Chapter Eight
Mal and Diamond made it to History on time, and luckily enough, the seat next to Mal was free. The class was extremely boring, and Diamond almost fell asleep listening to Mr. Bronco drone on and on about Griffin Wars.
English wasn't much better. Diamond had never been good at grammar or spelling, and absolutely hated to write, so when the teacher, Ms. Sundance, assigned a two-page book report on their favorite book, Diamond could only groan.
At long last, the final minutes of English were coming to an end, the clock ticking tantalizingly. Finally, the bell, Diamond jumping out of her seat to get to Lunch, but was blown off by the swarm of running, jumping students. By the time she came to her senses, everypony was gone. Outside in the hallway, Diamond could see girls dodging each other, jumping off the walls, and a even a few pegasai flying above her. She couldn't see Mal, but followed the crowd into the dining hall.
The line for lunch had already filled up, and Diamond had to sprint to get a good spot. Even so, by the time she got her lunch (baked beans, macaroni and cheese, and salad), Mal and the others were already at their table.
"Oh, there you are!" said Mal. "What took you so long?"
"Well, I might have gotten here a little sooner if certain maniacs in the hallway hadn't tried to trample me." said Diamond huffily.
"Ah yeah, I forgot." said Mal, snickering a little. "You got caught in the lunch prix."
"The what???"
"The lunch prix. The Monday lunch around here is one of the only decent ones, and it goes fast. Sometimes it even runs out before everypony gets some, and then you have to get a peanut butter sandwich from the office, and those things are nasty."
"Gross." said Diamond. "But what's with the acrobatics?"
"I guess you could say that this is like a speed obstacle course. Acrobatics are kind of an unwritten rule."
Diamond rolled her eyes. "Geez, how many unwritten rules do you people have?"
"I'd give you a list, but then they wouldn't be unwritten anymore."
***
The rest of the day wasn't much better. After Lunch was Math, and while Diamond found the class easy, she had both Gingersnap and Flicker in it. Mathematics had always come naturally to her, which was no surprise, seeing as how she was going to inherit the Rich family business one day. So when the teacher (who looked older than the school) passed out a pop quiz, Diamond couldn't help but get a little excited.
Question One- How do you write 0.46 in words?
A. Forty-six thousandths
B. Forty-six ten-thousandths
C. Forty-six tens
D. Forty-six hundredths
Easy, thought Diamond, circling D. The rest of the problems were similar in length and complexity, so Diamond breezed through the quiz without many problems.
While on question twelve, however, she caught Gingersnap leaning over to take a peek at her quiz. Diamond quickly covered them up and scowled at Gingersnap.
Diamond leaned over her paper and scribbled down another answer. Suddenly, a gray, wrinkled hoof snatched the quiz off of her desk. Diamond looked up, confused. Her math teacher grimaced down at her, her cloudy, dark blue eyes almost invisible within her mountains of wrinkles.
"Hey, I wasn't finished with that yet!" Diamond objected.
"Yes, you are." croaked Sigma. "As a teacher, I frown upon cheating in general, but it takes some nerve to attempt it on your first day."
Diamond's mouth dropped open. "W-what??? I wasn't cheating!"
"Oh please. Do you think I was born yesterday?"
Absolutely not. thought Diamond.
"As if I can't see the cheat sheet down by your hooves. It's the oldest trick in the book. Student has trouble with problem, looks down at her lap, and suddenly, inspiration strikes. Honestly, it's astonishing how stupid you students think we teachers are. You will receive a zero and detention all this weekend. Try it again, and the consequences will be much more severe."
Diamond looked down, and sure enough, a small white sheet of paper lay down by her hooves. "B-b-but, I wasn't cheating! That isn't mine!" she pleaded.
"A likely story. Like I said, it's astounding how stupid you students think we are."
Mrs. Sigma went back to her desk, taking Diamond Tiara's quiz paper with her. Diamond could hear the titters of her classmates, and felt her cheeks blush bright pink. Out of nowhere, a wadded up piece of yellow legal paper hit her head.
Oh, for pete's sake. she thought. This again? But out of curiosity, she unwrinkled the paper. Inside was hastily scribbled note.
You really shouldn't cheat. That sort of thing will get you in trouble.
-Take a wild guess
On the other side of the paper there was another note.
I wish you could see your face right now.
A fury ignited inside of Diamond. Why, that little... She ground her teeth in anger, resisting every urge to scream what few obscenities she knew while tackling Gingersnap to the ground.
Mrs. Sigma had begun the lesson, and though Diamond tried to listen, her mind kept on drifting back to Gingersnap and how best to make her sorry for ever looking at her the wrong way. She was in the middle of a vivid daydream where she was banging Gingersnap's head against a brick wall when a meter stick smacked against her desk.
