//------------------------------// // SMILE HARDER // Story: SMILE FOR THE CHILDREN, RARITY // by Aragon //------------------------------// “No, but, like, I don’t get it.” Cheerilee said, playing with the spoon in her tea. “Did you know she was insecure about the whole family thing, or was it just a wild guess? Because that was awfully specific.” “Oh, I knew what to say,” Diamond Tiara said, resting her back on the chair. “But I did a little bit of cold reading, yeah. She was uncomfortable with all this talk about sisters and daughters.” “What, seriously?” “Um, sorry.” Mother raised a hoof. “What does ‘cold reading’ mean?” “It means she just looked at Mayor Mare and made a couple wild guesses based on the way she looks,” Rarity explained, tapping her mother’s forearm and leaving a green mark on her coat. “Like when you act as if you already knew how much Dad drank at the bar on Fridays?” “Oh. Ooooooooh.” Mother nodded. “Okay, I get it.” “Mayor Mare is transparent enough to do that, I suppose,” Cheerilee said, scratching her muzzle. “I mean, seriously, gray hair? That just screams ‘loneliness’.” “I’m sorry, girls!” Mrs. Cake came from behind the counter, pouting. “I can’t find Pinkie Pie anywhere—I think she ran away crying quite a while ago, but I don’t know why.” “Wow.” Diamond Tiara let a smirk creep up to her face. “I am good.” “The matter seemed important, so I baked a bunch of pastries and left them by the window—that’s usually more than enough to bring her back when this happens. I assumed Rarity will pay for them, of course.” “WHY ARE YOU ALL DOING THAT.” “Hmm.” Cheerilee frowned and got up. “Mrs. Cake? How long will that take?” “For the pastries to have an effect?” Mrs. Cake rubbed her chin. “Hmmm… I’d say around two hours? Maybe?” “YOU DO REALIZE I DON’T HAVE ANY MONEY LEFT, RIGHT.” “Not enough.” Cheerilee shook her head. “If we want her to cheer Mayor Mare up, we need her as soon as possible. I’ll go try to find her.” “Well then!” Diamond Tiara got up too after watching Cheerilee go. “I’m going to look for Sweetie Belle!” Mother smiled. “Oh?” “YOU ARE LITERALLY—Wait. What?!” Rarity looked at the filly in horror. “Why would you do that?!” “Well, Mayor Mare is gone and Miss Cheerilee won’t come back for a while,” Diamond Tiara said, shrugging. “I have to find some way to annoy you. I’ll be right back!” “No! NO! DON’T BRING MY SISTER HE—oh, curses!” Rarity huffed and stood up. “I’m not staying here, then!” “Rarity!” Mother grabbed her by the shoulder and forced her back to the chair. “Don’t be like that!” “Mother, I am not seeing my sister after what she’s done!” “Oh, come on.” Mother swept some dust from Rarity’s shoulder. Then some more. Then some more. Then she gave up. “You really need a shower, dear.” “Yes, I wonder who’s at fault here.” “Rarity, Sweetie Belle is a kid. Kids are supposed to do that kind of stuff! It’s how they learn!” Mother shook her head. “You can’t give your sister the cold shoulder—you’re really hurting her!” She gave Rarity a good reassuring shake. Dust and dirt fell from her coat like snow on a winter morning. “Listen, this is what we’ll do—Diamond Tiara will take a while to bring Sweetie Belle here, so why don’t we take this time to calm down and—” The door opened. “Hello I’m back already!” DT yelled, dragging Sweetie Belle behind her, boredom in her face. “Missus Cake, bring me something expensive and add it to Rarity’s tab!” PLAF! “Also add a plate to that tab because she slammed her face against one on accident,” Diamond Tiara added, taking a seat. “Or at least I think it was on accident.” She poked Rarity’s head. “Was it an accident?” Rarity’s voice came back muffled. “I can’t believe I’m seriously considering the murder of an eight-year-old child.” “Figures.” “Um.” Mother squinted as she looked at Rarity and the table under her face. “She didn’t break any plate,” she said. “I know!” “Then why did you tell Mrs. Cake otherwise?” “Take a guess.” “…Rarity?” Sweetie Belle hadn’t sat down, and was rubbing her forearm shyly. “Are you… Are you still mad?” “Am I still homeless?” “...Yes?” “Well then, there’s your answer.” “But I’m sorry!” Sweetie Belle said, and her voice broke down a little, as if she was trying really hard not to cry. “I’m really, really sorry! I promise I’ll never do it again!” “That was pretty quick, by the way,” Mother whispered to Diamond Tiara while the two sisters were having their moment. “How did you find Sweetie Belle so fast? Usually she’s playing with her friends Celestia knows where