“Welcome,” The secretary greeted as Diamond entered the lobby.
“Hi,” Diamond waved back. Diamond closed her eyes, letting the warmth envelope her. She was in the cold for so long… that she couldn’t remember what warmth was until she stepped into the building.
The warmth of the foyer reminded her of the good times during the summer with Silver Spoon… before everything fell apart. Even though she only had one friend at the time, she was content and happy. She wouldn’t trade those days for anything.
“Hey, miss, I appreciate it if you don’t loiter.”
Diamond opened her eyes. The voice came from the secretary, who was busy with paperwork. Diamond trotted up to the desk. “Sorry ma’am,”
“I don’t want to be rude… but if you don’t have any business here, I must ask you to leave.”
“Well, I do have business here…” Diamond pulled out the letter and set it on the granite countertop. “I’m looking for Coco Pommel, I have a message for her.”
The Secretary’s glum expression shifted into a ‘business’ smile. “Alright, I’ll take this to her upstairs, you’ll probably hear from her in a week.” The letter slid across the countertop towards a pile of paperwork.
“Wait!” Diamond caught the letter before it hit the pile. “I must give that letter to her in person,” Diamond insisted “It’s the sender’s orders.”
The Secretary shrugged and pulled out some more paper from under the desk. “That’d be fine, but I’ll have to record your ins and outs.” She clicked a pen “Name please?”
“Dia…” Diamond stopped herself there. She contemplated on her decision to use her real name. The secretary was probably safe to recite her real name, but she could just as easily use a fake name while in Mane-hattan. Besides, Mrs. Tea knew Coco well, and she didn’t want to hurt Jasmine’s feelings by finding out her name was a half-truth. “Dazzle Tiara.”
“Alright, you are in,” She put the paperwork away. “Mrs. Pommel lives on the 7th floor, room C as in Cat.” She winked at Diamond “Just stay out of trouble, and be nice to our guests, ya hear?”
Diamond nodded, scooting away from the secretary’s desk.
She was about to approach the elevator, when the secretary interrupted, “Sorry miss, that Elevator is out-of-order.”
Diamond Tiara shrugged and ascended the flights of stairs. She huffed as she ascended each flight. Maybe she should’ve payed attention in P.E. She cursed under her breath at how out-of-shape she was.
The stairs were certainly rough, until she finally reached the seventh floor. She scanned all around, finding that the apartments were labeled with letters. However, the Labeling was inscribed in a strange cursive, making it tough to read. To make it worse, she had no idea which order they went in.
She figured it wouldn’t hurt to try the nearest door.
A couple heavy hoof steps followed before a pony answered the door. A pot-bellied stallion stared coldly at her through the crack of the door. A stuffy smell wafted outward, one that Diamond had trouble identifying, though she could recognize the sharp smell of aged apple cider.
Diamond Tiara held her breath “Um, I’m looking for a Coco Pommel, she lives on this floor.”
He grumbled in a low, guttural voice “No Coco Pommel here.”
“Do you know where room C is?” She replied hastily, retreating from this stallion’s apartment. She held back a retch as she caught a whiff of the stench.
The Stallion shouted “Can’t you read, stupid filly?! I’m room A! Room C is two doors down!”
“Sorry for bothering you sir…” Diamond muttered under her breath.
“Heh… you’re stuck-up too!” He scoffed “Go find somepony else to annoy!” The door slammed shut, echoing down the hallways.
Diamond Tiara continued down the hall, following the stallion’s instructions. She took a deep breath as she stood outside the door. She didn’t want to disturb any other pony like that stallion.
Unfortunately, she had to find Coco Pommel. All she could do was trial and error. But what if Coco was as ill-tempered as that stallion? What if Diamond didn’t make a good impression? Where could she run to now?
She sighed, with only one choice ahead of her.
Diamond Tiara lifted a hoof and knocked on the door.
Butterflies formed in her stomach as she heard hoof steps approach the door.
The door flew open. “May I help you?” A mare asked in a gentle, yet dignified tone.
Diamond felt miniscule as the mare towered over her. An unidentifiable aroma wafted off her tan coat, oddly smelling like the flower dotted hills of Ponyville. She looked up, meeting the aqua eyes of the mare.
Diamond found something in this mare’s stance that said otherwise. Even if this mare towered over her in ‘Canterlot’ Posture, she saw something… different.
“Um, may I help you?” The mare repeated, speaking just a little more audible than the last.
Diamond snapped out of her daze “Sorry to bother you, but I’m looking for a Coco Pommel.”
The mare nodded once “This is she,”
Diamond rummaged through her bag. “One second, I should’ve got it out first…” Diamond apologized. She hoofed the letter to the mare. The mare accepted the letter and closed the door.
Diamond was half-tempted to follow the mare inside, but hesitated. It would be rude to barge into the apartment, so Diamond waited patiently.
The door opened again. “Where are my manners? Please, come in.”