"I suggest, Ms. Rich, that you pay attention, so that next time you take a test, you won't have to cheat." sneered Sigma. Diamond blushed and nodded, her classmates's snickers infuriating her once again.
After another hour, the bell rang. Diamond hoped this meant the day was over, but her schedule told her to go to Speech and Rhetoric down the hall. She inwardly groaned; if Gingersnap or Flicker or anyone else she dislike was in this class with her, she would scream. Diamond Tiara scooped her supplies into her saddlebags, taking the cheat sheet along with her.
To her relief, none of the Bullies were in this class. She couldn't find anybody she really had a strong loathing for, and the classroom looked like a fun place to learn. Instead of the straight rows of desks like the other classes had, all the desks were clustered into groups of four or five, making around six groups. On the walls were photographs, newspaper clippings, and what looked like a skull on a small shelf. Bookshelves stuffed with textbooks and scrolls were placed right next to a glossy black desk carved into an ornate Gothic shape.
Diamond Tiara spotted an empty spot in a group of four stylishly-groomed fillies gossiping and applying makeup. She recognized Sugar Spice among them, coating her lips with shimmery pink gloss. She smiled. Now, THESE are my kind of friends. she thought. Diamond walked up to an empty seat in their group, setting her things down on top of the desk.
"This seat taken?" asked Diamond, sitting down.
The girls sneered, looking disgusted. They glanced at each other, then back at Diamond. Sugar Spice looked at Diamond as if she were something scraped off a dirty boot.
Two of the girls sitting beside each other started whispering feverishly, staring at Diamond Tiara with distaste and giggling. Sugar Spice smirked.
"What rock did you crawl out from?" she snickered.
Diamond's smile slid off. "I'm sorry, am I missing something?"
"Uh, how about a clue?" she smirked. "Who gave you permission to even come near us?"
Diamond blushed. "I did, FYI." she countered. "And why would I ever need permission to sit down?"
"Do really me to answer that? Or do you like being slapped in the face with the truth?"
Diamond Tiara didn't have an answer for that. She slumped down in her seat, trying to become invisible. The girls snickered, and Diamond blushed intensely and twirling her mane nervously.
The door opened, and a chalk-white stallion walked in. He had a long, gaunt face, and his eyes had dark circle around them, as if he hadn't slept in days. On his back was a long, dramatic, ink black cape with a high collar, a silver clasp fastening it under his chin. Diamond could've sworn that she saw a flash of lighting in the distance, even though it was a sunny day.
"Greetings... students."
The stallion stalked over to his desk, his cape sweeping the ground and sending a chill up Diamond's spine. He stopped abruptly in the middle of the floor, turning slowly to meet Diamond Tiara's curious eye.
"Who," he asked, pausing. "Are you?" His voice was deep and drawling, not to mention very, very loud.
Diamond gulped. "I-I... I'm D-Diamond Tiara, a-and I'm new here?"
"Figures." whispered Sugar Spice to her friends, who broke out in high, girlish giggles. Diamond's cheeks reddened, but she managed to ignore them.
The stallion nodded. "I," he started, again pausing. "Am Curtain Call, master of the literary and dramatic arts, who has pledged his life, his soul, his very reason for being, to spreading the breathtaking vocation of the written word to those who's lives have not been graced by the impassioned beauty of great prose. Come, and partake in the unspeakable joy and pain of the theater, with I as your mentor."
Diamond felt extremely awkward. "Um... okay, then..." she said, forcing a smile. "You do that."
Mr. Call nodded solemnly, then retreated to his desk. He picked up the skull in his hoof, holding it up and muttering. Diamond looked at him strangely.
"Today, class, we shall be exploring the depths of Willhoof Shakespony's Romaneo and Hoofiette. I believe we last left off when Hoofiette had plunged the dagger into her heart, sealing her fate and drifting to the spirit world, there to reside with her star-crossed lover forevermore. I'd ask thy thoughts, but though dost not have a sophisticated theatrical palate, such as my own. Puerile, unworthy adolescents like thou would never understand the sheer brilliance that is Willhoof Shakespony's tragedies."
Okay, this guy's a nutcase.
Call continued to preach of the excellence of Shakespony, not that Diamond was listening. She had begun to play with her pencil, twirling it on the desk absentmindedly and trying to ignore the whispers and giggles of her table mates. Diamond set her head down on her desk, blocking out the noise around her.
I just want to go home.