at this time of the day.” “Eh.” Diamond Tiara shrugged. “Scootaloo left town for some kind of new-found utopia, so Sweetie Belle was just walking aimlessly near this place.” “What about Apple Bloom?” “Family trouble, I think. I didn’t really pay attention.” “AH’M GONNA MURDER Y’ALL AND AH’LL FORCE YOUR PARENTS TO WATCH, YOU DARN APPLE-CROOKIN’ FREELOADERS!” Applejack screamed, tangled on the stepladder that was hanging upside down from the apple tree claimed by the New Treepublic of Sparkle (working name). “AH’LL GET YOU AT NIGHT AND AH’LL MAKE SURE YOUR NIGHTMARES BECOME TRUE!” Pinkie Pie and Apple Bloom were watching from a distance. “How did they even get ‘er like this?” Apple Bloom asked, cocking her head to the side and squinting. “Ah don’t get it.” “I’m fairly sure she did that to herself, actually.” “YOU’LL REGRET THE DAY YOU MESSED WITH AN APPLE’S APPLES! MY BLOOD’S RUSHIN’ TO MY HEAD!” “Shouldn’t we help her?” “No way I’m getting close to those apples,” Pinkie said, expression ominous. “Some things are not for mortals to toy with.” “What?” “I mean that seeing your sister like that is pretty funny.” “MY HEAD HURTS SO MUCH!” “Pinkie Pie! Thank Celestia I found you!” Both Pinkie Pie and Apple Bloom turned around only to see Cheerilee running towards them from Ponyville. “We need you right now!” she said once she got to them. “Hello, Miss Cheerilee!” “Hi, Apple Bloom. Pinkie Pie!” Cheerilee grabbed Pinkie’s shoulder. “Something happened with Mayor Mare. She ran away from Sugarcube Corner, and we think she might—” “What?” Apple Bloom frowned and tugged Cheerilee’s tail. “Miss Cheerilee, that’s wrong. She was running to Sugarcube Corner.” Cheerilee paused. “What?” “Ah saw her when Ah was comin’ here,” Apple Bloom said. “She was goin’ there, not away from there!” “AH THINK AH’M LOSIN’ CONSCIOUSNESS!” “Uh. Cheerilee?” Pinkie asked. “Do you still need me, or…?” “Yeah… Yeah. I think I do.” Cheerilee swallowed and looked at Pinkie and Apple Bloom with serious eyes. “Even more, I think. Come on, we have to hurry!” “PLEASE SOMEPONY HELP ME!” “To Sugarcube Corner!” Cheerilee said, pointing. “Apple Bloom, you should come too! We have no time to do anything else!” The three of them ran away. “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA—!” “I’ll never, ever, ever do it again!” Sweetie Belle repeated, grabbing Rarity’s leg and not letting it go, no matter how hard Rarity shook her. “Please forgive me! Ple-e-e-e-e-aaaaaseeee!” “ARGH! GO AWAY!” “Not if you don’t forgive me first! I swear I won’t do it again!” “WELL YES THAT IS RATHER OBVIOUS SEEING HOW THE HOUSE ALREADY BURNED DOWN!” Sweetie Belle made a pout. “But I said I’m sorry! I SAID I’M SORRY!” PLAF! “Boy, she sure likes doing that,” Diamond Tiara muttered. “Yeah, I’m getting kind of worried.” “Funny, I’m not.” “AAAAAAAAH! RAAAAARIIIIITYYYYYYY!” “You know…” Rarity said, looking back up, struggling with every word so it wouldn’t turn into a senseless strangled scream. “You know what’s the best part? That you never actually explained WHY Y—Ahem.” She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Why you even did that, Sweetie Belle.” “I don’t know! Life is confusing, the universe makes no sense, and sometimes ponies do weird things! I got puzzled and I burnt down your house!” Sweetie Belle finally let Rarity’s leg go, only to flail her forelegs aimlessly above her head. “You know I’m not good with metaphysical stuff!” “THAT MAKES ABSOLUTELY NO SENSE!” “Exactly! How are you expecting me to deal with that? I’m, like, five or something!” “YOU ARE EIGHT YEARS OLD, SWEETIE BELLE!” “Sure, confuse me even more!” Sweetie Belle crossed her front legs and huffed. “You’re not making things exactly easier, Rarity!” “She’s right, dear,” Mother said, leaning towards her daughters with care. “You are being awfully difficult here, I think.” “You’re being obtuse!” Diamond Tiara added cheerfully. “You can’t be mad at a kid, right?” “I AM GOING TO—” “Yeah, Rarity!” a new voice said. “Being angry with eight-year-olds is stupid, right? The poor things don’t know what they’re saying!” Everypony shut up and looked at the door. With all the screaming, they hadn’t heard the door open. Mayor Mare was standing there, smiling fiercely, an official-looking document between her teeth. “Yeah!” she repeated, enunciating perfectly even though she could barely move her mouth. “You can’t be mad with little ponies like your sister or Diamond Tiara!” She walked towards the table and spat the document on it. “Especially