a lady’s name without introducing yourself first?” “She told you, man,” Wedge said with a grin. Biggs chuckled, and lifted Diamond Tiara’s hoof up to lay a gentle kiss on it. Snowcatcher, Silver Spoon and Sweetie Belle blushed and looked away in embarrassment, Babs, Scootaloo and Flitterheart cringed from the grossness of it, and Apple Bloom simply scowled at the action, though she wasn’t sure why it annoyed her so much. Diamond Tiara also scowled, and pulled her hoof away quickly. “Forgive me, madam. My name is Biggs, and this is my good friend Wedge. And you two are?” After wiping the spot on her hoof that Biggs had kissed, Diamond Tiara’s expression returned to its prior grin, and she introduced herself. “Diamond Tiara. And for the record, I only let daddy kiss me.” “Silver Spoon,” Silver Spoon said, offering her hoof to the two colts. “A hoofshake only, if you don’t mind,” she quickly said, making sure they didn’t misinterpret it as her wanting a kiss, too. “Heh, you two afraid of ‘cooties’ that much?” Biggs teased. “Well, whatever. You two seem alright, so I’ll show you around when we have our free time. Who knows? Maybe after we’re finished, you’ll want to move here.” Apple Bloom was about to speak up, when Cheerilee’s voice suddenly called across the lobby. “Okay class, it’s time to go in! Single file lines, please!” “Well then, we’ll see you after the movie?” Biggs asked. “Yeah, sure,” Diamond Tiara responded, turning around and moving towards the screening room with Silver Spoon. As soon as Biggs and Wedge left, Babs and her two Manehatten friends bid the Ponyville Crusaders farewell. “We’ll meet up here after the movie’s over,” she said, giving her cousin one final hug before they left. “Y’know, this is actually kinda great,” Scootaloo said, earning a confused look from her two friends. “Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon meeting those two colts, I mean. This way, they won’t be bothering us.” “Hey, yeah! That is great!” Sweetie Belle said with a big grin on her face. “Yeah… Great…” Apple Bloom added, a hint of uncertainty in her voice. “That movie was awesome!” Scootaloo shouted as she flapped her wings excitedly, hovering in the air for just a second before she slowly descended back down to earth. “What did you guys think?” “It was better than ah thought it would be,” Apple Bloom said. “Wouldn’t exactly call it ‘awesome’.” “I really liked it! It’s too bad they aren’t screening it in Ponyville.” “Bloom!” The Crusaders saw Babs and her friends approaching, and ran forward to greet them. “Great movie, don’tcha think?” “Hay yeah!” Scootaloo exclaimed. “It was alright,” Flitterheart said, sounding bored. “More importantly, we’ve got some Cutie Marks to earn!” “We do?” Sweetie Belle asked. “Well, us mostly,” Snowcatcher clarified, ducking behind Flitterheart when attention was drawn to her. “We’re gonna see if we can get our Cutie Marks in being tour guides…” “So what about us?” Apple Bloom asked with a pout. “We’re just supposed ta go along with ya and watch you earn your Cutie Marks before us?” “Chillax, Apple Bloom. There’re tons of things you can try in Manehatten to earn your Cutie Marks.” Scootaloo pushed Apple Bloom aside and fluttered her wings in excitement. “Then what are we waiting for?!” As the six fillies prepared to leave the theatre, Cheerilee’s voice called out across the lobby, catching their attentions and stopping them in their tracks. “Listen up, my little ponies! You have free time for the next two hours, which you may spend however you wish, as long as you remain within this district! Also, you must stay in groups of at least four, and you must be at the train station by five! Have fun, but stay safe, and if any of you get lost, head towards the big clock tower near this theatre!” “Yes, Miss Cheerilee!” the students of Ponyville Elementary School responded in unison, before scattering and arranging themselves into groups. After the Manehatten students received a similar lecture from their own tutor (with more emphasis on the consequences of any rule-breaking), the six Crusaders assembled and began their trek into the vast metropolis outside the theatre doors. “So in thirty minutes, we got kicked out of five gaming stores, four sports shops, two hardware stores, five fast-food joints, a library, and a church. We received a warning from a patrol officer, we broke a mailbox and narrowly escaped being arrested, we won five giant stuffed animals in some street sideshow thing, and we helped accidentally catch a