***
Another hour later, Diamond Tiara tromped out of her classroom, steaming. She hated- no, she loathed- Speech and Rhetoric. Those preppy snobs just gossiped (most likely about her) the entire period, and Mr. Call had done nothing all class but whine on and on about that stupid play, and then had the nerve to assign them a two-page paper on the significance of the destructive forces of love versus hate.
I'll tell you what I hate, goth boy, thought Diamond bitterly, gritting her teeth. Everything about your stupid, useless class!
She took a quick peek at her schedule and groaned. Seventh period was Etiquette and Street Law. Diamond remembered Ivory telling her that this was the only class that all the trouble kids were required to take. She winced at the idea of sharing another class with Gingersnap and her gang, but brightened at the thought of having a class with Mal. At least this time I'll have a friendly face near me.
Diamond trotted down the stairs to room 124, and peeked inside. The room had been magically expanded to fit in at least three times the usual number of students, most of whom she recognized from Gym and Lunch. It seemed that nearly everypony was talking, making the room nearly deafening.
Searching around for a moment, she spotted Mal, sitting in between the window and a scared-looking filly with pigtails. Mal waved her over. Diamond glared at the girl, who shrunk back and moved to the side. Diamond slid in to the seat next to Mal and buried her face in her hoofs.
"What's up?" asked Mal.
"Mmmpff."
"Sorry, didn't catch that. Maybe it'd help if you'd get your face out of your hoofs."
Diamond sat up and crossed her front legs huffily. She looked at Mal crossly, not saying a word.
"Fine. Be that way." said Mal calmly. Diamond sighed. Apparently grouchiness wasn't going to win her any sympathy.
"The Preps are in my Speech class." she blurted out. Mal snickered, and Diamond reddened.
"Something funny, chuckles?"
"Naa, it's not you..." she sniggered. "Well, sort of. I'm just imagining how incredibly well you fit into that group."
"Hey, I thought they'd like me. I mean, I'm pretty and fun and... wait a minute, you were being sarcastic, weren't you?"
"The most sarcastic."
The bell rang, but the loud chatters didn't even falter. That is, until an ear shattering whistle sounded from the front of the room.
"Alright, you lot, listen up!" shouted Miss Ivory, looking stern and a little angry. A glistening brass whistle hung around her neck on a lanyard, and Diamond immediately shut up. Most of the rest of the class did the same, if with an exceptionally large amount of grumbling and curse words.
"Today we'll be learning about getting or staying out of the court system, and proper courtroom etiquette, although I sincerely hope that none of you will ever need knowledge of the latter."
Diamond tried to pay attention for the first few minutes, but her focus drifted as she noticed the distinct diversity between her classmates. She wondered if this was all the trouble kids in the school, and turned around to try and count them all.
"Kesi, put away the knife. Diamond Tiara, turn around this instant."
Diamond immediately snapped back around; she hadn't been aware that her teacher had been watching her. Ivory picked up a stack of worksheets in her aura and passed a copy to each student.
"These are your guided notes that you will be completing through today's video. Fill in each box with the correct information, and turn it in at the end of class. There will be no need to talk."
Diamond pulled out a pencil and signed her name at the top. The lights dimmed, and Ivory rolled out a plain white projector with a glowing blue crystal in the center. The crystal seemed to be the source of the machine's power. An old black-and-white video clip flickered on the screen. Diamond studiously took notes, not feeling in the mood to have Ivory call her out again.
The movie seemed to go on forever, the narrator's droning voice seeming to go on forever. It like warm milk; Diamond hadn't even realized she was falling asleep until her forehead smacked against the desk.
"Diamond, pay attention." said Ivory rather coldly.
"Y-yes, ma'am..."
Diamond could hear her classmates growing restless. Students behind her scuffled around, careful not to be caught. A pencil smacked the back of her head, and she could hear two Trouble kids arguing in hushed whispers.
As the video wore on, several more small objects hit her, but this time she got the feeling they were intentional. Sure enough, Flicker and Gingersnap were taking turns flicking projectiles at her. But Diamond held her head high; they were just being immature, and she refused to get in trouble again because of them.
A harder, heavier object clouted her squarely in the back of her neck. A book clattered to the ground below her, and Diamond Tiara's eyes watered with pain. Screw it, she was going to throw something right back at them. The book was in her hooves when a cold, ringing voice called from the front.
"Flicker, Gingersnap, get over here. I saw that."
Diamond's tormentors glanced up at their teacher's occupied desk incredulously. Ivory was staring right at them frostily, gesturing them to come forward. A few students snickered at Flicker and Gingersnap's expense, but quickly shut up at the sight of Gingersnap's expression. Ivory spoke in a low voice, but Diamond could still hear her scolding the troublemakers.