when they have a tragic past, like Diamond Tiara!” Diamond Tiara looked like a deer hit in the face by a laser. “W-what?” she asked with a tiny voice. “Tragic past?” “Um. Mayor Mare?” Rarity, leaned as far back as she could on her chair, trying to distance herself from the Mayor. “I don’t know if you should be—” “Yes, tragic past!” Mayor Mare slammed a hoof on the table. “Because, hey, remember how your father told you your mother is dead? Well guess what! SHE’S NOT!” Diamond Tiara’s eyes doubled in size and wetness. “M-my mother?” “Your mother!” Mayor Mare pointed at the document. “See this? See this thing? Your father’s legal status? He’s not a widower! He’s divorced!” “B-but Dad said—” “Daddy spared you the truth because guess what, kid! Your mother left you when you were a baby! Your father was horrible so she went away, and she left you behind because she didn’t love you!” Mayor Mare’s eyes were practically on fire. “That’s right, you weren’t good enough for your own mother, so she just abandoned you! Because you’re a little monster! And everypony hates you!” A small pause. Diamond Tiara’s lower lip was trembling. “B-buh, but I… She...” Her eyes filled with tears and a sob made it to her throat. “She… I… M-MOOOOOMMYYYYYY!” “YEAH!” Mayor Mare waved the document at Diamond Tiara as she ran away from Sugarcube Corner, wailing. “READ IT AND WEEP, YOU JERK!” The door closed behind Diamond Tiara. They all heard her running away crying until she was too far away. Then, absolute silence. “Hah!” Mayor Mare was panting, as if she had just ran a whole marathon. She turned to face the table, wielding a smile that showed too many teeth. “That’ll teach her!” “Uh. Mayor Mare?” Mrs. Cake popped her head from behind the corner. “Do you realize you just lashed out at an eight-year-old?” “Mrs. Cake, I’m having a moment. Please don’t steal my mojo.” “Sorry.” Rarity moved quick as lightning and hugged Sweetie Belle, pressing her face against her chest. “Iforgiveyou,” she said, never turning her eyes away from Mayor Mare, her face frozen in a mixture of shock and horror. “DearCelestiaIforgiveyousohard.” “Letsneverfightagain—oh my gosh Rarity you’re disgusting!” Sweetie Belle pushed her sister away. Her coat was sticky now. “Take a shower already!” Rarity blinked. “Really. You’re not going to wait even one second after we finally made up.” “Your best friend is a princess, for Celestia’s sake! Just ask her for a spare bathroom or something!” “I have too much dignity to do that!” “YOU ARE LITERALLY A WALKING TOILET!” “There! See?” Mayor Mare, still panting, took a long gulp of the first cup of tea she could find. “I also solved their problem! Happy ending for everypony!” “I…” Mother shook her head and rested her eyes on her hooves. “Oh my goodness,” she muttered before looking at Mayor Mare again. “Was all that true, or you were just bluffing so…?” “What? No, no, that was the absolute truth.” Mayor Mare took another gulp. “Yeah. She’ll have to live with that now. Where’s Cheerilee?” The door jingled open. “MAYOR MARE!” “Oh, here she is. Hi again, Cheerilee!” Cheerilee entered Sugarcube Corner. Behind her, Apple Bloom followed. “Hello, Sweetie Belle!” she said. “Did you make up with Rarity yet?” “Ugh.” Sweetie Belle tried to rub part of the dirt on her coat away with a tissue, but she only manage to get the tissue stuck to her leg. “I’m afraid so. How’s it going at the farm?” “Ah think my sis is probably unconscious by now,” Apple Bloom said. She trotted to the table and took a bite of one of the cakes Diamond Tiara had nibbled. “Hey, this one’s really good!” Rarity frowned at Apple Bloom. “I’m… I’m sorry. Did you say Applejack is unconscious?” “Yeah, she’s hangin’ upside down,” Apple Bloom said, chewing the cake. “Pinkie Pie was there too! She came with us, but she went straight to the window at the back, ‘cause she said she smelled pastries.” “Mayor Mare!” Cheerilee walked into Sugarcube Corner and looked around, alarmed. “Oh, dear Celestia—where is Diamond Tiara?” “You just missed her!” “Yeah,” Mother said. “She, uh. She went away running and crying about five minutes ago.” “Darn it! Mayor Mare!” Cheerilee glared so hard at the Mayor she bared her teeth without realizing it. “I thought you were in need of some cheering up—not that you were looking for revenge! What did you even do?!” “Destroy her world. Why?” “BECAUSE SHE’S EIGHT YEARS OLD, YOU PSYCHO!” Cheerilee pointed at the door. “Go get that kid and apologize right now, or else I don’t know what I’m going