pickpocket.” Apple Bloom scanned across the other five fillies in front of her. “That about right?” They all nodded, and Apple Bloom sighed. “And yet, through all that, we still haven’t got out Cutie Marks.” The other five sighed as well, and all six looked like they were about to give up hope. “Well, I guess next we should show you the park,” Babs said. “It’s just on the edge of this district, so we should be fine goin’ there. And there’s always somethin’ goin’ on there! I’m sure at least one of us will be able to get a Cutie Mark there!” “Sounds like a plan to me!” Scootaloo said, suddenly perking up from her depression just moments earlier. “Lead the way, Babs old buddy old pal!” “… Don’t ever call me that again,” Babs said, taking a moment to blow her fringe out of her eyes before walking past Apple Bloom. “It’s not too far. Just around the-AH!” Babs fell down onto her haunches as somepony suddenly collided into her, and Apple Bloom rushed to help her cousin to her hooves. “Thanks, Bloom. Hey, watch where you’re go… in’?” Silver Spoon rose to her hooves and looked over the six fillies standing before her. ‘Not who I was hoping for, but…’ “What’s the hurry?” Scootaloo asked, before a grin appeared on her face. “Lemme guess: you got lost, didn’t you?” “In your dreams!” Silver Spoon responded spitefully, before calming herself down when she remembered she had something more important to deal with. “It’s Diamond Tiara! She’s in trouble!” Scootaloo’s grin immediately faded, and Apple Bloom quickly took a step towards Silver Spoon. “What d’ya mean?” the yellow filly asked. “What kinda trouble?” “Stop it! Give me that back!” Diamond Tiara growled, jumping up to try and grab her tiara from Biggs’ clutches. “You’re gonna ruin it!” “Awww, you gonna cry?” Biggs taunted, before throwing the tiara like a frisbee over to Wedge, who caught it skilfully. Diamond Tiara quickly ran over to the other colt, but was still unable to reach it. He was simply too tall for her. “I thought you were cooler than those dweebs, but I guess not.” “Is this thing really so important to you?” Wedge asked, dangling the tiara over the pink filly with one forehoof as he used the other to keep her at a distance. “Well then… go get it!” he shouted, throwing the tiara over to his partner. Diamond Tiara, along with the crowd of foals that had gathered to watch the scene unfold, followed the tiara flying through the air, over Biggs, and into a pool of mud behind the colt. “Oops,” Wedge said, “Must’ve thrown it too hard.” A tear fell down Diamond Tiara’s face as she watched her tiara sink into the shallow pool of mud, and she felt her face burning up. “Oh Celestia, she’s actually crying!” Biggs shouted, laughter escaping his mouth as he watched the filly turn redder and redder with each passing second. Diamond Tiara snapped a moment later, and she turned around and pounced at Wedge, who was also laughing along with his partner. Pinning him to the ground, Diamond Tiara fought back the only way she really knew how: reverting to base animal instincts. In other words, she bit down the colt’s foreleg, not letting go even when he screamed. “Y-You psycho! Get off of him!” Biggs shouted, rushing to his friend’s aid. He successfully pulled Diamond Tiara off by yanking her mane, forcing her mouth open as she cried out in pain. More tears fell down the filly face as she was forcefully dragged across the park by her hair, and she let out a loud yelp when something sharp piercing right foreleg. “LET GO OF HER!” somepony in the crowd shouted, causing Biggs and Wedge to stop and look over to see who it was. The crowd parted, and an enraged orange Pegasus filly approached the colt holding Diamond Tiara with steam coming out of her nose. “I said, LET GO OF HER!” “And what are you going to do, huh?” Biggs challenged, and a moment later, his answer was received in the form of an orange hind leg connecting with the side of his face. Hard. Wedge watched as his friend was knocked down onto his back, and then charged at the filly responsible. While the two began exchanging kicks, with the occasional mane-pulling and wing-biting, Apple Bloom rushed over to Diamond Tiara, who was still sitting on the ground, her face a mess of tears and snot, rubbing her head to ease the pain from having her mane pulled. “Are you okay?” Apple Bloom asked, more worried for the filly than she would have ever thought possible. “Silver Spoon and Babs can take you back to the theatre. Scootaloo and I will handle these two,” she said, glaring at