"... do not tolerate such behavior in my classroom. And this is not your first offense today, Flicker. You two are very close to being sent to the office, do you understand that?"
Flicker smirked arrogantly. "Whatever." However, Gingersnap seemed to have a more prudent approach.
"Trust me, Miss Ivory, we're sorry. This will never happen again, I promise." A simpering, sickly sweet pout sat on her lips. Diamond could hardly believe that she had the nerve to try that garbage on a teacher who obviously wouldn't stand for it. Ivory glared at Gingersnap, but the filly's countenance never faltered.
The teacher sighed. "Seeing as this is the first time you've been caught in the act, I'll let you off." Gingersnap gave her a winning smile and opened her mouth to say something, but Ivory beat her to it.
"Not you though, Flicker. You will be in detention with me this weekend, report here at nine o' clock on Saturday, understood?"
Flicker shrugged, completely unabashed. It seemed that detention was a more than common occurrence for her.
"You may return to your seats."
The two did as they were told, Diamond grinning to herself. It's about time. But hey, that's what you get for trying to mess with the tiara.
Her new found euphoria seemed to make the rest of class just zip by. It felt nice, knowing that she had at least one teacher in this dump on her side.
She and Mal caught up with Rose breeze and Scarlet after class, as those two had been seated across the classroom. They walked to their last period, Study Hall, together, Rose and Scar chattering amiably. They reached the library, where Study Hall was held. Diamond plunked her saddlebags down next to a vacant work table, deciding to take the time to start on her Speech and Rhetoric essay. It was as boring and tedious as she imagined, but she managed to get it done in the hour they were given.
By dinnertime, Diamond was famished and exhausted. The supper of peas, fruit salad, and boiled potatoes they were given was hardly filling, but she was grateful for it all the same. The time was filled up with her friend's chitchat, with which she now happily joined in with. Out of the corner of her eye, Diamond could see Gingersnap glaring haughtily at her, whispering to Flicker and Lily, but Diamond was still revering over her victory in Ivory's class. She was practically skipping when it came time to go back to the dorms for free time, until she remembered just how much homework she had been given.
Outside, it was steadily getting darker, the sun dipping into the horizon. Diamond plugged in the small lamp on the bedside table in the middle of her's and Mal's twin beds and flopped onto her mattress, staring at the ceiling for a sign that she should get up and do her homework. When it didn't come, she sat up and rummaged through her saddle bags until she found the hated studies and a pencil with an intact tip. Glancing to the side she could see that Mal was scribbling something down in a plain, muddy green notebook that matched the color of her eyes. She briefly wondered if it was a diary of sorts, and what Mal might be writing in it. But it didn't particularly matter, as Diamond Tiara had her own problems to deal with at the moment, like this homework.
It was hard to keep proper track of time. Sometimes Diamond thought that maybe time just hated her in particular. Whenever she was doing something fun, like going to the amusement park or talking with Silver Spoon, the hours seemed to melt away in seconds, making her wonder were the day went. On the flip side, the clock seemed to come to a stop the minute she began a task that she disliked, like now. Diamond felt like prying open the back of the clock to see whether or not the gears had stopped working; the hands were frozen, or at least being constricted by something very sticky.
But all the same, her lessons got done just before eight thirty. She found herself drained of energy, and yearned to go home to her kitchen and make Cook fix her a steaming mug of cocoa, with whipped cream and peppermint bits melting on top of a big marshmallow... around here, she doubted if they even had any cocoa for anyone, ever... but it was nice to imagine.
"Alright you lot, light's out. No talking."
Diamond gave a little shriek of surprise and very nearly fell off the bed. The same prefect from last night stared over across the two fillies condescendingly for a moment.
"Shut off your light, then go to bed. Goodnight."
She slammed the door shut, and then there was silence. Mal yawned, reaching over to switch off the lamp.
"G'night Diamond. See ya in the morning."
"Goodnight Mal."
Diamond rolled over onto her side, staring at the wall. The day had been unusual, for her at least. They definitely did things here differently than in Ponyville. Ponyville. I wonder if anypony there misses me. Obviously daddy, and Silver Spoon too. I'll bet Mom doesn't even know that I'm here. Wonder what she'll be like when Daddy tells her he shipped me out.
And Gingersnap. Honestly, does that girl seriously have nothing better to do than to try and make my life miserable? I'll show her. I'll get even so good that she'll be odd... I'm pretty sure that's how the saying goes. Yeah, that's how it goes.
She yawned. Whatever. Maybe if it's nice out tomorrow, me and Mal and Scarlet and rose and everyone can go hang out outside.
KA-BOOM
Rain began to patter on the window.
I was expecting that. Thanks...
