Diamond Tiara gasped for air, and bucked upright in her bed, her mane looking decidedly dishevelled as beads of sweat dripped down her head. That... that wasn’t.... that couldn’t be...
Taking advantage of the adrenaline, she jumped off her bed and practically raced to the en suite bathroom. She turned the cold water on with a hoof, and splashed it generously on her face. Her eyes caught her reflection in the mirror, flashbacks of the dream now coming vividly to the surface of her consciousness. No... my father... could he... really have done this to me?
She looked at herself calmly, and let a sly smile creep across her lips. Her father would not be home until the morning, and she had to know. She ran to her door and opened it slightly, spying her target from across the hallway; her father’s study room. It was a sacred place, a place where he felt he could safely keep his business documents away from prying eyes. Any evidence had to be in there. She’d seen him keep copies of his correspondence, and she prayed that it was no different this time.
Before her common sense got the better of her, she darted across to the study, and clumsily fumbled the door handle. The handle suddenly gave way, causing the door to swing open unexpectedly; the filly lost her balance, ending up in a crumpled heap on the immaculately-carpeted floor. She took a few moments to regain her composure and balance, before eyeing up her prize; the large mahogany table in the dead-centre of the room, flanked on all sides by an assorted array of bookshelves and award trophies in glass cabinets.
Diamond Tiara made her way to the set of drawers at the rear of the desk. There was a large black folder that she’d seen him put tuition bills in previously; if her father was as fastidious with paperwork as she’d seen previously, it would be surely be in that desk.
Twenty minutes of carefully-attempted plundering later, and there was still no sign of that accursed folder. She parked her flank on the floor, silently cursing her father for being smarter than she was. She looked up at the large bay window, catching a glimpse of the moon against the backdrop of a light blizzard. It was then that the little filly did something that she’d never done before.
She wished. She didn’t know who or what she wishing to, exactly, but she was asking whatever forces out there that could hear her for a way out of her conundrum. After a few minutes looking up, she sighed, and looked down at the floor again, feeling silly for doing something as lame as wishing for something.
She raised herself to her hooves, as was about to begin walking toward the door, when her peripheral vision caught something. She froze in place, her eyes attempting to trace what she saw. It took a few moments, but her brain finally registered a glint on the ground, presumably caused by the moonlight from the window.
She approached the small glimmer of light cautiously. On closer inspection, it looked like a small, golden square protruding from the floor, positioned out of the way near the corner of the room. Tiredness and frustration briefly gained control of the filly, and she smashed the button with a hoof. A square hole in the floor opened up directly next to the button, causing Diamond Tiara to jump in mild surprise. Her curiosity getting the better of her, she peered into the hole.
She found only a small hoof-written note with a series of numbers written on it.
14 55 22 24
She loudly growled in frustration, and turned around in sheer annoyance at her current situation. It was then she saw it; a large impressive-looking metal container. It was square, and had a dial and a handle on the front. Her curiosity spiking, she approached it, and took a good look at the metal dial. It has numbers on it!
She went back to look at the paper, and committed the numbers to memory. She’d operated safe locks before at that wretched school, as her locker had one. After a few clinks of the locking mechanism recognising her input, she turned the handle. In half-surprise, the door swung open with a satisfying whine of the hinges. There, at the bottom of the safe was a large, black binder. I found it!
She took the folder out, and placed it slowly on the floor. She started reading the papers from right-to-left, noticing the most recent newsletters. In a small fit of irritation, she skipped to the first entry. Inside, she found a letter, addressed from Filthy Rich to Penny Pincher. The letter was written in cursive, and served to reiterate Filthy Rich’s educational credentials.
Dear Penny Pincher
I enjoyed our conversation at the Canterlot Manehattia Café. I expressed interest in privately schooling my daughter, and you offered to reserve a place for her for the start of the next term.
I am writing to you to take you up on that offer. My best days in business are behind me, and I need a successor to take over from me so that I can enjoy my hard-earned retirement.
My daughter is to be my successor. She is naïve, trusting and sympathetic to others. I cannot afford my successor to have such qualities. As you well know, the world of business is harsh and unforgiving, and should my daughter grow up with these traits, it would leave her seriously lacking in ability to take over from me.
In her schooling, you are to eradicate these traits from her, in addition to seeing to her scholastic needs. I want her to be mistrustful and suspicious of those around her, I want her sympathy for others turned into disdain, and I want her to think of herself so highly, that she looks down on others without even a second thought.
As I have said before, money is no object. To protect my legacy and my company’s future, there is no price I would not pay to ensure the prosperity of both.
Yours sincerely,
Filthy Rich
P.S. Our weekly squash game is still on for next Tuesday.
The filly was in a state of shock. She had pleaded internally that it was just a dream, that it wasn’t true... but the letter put to rest any idea of that being the case. Her father had so... brazenly set out to assassinate her personality, from a very early age.
“Who am I?” she thought to herself. “Am I... not supposed to be like this? Am I... broken?” Her musings were interrupted by an incredibly bright light coming from the door. Slightly spooked, she put the binder back together, put it back in the safe, locked it, and then pushed the golden button again to hide the hole in the floor. Looking around her, she made her way out of the study, shut the door behind her, and then trotted tentatively to her bedroom.
She arrived in time for her clock to announce that the top of the hour was here. One o’clock. In the centre of the room there was a large sphere of light. Before her eyes, that sphere began to take form. Wings took form, and clearly defined hooves and legs became visible, as did a horn, and the contours of her flank.
With a final, powerful blast of light, a pony stood before Diamond Tiara. Her body was a shimmering white, and her multi-hued mane a beautiful sight to behold.
“Ah, you must be Diamond Tiara! You may want to get your coat, we’re going on an adventure!” said Princess Celestia.