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Filthy Rich has a problem. His daughter, Diamond Tiara, keeps breaking her promises to treat her classmates with more respect. In fact, she doesn't even seem to really understand what a promise is. Since punishing her does not seem to have much effect, Mr Rich is forced to consider a more creative parenting method. But how can he make such a spoiled, materialistic little filly as Diamond Tiara see the value of a promise?
With money, of course!
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Damn. Been a long time.
*starts reading*
[youtube=lAD6Obi7Cag]
Since it's running through my head now...
--arcum42
Very nicely done.
5053108
What do you think I was listening to when finishing this one up?
This is going to the feature box.
When I read the story, my first thought was of a more recent case of worthless paper money:
upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3e/Zimbabwe_%24100_trillion_2009_Obverse.jpg/1280px-Zimbabwe_%24100_trillion_2009_Obverse.jpg
But the Weimar Germany example makes for a better lesson.
This is officially my favorite portrayal of Filthy, though, I must admit that I've not read many. I like how he's not a douchebag.
A little more brainy that the usual fare, but this really felt like it could be a Diamond Tiara-themed Aesop from the canon.
I was expecting the cash to be nearly worthless, but I wasn't expecting German post-WWI money.
5053321
...I don't care what it's worth. I want one of those.
5053343
Filthy often gets to play the antagonistic part of bad parent to the bully, but I tend to view him as a pretty decent guy. His few canon appearances seem to portray him as pleasant, if a bit stiff. Plus, Diamond seems to genuinely like him. So, I sorta assume his problem is that he's a bit too nice to Diamond, as opposed to not nice enough.
Man, those kids had to be pretty thick, amirite?
5053345
Okay, yeah. You got me.
5053296
Certainly makes sense to me. The mention of Uncle Stoneface reminds me of one of my own OC's, who I really hope to manage to mention in the next few chapters of CZ...
I certainly like the lesson and portrayal of Diamond and Filthy, too. (Though I'm obviously going a completely different route...)
--arcum42
5053297 It should.
Personally, I think bits aren't a fiat currency. But the lesson still holds. If it weren't for bits, you'd have to swap everything. And we saw how poorly that worked during Season 4!
Dear author, it was a great story! You totally should send it to Equestria Daily!
Fairly cute story you got there
5053344
> ...I don't care what it's worth. I want one of those.
Apparently, it's worth about $30, including shipping. (As in, that's how much it will cost you to get one via eBay.) I'm sure there are all sorts of economic lessons that could be learned from that... :)
Very nice story all around!
Am I right in thinking that the spelling of "thalon" is influenced by "thaler"?
That Author's Note. Wow.
When I was six, I started to get a lot of promises made to me. It seemed like the best way for an adult to get you to do what they wanted you to do. "If you behave, I'll get you that lego playset. I promise.", "If you do well in school, we'll see about letting you see your mom again. Promise.", eventually confronting the next adult about how they never keep promises and that I hate that they lied to me. (You know, maybe one day I'll tackle a Scootaloo and do a take on Equestrian foal agencies and how she came to reside within that house in Ponyville. xD)
A promise is something that goes both ways. It helps build trust. It helps kids feel like they have a worthwhile goal to want to keep their end of the bargain for something worth keeping it for. While promises can be very small or very tall, it all just leads to scorn when the kid keeps their end and the adult does not. That broken word, even something as little as "I'll buy you a candy if you clean up your room" could have lasting affects on a child to trust people who make promises with little concern for whether they should keep their end or not.
We don't understand the word promise even when we're explained its concept. It's all about how much we want and when we want it and why should we care if we hurt others who are not ourselves. That little epiphany is something I wish more institutions would reach and not just take the paths of least resistance to punish them and make that child someone else's problem. Because an ignorant child cannot with beating. They cannot learn when they are removed from a class. They must be made to understand, and for that the parents and those we leave trust in our children's education to make the effort to make them understand by the basic of animal instinct. Rewarding good deeds, and leading by prime example of what you want them to adhere to.
Anyhow, just thought that story you mentioned in the authors note was a nice contrast to certain life events growing up. Off I go to dive into this intriguing concept. (That coverart is monies, yo! (that's most awesome and cute!))
wow... now THAT is probably one of the best examples of what could of worked as a straight Diamond Tiara episode in the show as one could hope for!
Holy crap, that was a great moral lesson, and taught in a way that a child could understand. xD
Mr. Rich is just amazing. I could see this happening some time after Flight to the Finish and before Twilight Time. Maybe even after. Who knows. Makes sense to be before Twilight Time seeing how DT got so offended at the CMC in a sort of odd way broke the trust of all those ponies besides her own and Silver's.
That Pinkie Pie joke at the end before the transition.
was priceless. 
This story needs to be pitched to the comic guys at the least. I'd buy several copies just for friends and to have. xD
I like your portrayal of Filthy Rich
Also, I rarely see Pinkie Pie done as good as here (she's generally hard to write, but you managed to do it well).
Well, I think somepony has something to write in the Friendship Journal. Or do the other ponies still send letters to Celestia? Either way, this really should be an episode in the show or a story in the comics.
I'd hesitate to call this a comedy, seeing as the only real funny moments were with Pinkie Pie, but that's just debating semantics. And really, that's my only contention with this sweet, sweet story that, again, really should happen to Diamond Tiara to make her into a better pony and a more well-rounded character.
I don't even have words to say how good this was. I mean, I kinda suspected I was gonna like it, but ... wow.
Also, the bit with Pinkie and Flutters was genius.
Promises are like a lit up joint.
