More Powerful
Spoiled flushed with rage.
“Insolent little whelp,” she yelled, “what could you possibly know?”
My heart beat faster. I wanted to strike her down with my words, but I had to be tactical about it.
“I know what a bully looks like.” I said. “I heard what you did to Pip Squeak. I’ve seen how you treat your daughter.”
Establish why ponies should listen to me, keep the accusations vague to force Spoiled onto the defensive without giving her any details to dispute.
“A blank flank like you understands nothing.” She said, “You should know your place.”
Or she could just ignore my accusations entirely and attack my standing. I could leverage that though.
“My place is here.” I said. “I will not be silent while you bully children.”
Spoiled raised her nose to the point that I wasn’t sure she could still see me given our height difference.
“Your place is in the gutter they dragged you from,” Spoiled scoffed, “Obviously your parents didn’t want you.”
You know what? Fuck it.
If she was willing to fight dirty, then so was I.
“Here we have the high and mighty Spoiled Milk picking on orphans in the street!” I said loudly. “Who among you has a modicum of respect for somepony so craven?”
Okay, maybe I was laying it on a bit thick, but seriously, she thinks she can get away with bulling an orphan for having no parents. Some of the ponies whose attention we grabbed with the musical number moved a little closer.
“My name is ‘Spoiled Rich’.” She corrected tersely.
The statement was neutral, but her tone betrayed her.
“Insecure about your name, hmm?” I asked. “Afraid everypony will realize your only worth as a pony is the money you married into?”
“How dare you!”
Her face was growing redder, even through the excessive makeup she had on.
Let’s be more direct.
“You’re an arrogant, narcissistic old nag,” I continued. “You contribute nothing to society and the only reason anypony puts up with the rancid cesspit you call a personality is your husband’s money.”
“You have no idea-”
Blood pounded in my ears. The next most obvious insecurity I could exploit was her vanity.
Oh that’s perfect!
“And don’t think we all don’t see how much makeup you’re wearing,” I interrupted. “Beauty was your only marketable quality, wasn’t it? And you’ve aged like milk.”
“Who put you up to this?” Spoiled demanded. “There’s no way you came up with this on your own!”
She’s afraid ponies are out to get her? Let’s double down on that and then bring it back to the original point now I’ve taken her down a few pegs.
“It could be anypony, couldn’t it?” I asked mockingly. “And the saddest part is that you’re raising your daughter to be as despised and friendless as you.”
At the word friendless I heard a gasp from the crowd.
“Come, Diamond Tiara.” Spoiled huffed. “I won’t have you be influenced by this urchin.”
“No.” Diamond cried. “I’m not going to end up like you!”
Spoiled recoiled at her daughter’s rebuke before she raised herself up to her full height. She towered over both of us. I don’t know if Spoiled had resorted to physical abuse before, but it was a clear move to intimidate.
I reared up and placed both my forehooves on her chest. I had no hope of pushing her back, she weighed at least four times what I did, but there was a clear symbolism to it for the ponies watching - and I was sure that a mare like Spoiled would be very upset at being touched by a ‘common waif’. Maybe she would even slap me.
“Stay back!” My voice squeaked.
“Unhoof me you filthy peasant!” Spoiled yelled.
I turned my cheek towards Spoiled, looking over at Diamond who was staring with wide eyes. Spoiled was trying to push me away, but my hoof grip was too strong for her to do so without losing hair. Then she grabbed my right fetlock and twisted it, breaking my grip.
I screamed.
The pain was so intense I could do nothing else. Did she know I had broken it? She tossed me aside and I landed in a heap.
“Don’t try to fake being hurt,” Spoiled said, “You’ll get no money from me.”
Tears were streaming from my eyes, but I got back up. It hurt so much, but I focused on the anger. It didn’t mask the pain as much as I’d like. I was limping but I managed to stay on my hooves. I wanted to say something badass like ‘Thank you, may I have another?’, I was choking on my own tears, so I couldn’t say anything. I tasted blood in my mouth. Must have bitten my tongue.
I think it was dawning on Spoiled that I might not be faking.
I spat blood on her hooves. Her look of apprehension swiftly turned to rage. I relaxed my jaw and pulled my tongue back away from my teeth, ready to take the next blow.