to do!” Mayor Mare pouted. “But she…!” “She’s one of my students! GO!” “But—she could be anywhere!” “Nope!” Pinkie popped her head out the counter. “She probably went to Sweet Apple Acres! They have a table that’s amazing for crying. You should check there!” “Yes, you should! You have no excuses!” Rarity pushed Mayor Mare towards the door. “Go, go, go!” “Geeeez. Just because she’s a kid…” “Um. Pinkie Pie?” Rarity looked at her friend. “Is the situation at the farm really that bad?” “Booof!” Pinkie Pie waved a hoof. “You wouldn’t believe it! Twilight and Dash won’t listen to Applejack, no matter how hard she yells. They’re taking her home away from her, she says. Everypony’s so angry! I don’t think anypony can help them at this point, really.” Sweetie Belle and Rarity looked at each other. Slowly, a small smile made it to their faces. “Oh,” Rarity said. “I think I know a couple ponies who just learned a lesson that could apply there.” “I couldn’t agree more,” Sweetie Belle said. “Although, please. take a shower first.” “SWEETIE BELLE I SWEAR TO CELESTIA—” Mayor Mare was grumbling and looking at the ground as she walked towards Sweet Apple Acres. It wasn’t fair, she thought. She had feelings, too, and that kid had hurt them—but apparently, nopony cared! Was it the gray hair? It was probably the gray hair. She shouldn’t have dyed it that color, it just screamed ‘loneliness’. She sighed. Getting back at that filly had been way too gratifying. Which usually wouldn’t be that nice, but this was Diamond Tiara she was talking about. Mayor Mare had met that kid less than two hours ago, and she already believed that setting her on fire would be cosmically regarded as a good deed. The kid sure had struck a chord in her when she had said all that stuff about marriage, though. It wasn’t that Mayor Mare wanted that, of course, but at least some kind of connection would be nice. But it was too late. She was old, and there was no way she— Bomp! “Gagh!” Mayor Mare’s glasses dropped and she almost fell to the ground. “Ah, sorry!” she said to the blur in front of her. “I wasn’t paying attention, I’m truly sorry, it was my fault.” She patted the ground around her, trying to feel her glasses. “I shouldn’t have—” The blur took one of her hooves and put the glasses on it. “Hey, hey. It’s okay. It was just an accident. Are you alright?” It was a male voice. Mayor Mare put on her glasses. He had a gentle smile, and was still holding her hoof. Her heart fluttered, just a little bit. Maybe, just maybe, it wasn’t too late yet. “Um.” Sweetie Belle rubbed her forearm and looked back at her sister and mother, who nodded at her and gave her the equine equivalent of a thumbs-up. So, a hoof. They gave her a hoof. Aesthetically indistinguishable from the equine version of giving the finger, but hey, Sweetie Belle liked to think the best of everypony. “Applejack?” Applejack didn’t answer. She was still hanging upside down, and she was unconscious. The noises of a city could be heard from atop the trees. “Uh, I just wanted to say—I think I know what you’re going through,” Sweetie continued. “It’s hard to argue with a friend or a member of your family, but sometimes ponies clash, and we might hurt each other’s feelings without realizing.” Applejack didn’t answer. She was still unconscious. “And, and it can be hard to make amends!” Sweetie said. “Really hard! Because sometimes you try to explain your point of view, but the others don’t want to listen, and it’s really, really frustrating! Because you are trying to reason but she doesn’t want to, and it just makes you more and more angry!” And again Applejack refused to say a word, the reason being that unconsciousness was an integral part of her character lately. “But… But you can’t let that get to you.” Sweetie Belle stopped rubbing her forearm and looked at Applejack square in the eye, full of confidence. “You have to persevere and make them understand, even if they hurt you! Because if you want to be forgiven, you have to forgive too, and… And if you don’t do that, you might end up hurting each other real bad.” She shook her head. “And sometimes you say or do things you can’t take back.” Diamond Tiara was sniffling under the table at Sweet Apple Acres’ kitchen. Big Mac had been there at first, but she had eventually kicked him out, because even when severely depressed Diamond Tiara had her priorities straight. “Tiara? Tiara, are you there?” Diamond Tiara blinked and looked up. “Dad?” “Oh, there you are!” Filthy Rich crouched down