//------------------------------// // Part 3: Where Will I stay? // Story: A Mother's 'Love' // by deadpansnarker //------------------------------// Seeing as neither parent was in any fit state to tell their daughter about the sudden upheaval that very evening (With Filthy Rich sobbing into his paper, and Spoiled sprawled out on the floor with her tongue hanging out in a most unladylike fashion) The princess and her entourage decided to take it upon themselves to tell Diamond that she'd be moving away for a while. Twilight did not relish such a discussion, especially with a filly she barely knew. Her memories of Tiara consisted of a far-off cute-cenera she attended where the child acted all high and mighty, and the time the child had gatecrashed a specially organised Twilight Time for the CMC, where she did nothing but smirk as the Crusaders failed at their various tasks. If you'd asked the purple alicorn about Diamond at that same point yesterday, she would have said the filly was a stuck-up, irredeemable bully of the worst kind, the sort that used to pick on her a lot as a youngster, for being a bookish nerd. But just that very day, two events had happened to completely turn around Twilight's opinion of the filly. For one, Tiara had not only organised the funding of the new school playground via her father when she could have quite easily taken back the reigns of power as class president from an ailing Pipsqueak, she also managed to make possibly the first selfless use of her cutie-mark talent for leadership since she received said symbol. The way she had caroled the other students into assembling the structure in record time, by making use of the same characteristics of the pupils she used to mock was very impressive, and showed a total sea change in maturity for her. Not to mention, she had managed to get the Princess Of Friendship to help out with the construction too. Twilight was still trying to figure out how the child had accomplished that. Maybe it was down to the fact that (no matter how indirectly) the alicorn felt somewhat responsible for the ruination of the original play equipment, caused by her epic struggle with Tirek. Or, perhaps it was a nice break from sitting around the Crystal Castle all day long, with nothing better to do than twiddling her hooves, and listening to Spike complain about the lack of a decent gem vendor in the neighbourhood. Either way, she had enjoyed being part of the big community effort, and she was sure that if Diamond Tiara continued on her new righteous path, she would make a fine leader one day, perhaps, even mayor. The second reason the princess felt for the former bully was exactly the reason she'd made the late night call, bad parenting. It was quite late in the evening when Twilight heard from three of her closest friends about what their sisters had told them they'd witnessed over the course of the day. Even during one of the happiest occasions of their lives, Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom had been more concerned with the mental well-being of their newest pal than the appearance of their long-awaited cutie marks, a true testimony to how thoughtful and decent those three fillies were. After hearing such dire tales, Rainbow Dash, Rarity and Applejack had all made a bee-line straight to the purple alicorn, and Twilight judged the matter as so serious, she'd wasted no time in rushing down to the Rich mansion within minutes. Obviously there was no telling what Diamond had had to cope with since she was born, but having received just a small dose of Spoiled's wrath since her arrival, Twilight could see how this kind of treatment day in, day out could impact the psyche of a delicate foal, and make it very hard for them to grow up as a well adjusted individual. If Mrs Rich had really told her daughter non-stop that she was better than everypony else and should act accordingly, then, well, that would explain an awful lot. What a terrible way to raise a filly and an almost guaranteed recipe for ostracizing and loneliness until old age. Fortunately, by some miracle (and thanks to the timely intervention of the Crusaders) Diamond Tiara had apparently taken the first few steps towards forging a much more promising future for herself, by being herself not the artificial construct her mother had designed, with her father behaving like an accessory to the crime by simply not doing anything. It was now Twilight's job to make sure the progress the filly had made wasn't lost due to the damaging schemes of her control-freak Mom and the only way of doing that, if Spoiled Rich was unwilling to change, was to remove her from the unhealthy environment she was in, at least for a little while. The princess had prepared for this eventuality for getting all the requisite paperwork, with all the necessary authorities signing in the right columns at very short notice. Twilight didn't want it to come down to having Diamond taken away, she was more than happy to negotiate with the Rich's, set up a meeting with a third party who could have helped aid them to become better parents, allowing them to maintain custody while improving their skills as caregivers. But, faced with Spoiled's unyielding attitude, and Filthy's impassive demeanor, the alicorn felt she had no choice but to utilise the least worse option... Have her relocated for now, but leave enough hope that the parents could get her back someday if they'd actually try to improve themselves. 