“Don’t hurt her!” Diamond Tiara pleaded.
The strike never came, instead I was tackled from the side.
In pushing me out of the way, Diamond had taken the blow herself. To my horror I saw that there was blood running down her face. Her tiara had broken and cut into her as it was knocked from her head, laying bent on the ground beside us.
Spoiled Rich had backed up a few paces, making some kind of excuse. Of course she would care more about appearances than the fact she just injured her own kid. I wished I had some gauze or something to press on Diamond’s head to stop the bleeding, or even a paper towel.
Fuck my leg hurt. It wasn’t as bad as when I broke it initially. Maybe a 7/10. Not that I could convince my body to stop crying about it.
The crowd murmured, unsure what to do. The bystander effect; I could recognise it. They all knew something had to be done, but none of them wanted to be the first to take responsibility. A pink unicorn with a straw yellow mane was the first to approach us. With her mane down I didn’t recognise her at first.
“Hi Green,” she said, “I’m Soothing Melody, do you remember me from the hospital?”
I did. She was the trainee I’d freaked out in front of for no reason. I didn’t trust my voice not to just sob, so I nodded.
“And who’s your friend here?” Asked Melody in a gentle tone.
She gave a death glare towards Spoiled for a moment before looking back to Tiara and I.
“I’m Diamond Tiara.” She answered for me.
“Does anypony have a first-aid kit?” Melody switched her tone of voice when she spoke to the crowd.
A pony I didn't recognize quickly grabbed a first aid kit from inside their house and passed it to Melody. She opened it with her magic, tearing open a pack of gauze. She pressed the gauze on Diamond’s forehead and guided her hoof to it.
“Keep pressure on this until it stops bleeding.” Melody instructed. I almost interrupted her before she corrected her own mistake, “I mean uh, don’t take it off to check though. Just- I’ll tell you when, okay?”
Then Melody turned to me. “This is the leg you broke, isn’t it?”
“Yes.” I managed to say.
“Now I know you’re a tough little filly,” Melody said, “But I need you to tell me honestly how much it hurts.”
She gave me a patient expression while she waited for me to collect myself.
“It hurts a lot.” I said. “I think something is wrong.”
Melody’s eyes widened slightly in surprise and her sense of urgency increased.
“Did you hit your head when you fell?” She asked.
“No.” I said, “Er, maybe. I bit my tongue somehow.”
“Alright,” said Melody, “I’m taking both of you to the hospital.”
“Ahem.” Spoiled cleared her throat. “I’m Diamond Tiara’s mother and-”
“Great.” Said Melody. “You should come with us to the hospital.”
“You won’t be taking my daughter anywhere.” Spoiled ordered. “It’s barely a scratch.”
“I’m taking her to the hospital,” Melody replied, “And if you have a problem with that you can report me to the town guard.”
Melody turned her back on Spoiled and gave her attention to Diamond Tiara again.
“Here, let me see.” Melody gently removed Diamond’s hoof from the gauze she was holding on her head.
The gauze stayed, stuck to the coagulated blood beneath it. Melody took out a roll of medical tape from the first aid kit and taped the gauze in place so it wouldn’t get dislodged and tear off the clot.
Honestly, with the bleeding stopped Diamond’s injury probably wasn’t bad enough to make going to the hospital a necessity, but Melody was doing exactly the right thing by insisting. The hospital would be a safe place to sort all of this out.
“Can you walk, Green?” She asked.
I tried to put weight on my injured leg and winced. I could still hobble on three legs though. Melody sighed.
“Would you feel comfortable with me carrying you?” Asked Melody, before adding, “I won’t be able to hold you up in my magic for that long, so you would be laying on my back.”
I felt tired, and battered, and being carried actually sounded wonderful.
“Yes please.” I said, “I trust you.”
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Not shown in this chapter, Green going to jail for first degree MURDER!
Awesome chapter.
Nice.
Time for murder? Im fine with murder. But that's just cause I'm a crazy changeling
Jesus fuck, Spoiled’s certainly just spoiled her day, not to mention the rest of her likely short life
That last line, was so powerful I really hope she's beginning to heal.