Biggs as she got up and ran over to the fight to assist Wedge. “Why are you helping me?” Diamond Tiara asked, trying to sound angry, but instead her voice was weak from her crying. “Because ah don’t like it when ponies bully others, and there’s no excuse fer pulling a filly’s mane like that!” Apple Bloom said sternly, reaching forward and pulling Diamond Tiara into a hug to calm her down. “You just go back to the theatre. We’ll handle those two, ‘kay?” Diamond Tiara blushed from the sudden embrace by Apple Bloom, but she didn’t try to push the filly away. She simply nodded, her heart beating faster at the idea of Apple Bloom standing up to her. “Um… my tiara…” Apple Bloom gave Diamond Tiara a reassuring smile. “Ah’ll get it,” she said, helping Diamond Tiara up to her hooves. Silver Spoon ran towards them, just in time for a pained cry to come from Scootaloo. The three looked over to see Wedge holding Scootaloo in a headlock, and Biggs rising to his hooves with a sadistic grin on his face. “SCOOTALOO!” As Apple Bloom ran off to assist her friend, Silver Spoon led Diamond Tiara away from the fight by her hoof. Diamond Tiara spared one last look at the four fighting foals as she left the park, a smile gracing her features at the thought about the two fillies coming to her aid, then her frown returning as she watched them exchanging kicks with the two colts. Apple Bloom winced as Cheerilee applied another bandage to her face, and Sweetie Belle pulled the icepack away from her eye to check the damage. It was still pretty swollen, so she reapplied the icepack. “Honestly, girls,” Cheerilee said, finishing up with Apple Bloom and preparing to treat Scootaloo’s injuries. “How many times must I tell you? Violence is not the answer.” “What were we supposed ta do?” Apple Bloom asked. “Diamond Tiara was in trouble, and nopony was doin’ anythin’.” “I understand that, Apple Bloom. But there were plenty of grownups around. You should have gone and spoken to one of them, instead of taking justice into your own hooves.” “I’ll have a word with those two later,” Bright Mind said as he approached the group. “Lee, I hope you’ll not be too lenient, like you always are?” Cheerilee sighed and rose to her hooves. “I respect them for wanting to stand up for their friend, however… Sorry girls, but I will have to discipline you for this.” “No way!” Diamond Tiara shouted. “They started it! I was the victim, you know?!” “That’s enough, Diamond Tiara!” Cheerilee said in a strict tone. “You three will each remain here until it is time to go home, and you will each serve detention on the train ride home. Diamond Tiara, I understand you bit one of those two colts, correct?” “… Yes, Miss Cheerilee,” Diamond Tiara grumbled. “That kind of behaviour is not acceptable! Naturally, I will also be having a word with each of your families once we return to Ponyville.” “You can’t!” Scootaloo pleaded. “If my dad gets one more visit from you, he's gonna cut off my allowance!” Cheerilee bit her lower lip as she looked at the pleading filly. If this were any other sort of misbehaviour, it wouldn’t have bothered the teacher. But Scootaloo was standing up for somepony in trouble, and she didn’t want to punish her too much for that… “… Sorry, Scootaloo, but I’m afraid I have no choice,” she said, turning around to face Bright Mind. “I’m out of bandages. Do you have any with you?” “Yes. I just finished treated Biggs and Wedge, and I have plenty more to spare.” He led the teacher away to top up her first aid supplies. “Don’t go anywhere!” Cheerilee warned the three fillies. “I’ll be right back.” As she followed Bright Mind, she let out a depressed sigh. ‘Maybe I could at least cast them in a good light when I speak to their families…’ Once Cheerilee was out of the room, the other Crusaders gathered around Apple Bloom and Scootaloo, and Silver Spoon approached Diamond Tiara. “This sucks!” Babs said, kicking the ground violently. “You shouldn’t have ta stay here ‘cause of those two jerks! It ain’t right!” “It’s fine,” Apple Bloom lied, smiling up at her cousin. “But, there’s no reason you four should stay on account of us. You should go and enjoy the rest of your free time.” “No way! I ain’t leaving no cousin of my here all on her own!” “Ah won’t be alone; ah’ll have Scootaloo here with me.” “Yeah,” Scootaloo said, “You guys go and have fun. Try and find your Cutie Marks. We’ll be fine. It’s not like we haven’t had detention before.” “Are you sure?” Snowcatcher asked. Scootaloo nodded, and Babs sighed. “Well, if you