'I don't think it'll be anytime soon, though.' Mused the princess, as she opened the door to the lounge. She was almost bowled over in the process by one Randolph, who'd taken a peek inside at some point, seen his mistress out for the count, and had, with speed that belied his advancing years, rushed off to grab some smelling salts before running back to revive her. Also noticeable just in front of the entrance was Diamond Tiara, who grinned sheepishly at the four mares as they emerged. Twilight couldn't help but feel relieved she could tell by looking at the filly's expression she'd been listening in on their 'private' conversation, and this got the alicorn off the hook from having to relay the life-changing news to the child herself. But, as soon as she stared into those confused, worried eyes which seemed on the verge of tears, the princess couldn't help but feel guilty at her own selfish mindset. For Diamond Tiara, despite all her tough talk and brave facade, was still just a child, and would require the most delicate of treatments at this time if she was to remain unscathed by what was going to happen. Twilight might be a prodigious reader, but she certainly didn't know much about foal-rearing, so, despite feeling empathetic towards the filly in a big way, she had no idea what to say next. Fortunately, it was Applejack's turn to pick up the slack. Adjusting her hat, the orange mare addressed the child "So, I guess you heard everything that was said in there?" Tiara nodded, still with the same unsure gaze, peeking at her father's mini-breakdown and Randolph's failed attempts at waking up Spoiled Rich going on behind the quartet of mares in the other room. Realising what was going on, Applejack subtly nudged Rainbow Dash, who took the hint, and quickly shut the lounge doors, so as not to stress out the filly even more than the current situation permitted. "Now, don't you go concerning yourself about your folks. They'll be fine. It's you we need to take care of now." Applejack trotted over to Tiara, and lightly patted her on the head. "Go upstairs and pack some stuff. Not too much, just enough so we can transport it across to the farm." The three other adults present, along with Diamond herself, all had their jaws fly wide open simultaneously, as if they were exchanging a silent 'what'?! Recovering her composure for a minute, Twilight stammered "B-but, we haven't planned that far ahead yet! We need to discuss this in more detail, before we..." "Oh, fiddlesticks to that!!" Applejack quickly shot her down. "It all makes sense. We have closer ties to the Rich's than any other family in Ponyville, and Filthy comes down to the farm at least once a week anyway to discuss business, which would make it much easier to organise supervised visits. Plus, we have a big family who can always watch her when somepony else is busy, and now her and Apple Bloom are getting along, that's removed the only real stumbling block to the idea. Finally, we can always use an extra pair of legs to help out. I hope you're ready to get your manicured hooves dirty, missy!!" The orange mare gave a friendly wink to Tiara at this juncture, as if she was joking, so why did the pink filly feel she was being completely serious? Uh oh. Still unsure at this sudden turn of events, Twilight hesitated. "I don't know..." "Well, let's look at the facts, shall we?" Applejack continued. " Diamond needs somewhere to stay, we're all agreed on that. I can't see her living up with Rainbow Dash in the clouds, and Rarity is rushed off her hooves at the moment, what with her new shop and all. Twi, I know things are quiet for you right now, but you could be called up for your 'Princess' duties at any time. Imagine if Diamond needs you for something urgently, and you're all the way over in Canterlot! Now, with me, even if I am called away by the Cutie Map, we still have Big Mac and Granny Smith to watch her. It's a no-brainer. Leave her with me, sugarcube, I promise to look out for her as long as it takes." Weighing up all the options in her head, It did make a lot of sense to Twilight. But there was one pony who's opinion they hadn't heard from yet, and her view was the most important of all. "So Miss Tiara, you've heard Applejack's proposal. It does seem sound to me, and I am tempted to approve it, but tell me, what do you think?" The purple alicorn gently asked the filly. Diamond's head was in a state of flux. She was still getting to grips with the fact she was going to have to move out of her comfortable mansion that very evening for an indeterminate amount of time. Now, she was being asked if she wanted to live in a decrepit old farmhouse, with somepony who she'd hated until recently, and would probably be expected to do child labour, to boot. Not to mention, the three baths a day she'd have to take, and all the modern creature comforts she'd have to forego. She couldn't possibly say yes. There was no way on Equestria she could say yes. And yet, she felt her lips move of their own accord. "Yes." came her reply. Oh no!! What had she done?! In her befuzzled state of mind. She'd said the first thing that popped into her head. And had more or less signed herself up to weeks, possibly months of bad hygiene, back breaking work, and life in the dark ages. Not to mention, no parents... Her parents... Oh, no... That's when she realised for the first time that day, despite the arguments, the fights, and the outright neglect... She was going to miss them terribly. As if on cue, the tears started appearing. No!! This can't be happening!! I'm a Diamond!! I don't break!! But, those hollow words her mother taught her, proved to be as inaccurate as almost everything else. Diamond Tiara starting whining unconsciously. That whine became a blub, that blub became a sob... And that sob...Became a full-on bawlfest. It was like someone had turned on a faucet, and that faucet was now broken. The more she tried to stop the flow, the more water seemed to leak out. How pathetic thought the filly, in the midst of her pity party. And right in front of the Princess, too. I bet I look like such a loser right now, even Applejack wouldn't want me. Tiara's mistake, however, was ascribing her mother's beliefs onto other ponies. And It wasn't too long, before she felt a strange sense of warmth as the aforementioned mares, along with Rarity... And, with a bit of hesitation, even Rainbow Dash too, had enveloped her into the tightest of hugs. A completely foreign feeling to the magenta filly, but one she nevertheless enjoyed greatly.