If you don't get to keep it than, liek whats the point brah?
Ohhh. It's not often that you get a fanfic story that really feels true to the show. Heck, in a lot of ways it does the 'moral' thing far better than the show does. Though I guess I can't imagine FiM ever explaining the idea of fiat currency to its audience. Still, in terms of tone and execution, it was pretty darn awesome indeed. And it made for a most excellent bit of Tiara redemption, Fervidor. Bravo!
As a bonus, I love seeing FIlthy portrayed in a good light. Honestly, the show actually holds him up as an honest businessman that cares about the deals he makes, and the ponies he makes them with. Yet he seems to often fall into the role of a crook, or an insufferable snob.
Congrats on getting in the Feature Box, by the by!
Also,
That mare has claws.
Clever. Truly clever.
... Of course he'll have to live with his daughter probably not promising anything from now on
But at least it'll be honest. Well, about as honest as sending your kid to buy things with worthless money^^
This. Yes. This might be the only way that Diamond Tiara would ever start to learn. That was a good idea to use for the story. And it was used well. *two hooves up*
5053297
*looks at Feature Box*
...
static1.e621.net/data/c0/29/c029d3024e199deee4e5362b3e045dd2.png
5053974
Yeah, I considered different spellings like talens or thalens but ended up with thalons. Nice that someone noticed it.
5054171
Never thought about it that way, but it does make sense. I wanted this to be a small step towards Diamond being a better pony, not a big leap of character development, so I kept the ending ambiguous but hopeful.
5054368
Yeah, I admit this isn't so much a comedy as it has comedy. I guess I just prefer having more than one genre tag, so I figured tagging it comedy couldn't hurt.
5054629
It seemed less harsh when I wrote it, somehow. I suppose he might be referring to something else she said about his parenting style and then commenting on feeling like a failure. Oh well.
5054640
Possibly, though in a way that'd be a good thing. The point was sorta to make her realize that promises have value and that promising things is to make an investment.
Damn. Stories with quality like this that touch on moral issues while staying E-rated are some seriously rare gems on this site. Now I like me some gore and grimdark, but it's still nice to see stories like this every once in a while.
ozzies4obama.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/obama-meme.jpg
I'm surprised Diamond Tiara actually made that promise. I was expected her to say something along the lines of 'No. I am not making that promise, because if a promise means so much, I don't want to break it and there is no way I am going to be able to keep this promises. Especially, when those fillies get on my nerves again, like they always do.' I know that's what I would have said.
It should be: So my money is not good here, is it?”
Edit; I saw several instances throughout the story where you don't get the tense right whenever you refer to "money" in a sentence. Here's an example:
Also, here's this:
That's should be that, and the quotation mark in front of Are is backwards.
Oh man, the description was so wonderfully deceiving. I expected some sort of a wacky comedy where Rich decides to just bribe Diamond Tiara to be a good girl. You know, throw money at the problem.
But what I got was a lot smarter. Great twist to expectations and clever aesop in the end. Well done.
5055178 I dunno, mate. Even if Di was introspective enough to realize that she can't control herself (which I don't think she is), do you honestly believe she'd be willing to admit it? Besides, it's too easy to make Diamond Tiara a flat antagonist who will never learn. We already have the FlimFlam Brothers for that. I think having her take her father's lesson to heart is a much more effective way of getting the message across.
5055178
Well, she does like her dad and didn't want to outright reject his request. She was basically bargaining with him, which I guess he should have expected after teaching her to view promises as a kind of currency.
5055312
Plus, that's kinda the point of the story.
I kind of wish Filthy Rich hadn't completely spelled out the metaphor for Diamond Tiara - and in effect, for us - and instead let her piece it together herself.
Ah, well. This was a nice story with a very well-executed lesson, and I appreciated the nod toward the German Marks from after WWI. Well done.
Money is an uncountable noun, so it's always used in the singular.
5054104
And that's why I've kept every promise I've ever made. How can one expect other folks to learn the value of a promise if yours is worthless?
One of my worst promises: "I will eat a steaming pile of dog poo if you get better grades than me in math this year." Turned out that geometry wasn't really my thing, but it was his thing. Thankfully, I had a small dog.
5055189
5055523
Language barrier type thing - in my language, money is effectively always plural. It's really, really hard for me to think of them in singular.
Will probably get around to fixing that eventually.
5055558 Fair enough. I had assumed that was the case.
That was a very clever way to teach her both a life lesson and economics.
i really like the analogy, i might have to use it
This is a good story. I'd like to see a sequal seeing Diamand struggling with keeping her promes she made to her father.... That would be intersting...
5053108
We got to install microwave ovens!
Custom kichen deliverieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeees!
georgelois.com/images/Milestones/milestones%20images/I%20want%20my%20MTV.jpg
5053321
falkvinge.net/files/2013/01/Dr_Evil-646x363.jpg
Hey, ho, that was clever.
Hey it could be worse. He could've given her money from Zimbab neigh.
The whole thing was great, but I really got to give you props for the little side gag with Fluttershy and the bills.
Gotta say, if anyone manages to get me to fave a DT story, they did something right. And you sure did something right! I had fun reading this, and liked the character interaction most of all. But maybe, just maybe, DT will be a little less horrible from now on.
How interesting.
I came looking for a story and got a lesson on economy.
PS: The puns. THE PUNS.
5056645 I've seen Zebrababwe used in a fic before.
rs1ci.memecdn.com/754/4964754.gif
This was very well done and a good way to show promises and their value. Would be cool to see a sequel.
One of the best short stories I've read. Brownies for you!