I hope someone reams different members of the crowd if they try to show sympathy for Green. They stood around and did nothing as an adult assaulted two kids. It's beyond the bystander effect; it was just plain cowardice.
Savages! Savages!
Barely even ponies!
But who shall sound the drums of war?
Ouch Spoiled is going to be getting some massive karma shortly. Abusing foals in public is going to look very bad on her.
11430134
"Sorry to interrupt your meeting Princess Sparkle, but I need to inform Miss Applejack that her foster daughter has been in an altercation and now she's in the hospital."
...
"No, not with another filly, with an adult"
...
"I shall fetch her highness' battle axe at once."
11430101
Assault not murder though she probably would have gone that far if given the chance. She so busy with thinking she the best she never thought about the consequences of her actions.
last and this chapter are awesome, green is on a role
spoild bitch doesn't realise how much she fucked up
Gosh is that 2 Trust Once Lost chapters in less than a month or am I dreaming?
11430154
The word "murder" is often used jokingly when someone delivers a particularly cutting verbal diss. Like a verbal beat down, but more intense. "Murdered by words" as it were. Theyre not saying that anyone actually attempted real murder here.
Name drop -- "I trust you."
why does this line feel so cathartic
She is bleeding, from the head... things like that should, in most cases, be checked out by a professional
Who I am sure would absolutly love to hear about what happened
The healing has begun
11430182
I think we're all in a coma.
I will now create dimentional travel to slaughter milk anyone have the funds?
11430151
I see Luna’s Dr. Choppy is about to make an appearance.
11430133
( the camera pans over a bound and gagged Spoiled who glares into the lens ) First we deal with this one, then we sound the drums of war!
I really enjoyed Green's story! When I saw that line, it feels like it is time to face all stages of grief, minus anger, because it sounds like an ending might not be too far off now. Right now, I hope there are a lot more personal baggages to sif through that Green left in the open.
You've made a really emotionally captivating story over the years! Awesome work Wordsmith!
and yet Spoiled will slim out of most of this. it is how she has gotten away with crap for years.
WITNESS THE WRATH OF THUNDERMONKEY!
Or preferably, don't. It can be real scary, y'know.
Well...Spoiled just guaranteed herself a spot in the Ponyville jail.
I take an unhealthy amount of pleasure watching elitist pricks scream and cry as their lives and fortunes come crashing down around them.
I'm loving this story
Pivotal moment for green right here
11430254
I'm not sure. This time, she physically attacked children in public, in front of a crowd, badly enough for them to need to go to the hospital. It's not a "no witnesses" thing. And seeing as the hospital has previously been shown perfectly willing to call in case workers before and investigate abuse, I'm not sure this could be easily swept under the rug.
Hurting children, yeah, Spoiled is screwed now. Words were one thing, but physically harming children, the crown is coming down on her now.
If she is lucky, she will get off with a hefty fine, forced therapy, and begging forgiveness.
Oh Spoiled....
You dun screwed up!
11430282
Possibly losing Diamond Tiara as well to foal protection services for this stunt.
Hahaha yeah spoiled is going in the slammer for that. When she gets out she'll probably be divorced as well.
So Spoiled Rich will get the ban hammer for sure. lol, Righteous Justice will prevail.
Keep up the great work with the story.
11430249
Considering you let your cousin off the hook because she got a taste of her own medicine without even a scolding Considering that she had been given nothing but kindness by her relatives and instead of enjoying it she threw it back in their face. If you don't stand up for the right thing even if the wrong thing doesn't seem a huge deal like nightmare moon like a weed they will grow and destroy everything good around them. She he has seen too many times people don't wish to get involved with doing the right thing and so they can't believe in it.
11397338
Twilight is a nice pony but too ridged. She likes things neat and orderly and children are rarely like that. Plus twilight doesn't handle life throwing curve balls at her. Remember when she " volunteer" to babysit her niece. The day was a disaster because she already had plans and instead saying no or finding a substitute to take her duties for the day.
A bit of a mild reaction for a bully of that caliber, but that is a good thing in this case. Bullies have no limit to what they are willing to do. Mad props to Green though for having the mental fortitude to withstand and endure all that, especially for Diamond Tiara.
