//------------------------------// // Prompt #6 - Ghost Tiara // Story: Diamond Cutter Anthology Entries // by Yukito //------------------------------// Prompt: Diamond Tiara is a ghost. Who shall she haunt and why? “Alright Crusaders, what are we gonna do ta earn our Cutie Marks today?” Apple Bloom asked as she sat with her friends in the clubhouse. “How about we try being fireponies?” Sweetie Belle suggested. “Anypony else notice that fires usually tend to start whenever we go crusading?” Apple Bloom nodded. “Scootaloo, you got that down?” Scootaloo finished scribbling onto the paper at her hooves. “Got it!” “Any other ideas?” “Oh, I know!” Scootaloo shouted. “Let’s try joining the dodgeball club at school!” “That’s a good idea!” Apple Bloom agreed, though Sweetie Belle was not quite as enthusiastic about the idea. Still, at a two-to-one vote, the notion was carried, and the idea was added to the list. “Ah think we should also try herb gatherin’ for Miss Zecora.” “Alright! Looks like we’ve got a lot of work ahead of us,” Scootaloo said, looking over the long scroll that stretched over to the far side of the clubhouse. “Let’s get to it then!” Apple Bloom said as she jumped to her hooves, her fellow Crusaders joining her. “Cutie Mark Crusaders, let’s go!” “YEAH!” “Oh, how fun.” Apple Bloom stopped and groaned as she turned around, seeing Diamond Tiara walking behind her. “Yet another day of seeing you three making total fools out of yourselves, and winding up with no Cutie Marks to show for it.” “You don’t have to come, y’know?” “But then who I would I talk to to pass the time?” the pink filly asked with a grin on her face. “You’re the only one who can see and hear me, so you’re really the only fun I have. As sad as that is.” Apple Bloom sighed, and tried to ignore Diamond Tiara as she followed after her two friends. “Why me?” “My thoughts exactly. Why couldn’t it be Silver Spoon? ‘Least then I could have some intelligent conversation.” Diamond Tiara cringed for a moment. “Seriously, I think yer accent is starting to rub off on me.” “Then just stop talkin’.” “Make me, blank flank.” Apple Bloom didn’t respond to the insult. She was used to it by now, and besides, it’s not like she could do anything anyway. “Also, you might wanna stop talking to yourself. Ponies’ll start to wonder about you. Though I guess they’ll be right to do so, anyway.” Apple Bloom groaned again, and tried her best to ignore the other filly’s provocations. As she approached her friends, they could tell that something was wrong. “Hey Apple Bloom,” Scootaloo called out. “What’s up?” “The sky, which you’ll never get to experience,” Diamond Tiara replied, giggling at the Pegasus’ inability to fly. Scootaloo didn’t react. “Nothin’,” Apple Bloom said. “Just wonderin’ what we should try first, that’s all.” Scootaloo immediately perked up and grabbed her friend’s hoof. “I’ve got the perfect idea! This way!” “Wroooooong,” Diamond Tiara sang out as she looked down at Apple Bloom’s test paper. The red-maned filly grinded her teeth and look at the answer that she had just written. “Want me to tell you the answer?” ‘Like y’all would know the answer anyway,’ Apple Bloom thought, restraining herself from speaking out loud in the middle of a test. “I’m not goin’ to,” Diamond Tiara said, sticking her tongue at the filly. “Too bad! But I will tell you this: you’re gonna fail at this rate.” ‘Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!’ “Hey blank flank.” ‘SHUT UP!’ Diamond Tiara waved her hooves just above Apple Bloom’s head. “I’m not touching ya!” She brought her hooves lower, then pulled them away and moved them back and forth in front of Apple Bloom’s face. “I’m not touching ya!” ‘Diamond, ah swear ta Celestia-’ “Oh!” Apple Bloom and Diamond Tiara both jumped at the sudden cry behind them. Everypony in the class turned to see who had made the noise, and found Dinky blushing in her seat and looking around the class with a sheepish look on her face. “I-I’m sorry about that. It’s just, there’s a cat…” The filly pointed to the floor beside her desk, where a black cat was nuzzling against her leg. “Oh my,” Cheerilee said, climbing out of her seat to deal with the issue. Everypony else in the class also jumped out of their seats, and ran over to the cat to play with it. “Everypony, we are in the middle of a test! Please get back to your seats right now!” The class let out a collection of ‘awww’s as everypony returned to their seats, and Cheerilee gently picked up the cat and walked over to the open classroom door to return the animal to the outside world. Apple Bloom smiled as she sat back at her desk, all previous feelings of annoyance she felt just moments ago now gone. Diamond Tiara noticed the smile on the farm filly’s face, and suddenly started to feel annoyed herself. “What’s the big deal? It’s just a stupid cat.” Apple Bloom rolled her eyes and tried to continue with the test. Just a few seconds later though, she looked back up at Diamond Tiara with a confused look on her face. ‘That’s strange. Ah’m sure Diamond Tiara liked cats back when she was alive.’ Diamond Tiara glared over in the direction of the door, and waited until Cheerilee had passed by before making her way over to it. Since she couldn’t open the door herself, she instead passed through it, and looked down at the cat curled up on the ground outside. Slowly, the filly reached a hoof forward, lowering it bit-by-bit towards the black furry creature… only for the hoof to pass right through it, like the cat wasn’t even there. In truth, it was the other way around. It was Diamond Tiara that wasn’t really there. After letting out an angry growl, Diamond Tiara attempted to kick the door, only to fall right through it instead. “… What’s so great about petting a cat, anyway?” she asked nopony as she sat down on the floor, waiting for the test to end so that she could find something better to do. Apple Bloom huffed with frustration for the seventeenth time as she lowered her fork back to her plate, unable to eat the morsel of food that was on it. There was nothing wrong with the food itself; it was delicious, and the farm filly’s favourite meal. The problem was that Diamond Tiara wouldn’t stop breathing on whatever she tried lifting towards her mouth. She tried a few creative ways to get around it, but each time her efforts would be halted by Granny Smith telling the filly to eat properly at the table. “What’s wrong, blank flank?” Diamond Tiara asked in feign innocence. “Not hungry? I can’t blame you; the food doesn’t look that appitising. In fact, I think I saw Granny Smith drop her false teeth into the gravy pot.” “Boat,” Apple Bloom corrected. “Come again?” Applejack asked, raising her head to look across the table at the filly. “Huh? Oh, nothin’…” “What’s the matter? Ain’t ya feelin’ right today, Apple Bloom?” “Ah’m fine, ah just… Ah had a lot of sweets over at Sweetie Belle’s today.” “Lying to your own sister?” Diamond Tiara asked with a gasp and a dramatic faint onto the dinner table. “Oh, Apple Bloom. How could you? You should be ashamed of yourself.” Apple Bloom wanted so much to turn around and buck Diamond Tiara off of the table, but she knew it would have absolutely no effect on the filly, and would just end up getting herself into trouble. “Can ah be excused?” Applejack gave the filly a worried look, and reached across the table to place a hoof on her forehead. “Well, ya don’ seem ta be comin’ down with anythin’.” “Like ah said, ah’m just full.” “Full of horseapples,” Diamond Tiara added. Apple Bloom grit her teeth and held back the urge to tell her to shut up. “Hmmm… Well, alright then. But if’n ya start feelin’ hungry later, come on back down an’ ah’ll heat this up for ya real quick, okay?” Apple Bloom nodded, though she doubted she would be able to eat tonight. Not from the giggles that were coming out of Diamond Tiara’s mouth. ‘Guess ah’ll have ta sneak some snacks from mah secret stash whilst Diamond isn’t lookin’.’ Excusing herself and leaving the table, Apple Bloom made her way upstairs towards the bathroom. Diamond Tiara followed up to the point that Apple Bloom entered the bathroom, at which point she decided to go and wait in Apple Bloom’s room. ‘Seriously, why me?’ Apple Bloom thought to herself as she sighed and turned the shower on. Back out in the hallway, Diamond Tiara floated slowly towards Apple Bloom’s bedroom, crossing her forelegs and groaning now that she was alone. “Stupid blank flank. Don’t think I’m gonna let you hog all that great food to yourself. “… Well, I’m sure the food was terrible anyway. She’s really not missing out on anything.” Apple Bloom opened her eyes, and waited a few seconds for them to adjust to the dark. As she thought, the pink filly in the corner of her room was still there, staring at her with a look that Apple Bloom could only guess was annoyance. “Y’all gonna stare at me all night?” “Maybe,” Diamond Tiara answered, refusing to grace the farm filly with a proper answer. “Oh, don’t mind me, though. You just go ahead and enjoy your precious sleep.” Apple Bloom sighed and rolled around, only