Diamond stepped in with bags in tow. Coco motioned a hoof towards a sofa “Have a seat,”
Coco ripped the envelope open “Now, where did those go?” She glanced about, looking for something. Suddenly, she plucked a pair of glasses off the counter and placed them on her muzzle. She began reading over the letter.
To pass the time, Diamond Tiara studied her surroundings, trying to make sense of the situation.
Oddly enough, the mare had her apartment decorated lavishly, like Rarity’s Boutique, but possessed a little more space to room. It had a few pieces here and there, but for most, the room remained relatively empty.
Diamond studied Coco carefully, the grunts of the mare fairly faint. Coco had a stern look on her face as her aqua blue eyes darted back and forth across the page. Her tan coat and complimentary striped aqua mane tied in nicely with her form.
From her days in the Carousel Boutique with her father, she could conclude that Coco appeared like Rarity in the sense of being fine-groomed. Though through closer look, the makeup and grooming was used sparingly.
She possessed a different countenance that Diamond Tiara couldn’t quite place. Coco had the same grace as Rarity, no doubt. But, contrary to the fashionista style, Coco possessed a conserved type of style. Simple, in a way.
She looked up from her letter and addressed quietly “This is an interesting request…”
Coco cocked an eyebrow, shifting her expression from tender to stern. Diamond Tiara shivered in fear. She is not going to accept me, is she? The thought raced across Diamond’s head.
Yet, Coco continued in her quiet manner “Well, taking care of a filly is a little bizarre, but I do owe Randolph a favor for my big break in your father’s company,”
“You know Randolph?!” Diamond’s jaw dropped open.
Coco blanched, backing away hastily. Her eyes widened, like the way Fluttershy did while scuttling away from her own shadow.
Diamond Tiara quickly corrected her error, trying to make a good first impression “Sorry, I have a tendency to do that…”
“No worries.” Coco held a hoof to her chest and breathed deeply.
Diamond rephrased her question “So, you know Randolph?”
“Yes,” Coco pointed towards the balcony overlooking the theater. “Ever since I was a little filly, Randolph and I were good friends. He usually worked behind the scenes in Midsummer Theatre, we became good friends. Unfortunately, we split ways once director Charity headed back to take care of her Grandfillies. For a time, I carried on with costume design as an apprentice under a prestigious and well-known designer.” Her ears drooped “…until I parted ways from the designer.”
“That is when I started getting into legal trouble with designer licensing. My old designer made sure that my life was miserable for abandoning her. That is when Randolph stepped in and persuaded Mr. Rich to help me. I was able to finally bypass my old designer, since the true authorities found nothing wrong with my application,”
“From then on, I was able to go forward with what I loved doing.” She tilted her head “I told Randolph that if he needed anything, I owed him one… Who knew he would send me a filly?” She chuckled.
Randolph actually convinced her family to help Coco. Her Parents! The ponies whose pockets were as buttoned up tight as a snare drum. Fascinating. If only she claimed that the contribution to the school ensured fillies and colts a bright future, things might’ve been able to go differently. But, that was water under the bridge now, there was no changing that.
Coco politely asked “So, Diamond Tiara, I take it you are a Rich too?”
Diamond Tiara wasn’t used to her name being called in a soft manner, most of it was either when her parents were addressing her in loud and clear ‘Canterlot’ fashion. Frankly, using that name brought back too many bad memories. Also, what would Jasmine and other passerby ponies think when her true name was thrown into the street? The lie had gone far enough, but she was ready for a change. Maybe she should stick to her nickname for good measure. Besides, she liked the ring of ‘Dazzle Tiara’
She figured her fake alias would do the trick. “Actually, I prefer Dazzle- Dazzle Tiara.”
Coco shrugged, flashing a cheesy smile. She chuckled softly, “Alright, I’ll make sure I’ll call you Dazzle from now on.” She motioned further into her apartment “So, I take it that you’ll be staying a while, Dazzle?”
“You…” Diamond Tiara sat upright on the couch. “You are actually going to take me in?” Her fear fled like rats scurrying away from a bright light. At long last, an unknown anxiety came over her, dying to know if Coco really meant it.
“I am returning a favor to a good friend.” Coco chuckled “Besides… it would be cruel of me to throw a filly into the street- especially with winter right around the corner.” She tapped a hoof to the floor, “Just as long as you show respect to me and my work, everything should work out fine… I’m sure we’ll become good friends.”
Diamond Tiara ran up to Coco hugged her tight “Thank you, Coco!”
Coco jumped from the sudden shout, managing a nervous “You are very welcome, Dazzle.”
Diamond let go of Coco, following the mare down the quaint hallway. Coco’s footsteps echoed in the hallways “To be honest, I was contemplating on getting a roommate, so I prepared a guest bedroom.” She swung the door open. “Randolph sent you just in time.”