say so…” She gave Apple Bloom a quick hug, and then waved goodbye to Scootaloo. “See ya, guys! It’s been great catchin’ up to ya again!” “You should go, too,” Diamond Tiara said to Silver Spoon. “You wanted to visit that glasses shop to look for that new frame, right?” “But, I need to be in a group of four,” Silver Spoon pointed out, before she felt a hoof on her shoulder. She turned around to see Sweetie Belle smiling at her. “You could come with us,” she offered, causing Babs to visibly gag behind her. “Are ya serious?” Babs asked, frowning at the thought of hanging out with the grey filly. “Why not? Just as long as she doesn’t call us ‘blank flank’ for the rest of the day.” Silver Spoon cringed at the thought of having to spend her day with these four fillies, but when she remembered that limited edition frame that was sitting inside an optometrist’s shop in this very district, she ultimately decided that she had no choice. “Fine…” she said reluctantly. “Then it’s settled!” “But we go where I want to go first, got it?” Silver Spoon quickly added, not wanting to risk missing out on this chance because these four troublemakers end up wasting time with their silly little games. “Fine,” Babs said. “Whatever, just as long as ya don’t get in the way of our crusading.” As the five fillies left, Diamond Tiara slowly rotated her right foreleg around to check on the damage that had been done it earlier. “Hey,” Scootaloo said, causing Diamond Tiara to snap to attention. “Why exactly were you guys fighting, anyway? You seemed to be getting along pretty well to me.” “… We were getting along, ‘til I learned that those two are the most stuck-up, arrogant jerks in the whole world! Always looking down on everypony…” “Gee, I wonder who that reminds me of,” Scootaloo said sarcastically, causing a giggle to come out of Apple Bloom. “Those two took it too far! They kept insulting Ponyville. Not just the ponies that lived there, but the town itself!” “Ah didn’t realise you cared so much ‘bout our town,” Apple Bloom said in genuine surprise. “Of course I do. It’s where I was born, and it’s the town my daddy and granddaddy spent so much time and effort building up from nothing. Insulting it is like insulting my family, and nopony insults my family and gets away with it!” For a second, Apple Bloom felt her heartbeat suddenly increasing, and her face heating up. She had never seen Diamond Tiara speak so passionately about… well, anything, before. And to hear that the rich filly cared for their town as much as she did kind of made her… happy. At the same time, Scootaloo experienced something similar, though for a different reason than Apple Bloom. Diamond Tiara actually stood up to two, clearly stronger opponents, to protect the town from further insults. Her honour was insulted, and she risked her neck to defend it. She suddenly had a little more respect for the usually obnoxious rich filly, but also, there was something else there, too… “Oh,” Apple Bloom said, suddenly remembering something. She reached down beside herself, and pulled out a small tiara, covered in mud. “Sorry, ah wasn’t able ta clean it up just yet. But ah made sure ta grab it before we left the park.” Diamond Tiara’s eyes widened as Apple Bloom offered the tiara to her, and she stretched out her hooves to grab it… stopping when she noticed all of the mud covering it. “Um… t-thanks, I guess,” she said, still not sure how exactly she would take the filthy tiara without getting her hooves muddy. Apple Bloom sighed when she saw the trouble that Diamond Tiara was having. “D’ya want me ta wash it fer ya, too?” “Um… if it wouldn’t be too much trouble,” Diamond Tiara said with a sheepish grin. She had no idea why she was suddenly being polite with the yellow filly… It must have just been out of gratitude. ‘Yeah, that’s it. I’ll repay my debt, and then everything will be back to normal.’ Apple Bloom put the tiara back on the ground beside her. For some reason, the idea of washing Diamond Tiara’s jewellery, rather than having the pink filly do it herself, didn’t bother Apple Bloom. In fact, she almost felt kind of happy about it… “Sorry I took so long,” Cheerilee said as she re-entered the room. “Oh, the others left?” “We told them that they should go enjoy themselves,” Scootaloo explained. “You said us three had to stay behind, but you didn’t say anything about them.” “Well, they didn’t do any actual fighting,” Cheerilee said, leaning down in front of Scootaloo and opening her first aid kit, now restocked with fresh bandages. “Now hold still, Scootaloo. This will only hurt a bit.” “Lines… Why did it have ta be lines?” Apple Bloom asked, moaning as she reached her fifth line of ‘I will not take matters in my own hooves, and violence is never the answer’. She looked over at Scootaloo to see that the Pegasus was writing each letter of each line down the page individually, and was almost finished writing all of the second ‘I’s down the page. “Y’know that doesn’t actually make it go faster, right?” “You sure?” Scootaloo asked, rasing her eyebrow. “Always feels like it goes faster when I do it like this.” Scootaloo glanced over at Diamond Tiara, who was still on her second line. She saw the pink filly cringe and drop her pencil on the paper. “What’s up? You got a hoof cramp?” Diamond Tiara rubbed her right forehoof, and shot a glare at Scootaloo. “It’s nothing,” she said, picking up the pencil again… this time with her left forehoof. Scootaloo tired to ignore the obviously trouble that Diamond Tiara was having, and even had to stifle a laugh a few laughs whenever the filly’s pencil slipped across the page… But she eventually began to feel sorry for Diamond Tiara, and also, a little worried. “Ugh, lemme see,” Scootaloo said, reaching over to Diamond Tiara and pulling up her right forehoof. Diamond Tiara tired to protest, but as soon as Scootaloo grabbed her forehoof, she let out a yelp and a tear fell down her face. “You’re hurt? When did that happen?” Diamond Tiara yanked her hoof back, and rubbed the sore spot where a sharp stone had penetrated her skin earlier. “It happened in the park, when I was being dragged around… Anyway, it’s none of your business!” “Of course it is!” Apple Bloom said as she got up. “Ah’m gonna go tell Miss Cheerilee. Ya can’t write all those lines with that hoof.” “No!” Diamond Tiara shouted, stopping Apple Bloom in her tracks. “Y-You can’t! I have an image to maintain, you know? And besides…” “… Yeah?” Scootaloo pressed, leaning closer to Diamond Tiara. “… Silver Spoon would worry over it,” she said quietly, though it was still loud enough for the other two to hear. “Think about if it was one of you two. Would you want Sweetie Belle to know you were hurt, when there’s no reason to worry her over such a tiny injury?” While Apple Bloom had to take some time to think about it, Scootaloo was able to answer instantly. “I guess… I wouldn’t,” she said, sighing as she released Diamond Tiara’s hoof. “Still, you can’t really write like this, can you?” “Well, I don’t really see how I have much choice,” Diamond Tiara responded. Scootaloo suddenly leaned over Diamond Tiara, making the pink filly blush as she did, and grabbed her paper and pencil. “W-What are you doing?” “Here. I’ll do your lines for you,” Scootaloo said with a grin pointed at Diamond Tiara. “You just let that hoof heal, alright?” “Are ya sure?” Apple Bloom asked. “You don’t have to,” Diamond Tiara said, once against feeling her heart rate increasing, and her stomach feeling funny as she looked at the Pegasus filly. “It’s fine,” Scootaloo insisted. “I’m not gonna let somepony hurt themselves when I can help! That just wouldn’t be cool!” “… Thanks,” Diamond Tiara muttered, turning her head away the moment she did, to avoid eye contact with the other filly. Because she wasn’t looking anymore, she failed to notice the redness of the Pegasus’ cheeks as she smiled nervously at Diamond Tiara’s word of gratitude. Apple Bloom noticed though, and for some reason, she was feeling uneasy once again. Not like earlier. This wasn’t a good kind of strange feeling. She felt… threatened? Worried, perhaps? She wasn’t sure, but whatever she was feeling from watching Diamond Tiara and Scootaloo right now, she didn’t like it. As soon as their lines were completed, the three fillies handed their papers in to their teacher. Thankfully, she didn’t notice Scootaloo’s similar hoofwriting on Diamond Tiara’s paper. As soon as they handed their papers in, they were escorted to the dining car, to eat the dinners that had been saved for them, and after filling their bellies, they were allowed to spend the rest of the train ride with their friends. Though, after the long day, and the fact that they had gotten up very early that morning, the three fillies decided instead to simply retire to their cabins. Diamond Tiara moved to her cabin, which she was sharing with Silver Spoon and Alula, and Apple Bloom and Scootaloo moved to theirs, which they were sharing with Sweetie Belle. “Night, Apple Bloom,” Scootaloo said as they tucked