and crawled under the table, right next to her. “I came here because I had a meeting with Princess Twilight, and imagine my surprise when they tell me that my daughter is crying in here!” Diamond Tiara whimpered and buried her face on her father’s coat. “There, there.” Filthy Rich put his forearm over her shoulders and hugged her. “Let it all go, filly. I’m here now.” Diamond Tiara cried even harder, letting her sobs be drowned by Filthy Rich’s chest. She was trembling and getting him all dirty, but he never moved. And eventually, she calmed down. Filthy Rich waited until the sobs all but disappeared, and then patted her on the back. “Better?” he asked. “Hm-hmmm.” Diamond Tiara moved away from him, just a couple inches, enough to talk. “Dad?” she said. “Did… Why did Mom leave us?” Filthy Rich flinched as if he’d been just punched in the stomach. “Ouch. Sweetie, I—” “And why did you tell me she was dead?” Diamond Tiara insisted. “Is it because she didn’t love me? Did she leave us b-because I wasn’t good enough?” “Oh, Tiara, sweetie…” Filthy Rich hugged her tightly once more. “Of course not! She loved you very, very much.” “But… But then why…?” Filthy Rich sighed. “It’s complicated, honey. It’s really complicated, and it’s… It’s not a happy story. I was waiting for you to be a little bit older before telling you, so you could understand.” “I can’t understand now?” “Not really. It’s a lot of grown-up stuff.” He ruffled her mane a little bit. “What I can tell you, however, is that she really loved you, okay? Loved you a lot, because you were her little girl. But she had to go, and we decided to leave you with me, because that way your life would be easier.” Diamond Tiara looked down. “I see…” “And hey, you’ve had a good life, right?” Filthy Rich lifted his daughter’s chin with a hoof. “Hey, look at me. Mom loves you, okay? And one day you might even see her, once you know the whole story.” Diamond Tiara’s eyes lighted up. “Really?” She blinked, and her ears went down. “Uh. Do you think she’ll want to see me?” “Of course she will! It’s your choice, Diamond Tiara. But I can’t explain to you what happened yet. You’ll have to trust me.” He got up—almost hit his head—and got out from under the table. “Do you trust me?” Diamond Tiara thought about it for a second or two, then nodded. “Yes. But you promise you’ll tell me, right?” “Sure, honey. Ah!” He turned around as Diamond Tiara finally made it out from under the table. “By the way, let me present you a, uh, new friend of mine! Mayor Mare, this is my daughter. Diamond Tiara, this is Mayor Mare.” Silence. Mayor Mare and Diamond Tiara stared at each other. The former was grinning, the latter was wide-eyed. Understanding dawned on the filly. “No,” she whispered. “Yes,” Mayor Mare replied. Filthy Rich, who was standing a little too close to Mayor Mare and had something that looked a lot like a slight blush on his cheeks, looked at them both. “Huh?” “No!” “Yes!” “YOU CAN’T DO THAT!” “LOOKS LIKE I ALREADY DID!” Mayor Mare, grinning crazily, leaned towards Diamond Tiara. “HEY, YOU SHOULD BE HAPPY! I SOLVED BOTH OUR PROBLEMS IN ONE SINGLE MOVE!” “NO!” “YES!” Filthy Rich blinked. “I don’t get it.” “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!” “AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!” “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!” “AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!” “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!” “AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!” “DAD THIS MARE KIDNAPPED ME!” “WHAT?!” “Darn it.” Fifteen minutes had passed, and Applejack was, if anything, even more unconscious. Or probably dead—at this point, all bets were off. “…and being hurt is really really bad, even if it feels great to hurt others at first! So you should try to make amends with your friends. I’m sure Twilight and Rainbow Dash will listen to you if you speak with your heart!” Sweetie Belle took a step towards Applejack. “I truly believe it!” “Yeah!” Apple Bloom said. “You go, girl!” Mother added. “Well said!” “That was a beautiful speech, Sweetie Belle.” Rarity walked to her sister and patted her on the shoulder. “Right, Applejack?” The sound of Dash and Twilight arguing politics from atop the tree was their only answer. “Of course it is,” Rarity said. “And you can solve this! We’ll help you!” “Yeah!” Sweetie Belle said, nodding. “Now that we’re working together, nothing will stop us! We’ll set everything straight in no time!” “As a team!” “As a team!”