Diamond Tiara found the room to be a little messier than the living room, with fabric, tables, sewing machines, and more strewn out across the room. A solitary mattress occupied the middle of the floor, ironically bare of blankets and pillows.
Coco tapped her hoof on the hardwood, staring at the room like it was a prodigal colt “You know what, on second thought, you could take my room…”
Diamond Tiara affirmed “It’s okay, I’ll be fine here.”
“You sure? It’s awfully cruel of me to have my guest sleeping on the floor…” Coco pointed out.
“I’m fine. Besides, it would be rude of me to barge into your home and take your bed.” Diamond Tiara set her baggage in the room, right next to a desk. “Besides, we can clean up this room as we go, no hurry here.”
“Alright, as long as you are happy- I’m happy.” Coco entered the room. “Do you want me to help you unpack?”
“No thank you, I can manage.” Diamond picked up a couple fabrics and rolled them over the mirrors clustered together in the far corner.
Coco’s expression wavered into somewhat of confusion “Alright, I’ll be in the other room if you need me.” She exited, muttering under her breath about some pattern of colonial Mane-hattan.
Diamond thought nothing of it and cleared a path to the mattress.
Unzipping the suitcase and undoing the button of the saddlebags, she set the contents down gently on the only clear spot of the room- the mattress. Diamond straddled the clothing that Randolph had packed on her back and trotted to the closet.
“OOF!” Diamond’s head bumped on the wall of the closet. She rubbed the pain area and scoffed “Guess I got to get used to the fact that I don’t have a walk-in closet anymore…”
Diamond surveyed the crowded room, sighing deeply as her breath picked up the dust that settled after all the years. She estimated that this room was half the size of the one back in Ponyville.
Oddly though, she liked this cluttered room. It possessed something that the other lacked. Maybe it was because this one was given out of the Kindness of Coco’s heart. At home, anything she wanted could be granted through her parents. Her room in Ponyville wasn’t even one percent of her father’s earnings.
With everything scattered, she oddly liked the mess because it was new… she wasn’t used it, but it was refreshing to find something so colorful in contrast to the grey and white of home.
She set down her personal items carefully after clearing a desk of a sewing machine. Afterward, she took her hygiene items and headed out the door.
Once she exited, it was like a whole new world. The hallway, sparsely decorated with pictures of flowers that looked like cutie marks were hung on the walls. She proceeded toward the closed door at the end of the hallway, light seeping out from under the door.
She knocked.
A couple of hoof steps followed, with the imprint of light coming from underneath. Coco answered, the door muffling her voice “Yes dear?”
“I’m wondering where the bathroom is?”
“Oh, it’s the door half-way down the hall, you can’t miss it…”
Diamond trotted back towards her room, navigating towards a little alcove midway through the hall. Opening up to the bathroom, she marveled at the appropriately decorated with translucent curtains with bamboo designs covering almost every inch of the curtains.
She closed the door behind her to allow enough privacy. The porcelain shone brightly. Diamond turned away from the reflective surfaces. She turned a clear mirror away, revealing a tiny cabinet behind it. Placing her toothbrush and hairbrush into the cabinet, Diamond couldn’t help gawking at the other items in the cabinet. It had Coco’s makeup, and moisturizers in there, along with a fancy perfume called ‘Laverne Chanel- Lush Lavender’
More items occupied the cabinet, from Ibuprofen, to common cough drops here and there. But, there was one item that Diamond couldn’t pry her gaze away from. An orange stained transparent pill bottle sat on the lowest shelf. On the label, ‘Coco S. Pommel’ was addressed in fine black letters, was labeled ‘Vistaril- Hydroxyzine- Antihistamine’
Diamond reluctantly closed the cabinet as she her hoof steps approaching behind the door. The second she finished, Coco knocked on the door. “Dazzle? Is everything alright in there?”
“Yes, just finishing up!” Diamond pressed the handle on the toilet and turned the knob on the sink, letting the cold water gush from the faucet. Placing her hooves under the stream of water, she averted her gaze from the filly staring back at her.
“I forgot to tell you, this is a little odd circumstance… I have dinner with a bunch of friends later tonight,”
“Yeah?” Diamond shut off the faucet
“Sorry, but I’m worried about leaving you here all alone, but I don’t want you to be too uncomfortable… after all, you just got here.” Coco said “So, would you like coming with me to visit some friends?”
“Sure,” Diamond dried her hooves on the towel and opened the door. “I think it would be good for me to get out and breathe for a bit, anything to help me get settled in.”
“I’m sure my friends won’t mind. Besides, Yttrium Fuse is always on ‘code red’, he’ll most likely skip out on us.” Coco waved he hooves in quotation marks as she said ‘code red’. “We’ll be out by four-thirty, so do whatever you need to…”
“Got it!” Diamond skittered into her room, slipping on the hardwood floor. She popped her head back into the hallway “Sorry, Coco, I’ll try not to shout too often.”
“Its fine,” Coco nervously rubbed her head “As long as you are trying your best…”