themselves into their beds, making sure to speak quietly on account of Sweetie Belle already being asleep. “G’night,” Apple Bloom responded, and within minutes, the two had drifted off into the realm of sleep… “Diamond Tiara! Sorry ah’m late!” Apple Bloom shouted as she ran up to Diamond Tiara, who was sitting underneath a tree with a smile on her face. “It’s fine. I just wanted to show you my appreciation for helping me out, is all.” “So, uh… You said something ‘bout spendin’ the day together?” “Mhm.” Diamond Tiara reached forward, and locked her foreleg with Apple Bloom’s. “C’mon, let’s go check out the new rodeo that’s in town! Maybe you could show me how everything works.” “D-Diamond Tiara… is this… a date?” Diamond Tiara looked at Apple bloom with a grin on her face. “Do you want it to be?” she asked, to which Apple Bloom had no answer. To the farm filly’s shock, Diamond Tiara began leaning forward, inching her face closer and closer to her own… “Whoa! So fast!” Scootaloo shouted as she watched her two heroes, Spitfire and Rainbow Dash, racing each other at such high speeds. “This is amazing! I can’t believe I’m actually here, watching the Wonderbolts live!” “Hey, don’t forget about me!” Diamond Tiara said, jabbing a hoof into Scootaloo’s foreleg. “Remember, I’m the one who got you these tickets.” Diamond Tiara turned her head to pout. “And to think, I did all this to show you my appreciation, and you won’t even pay attention to me.” “H-Hey,” Scootaloo said, a guilty feeling passing through her as she slowly wrapped a foreleg around the pink filly. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to… I was just so excited to see the two greatest flyers in all of Equestria racing each other, that’s all.” “… Well then, how will you make it up to me?” Diamond Tiara asked, giving Scootaloo a coy look as she leaned closer to the Pegasus. “What d’ya want me to do? Maybe, help you carry your shopping next time we go out?” Diamond Tiara shook her head, and leaned closer. Scootaloo swallowed the lump in her throat, and felt her breathing increase. “P-Pay for the meal on our next date?” “Like you could afford it,” Diamond Tiara said jokingly. “One more chance.” With a gulp, Scootaloo placed her hooves on Diamond Tiara’s shoulders, and moved forward towards the other filly’s face… “AH!” both Apple Bloom and Scootaloo screamed as they bolted out of their beds with a start. They both breathed in-and-out heavily, their faces beat red as they tried to understand what the hay they had just experienced. “… Bad dream?” Apple Bloom asked after she had recovered from her quick panic attack. Scootaloo simply nodded, and Apple Bloom gave her an understanding look. “Yeah, ah had a… strange dream, mahself.” ‘Strange doesn’t even begin to describe it,’ Scootaloo thought to herself as she climbed out of her bed. She noticed that Sweetie Belle was missing, and turned back to Apple Bloom. “D’ya know where Sweetie Belle went?” Apple Bloom simply shrugged, before jumping out of bed herself. “Ah guess she woke up before us an’ went ta join the others in the passenger cars?” “Yeah, guess so,” Scootaloo said, stretching her hooves and her wings as she tried to clear the still-clear memory of that dream from her mind. “Wanna go join her.” “Sure. We got nothin’ better ta do, after all.” As they walked out of their cabin, it seemed that fate really had it out for the two fillies; Diamond Tiara just happened to be passing by as they opened the door, and for a brief moment, her eyes met with theirs… and the next thing they knew, their faces were red once more, and they bolting down the train away from Diamond Tiara, leaving the very confused rich filly with her friend Silver Spoon standing with a bewildered look as she watched them run off. “What was that all about?” Silver Spoon asked, watching the two with just as much confusion as Diamond Tiara. “I… don’t know,” Diamond Tiara said. ‘Were they blushing just now? Why would they have been blushing? And… why did they run away from me?’ As Diamond Tiara pictured the two Crusaders’ red faces in her mind, she felt her own face starting to heat up, and she quickly shook the thought away. “How would I know?” she said, trying to regain some control over herself. “Just ignore them. It’s just blank flanks being blank flanks.” “Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Silver Spoon said, the two walking down the cabin car together in an awkward silence. “By the way, why are you blushing.” “… S-Shut up… It’s just warm in here, that’s all.”