for Diamond Tiara to float over to the other side of the room. “Do ya honestly not have anythin’ better ta do?!” “Oh, right. I forgot that Pinkie Pie was hosting that weekly get-together for me and all those other ghosts that don’t seem to exist,” Diamond Tiara responded in a sarcastic tone. “Idiot.” “… Why don’t y’all just try an’ get some sleep.” Diamond Tiara gave the other filly a disbelieving look. “I’m a ghost. I can’t sleep.” Apple Bloom was silent for a moment after that, and simply stared at Diamond Tiara for a few seconds, before sitting up straight and giving her a curious look. “Seriously?” “Seriously.” “… Y-Y’all never mentioned that before.” “Well, y’all never asked.” Apple Bloom wondered what that was like. Never sleeping. Never eating. Never feeling anything around her. The only connection that Diamond Tiara seemed to have with the world was Apple Bloom herself, and when she was asleep, Diamond Tiara had… nothing. “… No matter how hard ya try?” “Seems that way,” Diamond Tiara said with a sigh. “Well, I suppose I don’t get tired, either. Or sick. Or smelly, or dirty, or-” “But ya can’t experience all the nice things in this world,” Apple Bloom said softly, looking down at her bed sheets with a sad look on her face. She ran a hoof over the soft, warm sheets, and it felt nice. It was only a small thing, but there was something about running her hoof across such soft material that gave her some peace and a little happiness whenever she slept. It was something that Diamond Tiara could never experience. “… Hey.” “What?” Diamond Tiara asked, and then raised an eyebrow when she saw Apple Bloom move the cover over. “Uh…” “C’mon. Y’all don’t have a bed of yer own, so you’ll have ta make do with sharin’ mine.” Diamond Tiara gave Apple Bloom a confused look. “I told you, I can’t sleep.” “No… But ya should still be in bed at this time. ‘Sides, it’s a cold night.” Diamond Tiara shook her head. “I don’t feel the cold. Or the warmth. I just-” “Diamond,” Apple Bloom said, looking up at the pink filly with a stern look in her eyes. “Fillies should be in their beds at this time.” Diamond Tiara was still and silent for what seemed like such a long time, simply staring in complete shock and disbelief at the filly offering to share her bed with her. Diamond Tiara looked at the empty space beside Apple Bloom. It had been such a long time since she had lay down in a bed. Since she had rested her head on a pillow, and curled herself up into a fetal position underneath the warm, cosy bed sheets that her last bed had. Floating over to the bed, Diamond Tiara slowly floated down so that it was like she was lying on the mattress, staring up at the ceiling above her. It wasn’t the same. She was having a hard time remembering exactly what it was like, but it was certainly not the same as this. Apple Bloom started to pull the covers over Diamond Tiara, until she remembered that they would just fall through her. She stopped for a moment to think, and came up with an idea. Slowly, she wrapped the foreleg holding the covers up around the pink filly’s body, taking care not to accidentally pass through it. Diamond Tiara didn’t say or do anything as Apple Bloom did this. She simply watched as the yellow filly gave her the closest thing to a hug that she had ever received in a long time. When she was done, Apple Bloom lay back down her own side of the bed, keeping her foreleg wrapped around Diamond Tiara and propping the covers over the pink filly. Diamond Tiara was speechless. She couldn’t feel anything. She couldn’t smell anything, and she couldn’t feel tiredness sweep over her, causing her to yawn loudly as her eyes drifted shut. But, for the first time since she had died, she felt like a living filly again. She felt like she was actually lying in a bed, waiting for sleep to overtake her so that she would be ready for school the next day. She felt like she was getting ready to pay the land of dreams a visit… but only for a few moments, before the reality of the situation hit her. “G’night, Diamond Tiara,” Apple Bloom said, catching the pink filly off guard. A full fifteen minutes later, Apple Bloom drifted off into sleep, leaving Diamond Tiara, still wide awake, laying in the bed next to her, staring up at the ceiling above her. Rolling onto her side, Diamond Tiara reached a hoof out towards Apple Bloom, only for it to pass through. “… Good night, blank flank,” she said, curling up into a fetal position and smiling as she shut her eyes and began to let out fake snoring sounds. ‘Thanks, Apple Bloom.’