Spoiled Rich might be able to bully the passive crowd into silence but I am earnestly hoping that Soothing Melody will be willing to testify. Much like bullies, the rich will do anything to stay rich, literally anything.
I also hope Spoiled won't outright attack Soothing Melody for helping the fillies. She is bad enough she might.
static.manebooru.art/img/2020/10/19/781325/medium.jpg
So... that's a solid 7 of 10.
Well, they weren't kidding about that Earth pony strength. .... plus being an adult.
God, what a fucking Spoiled Bitch!
Yeah I can’t see any way to spin that where she keeps her position on the school board. Assaulting children in public is one of those things no one in their right mind wants to have influence at a school.
11430131
It's so easy to say that, isn't it? To call out others on their cowardice. It's not that simple when the moment strikes. Even the easiest things become hard to do because brains are dumb and make us do stupid things. The brain is weird, wonky, and half the time it doesn't function. People are much more likely to whip out their phones and record rather than help- they freeze in horror. It's stupid, it's cruel, it doesn't make sense, but that's just how it is. Like watching a trainwreck. Very few can set aside the shock and alarm experienced in that moment, and they're likely in professions that train you to have such strength.
So, can you honestly say you'd leap in to help? Or is that your moral compass talking? Is it just what you want to be able to say you can do? I can say with confidence I would probably freeze. Probably. Thar's why I don't really blame anyone when stuff like that happens. Sure, it's frustrating, but I can't blame anyone since I'd probably do the same. Probably.
It's past midnight at the time of writing this, so I'm being far too talkative and weird. Being tired makes me like that. Words start coming out and I just let it happen. Maybe I'm being an ass for no reason here, but I think a lot about these kinds of things. I've spent a lot of time in my life thinking. Too much time. Not enough time.
Er... look, point is that life is messy and you shouldn't hold it against people for failing to do the right thing because it's likely that you'd be in the same camp as them. Good night.
(Ah, it is absolutely wonderful to see Spoiled Rich's incompetence in play... Green made dangerous plays here, riling her up, but even so, there is NO excuse for striking fillies. NONE. Especially her own daughter, in front of a crowd. And the fact is, she just made multiple dangerous enemies by hurting Green, riling or no. Adults are EXPECTED to be able to hold their temper, especially when the provoker is a child... Spoiled Rich might not even be defended by Filthy Rich when he learns his daughter got hit.
Now... as much fun as this was... it's been some time, so I might have simply forgotten, but... did anyone in that town ever tell Green that Spoiled Rich's name used to be Spoiled Milk?)
Yeah if Spoiled doesn't get like jail time for all that I'm calling corruption
But what about the CMC getting their cutie marks? Since Green kinda messed up Tiaras redemption, I wonder how it will play out.
11430554
They probably watched the whole thing, and they feel bad, just like the show.
Oof. That was a serious (literal) hit that Green took there. Same goes for Diamond, jumping in the way like that. Spoiled's got practically no means of defense with the community now.
11430520
Well, bear in mind that strike was meant for Green, but Diamond took the hit for her. Obviously Spoiled had no right to go after Green a second time either, but her daughter taking the blow instead is just the icing on the cake.
I may be wrong in terms of the timeline, but it might have been something Green knew from having watched the show. If the episode revealing her name happened after the point in the show that Green had watched to, though, then… *shrug*.
11430262
Youre not alone
Btw, another awesome chapter!
Kinda funny how two Anonfilly stories I'm tracking updated on the same day. Violent, yet wholesome (in a way) updates at that. Anyway...
11430554
If I remember correctly, the CMCs got their marks more from helping Diamond realize what her Cutie Mark actually meant, more than from actually becoming her friend and redeeming her, so, I think the CMCs should still be en-route to earning their marks. It might not be a priority anymore, but Diamond still does seem to need to figure out what her mark means, and the Crusaders were definitely still willing to hear her out earlier in the story-- no reason they wouldn't listen now.
Unless I'm drastically mis-remembering something. Which is admittedly possible.
God damn this is a gem. I'm so glad I decided to read this, it's so rare that there's a great story hiding, still updating, that I haven't checked out yet. I'd say this may damn well be the single best HiE I've ever read, period. It's clear, believable, concise, the emotional stakes feel good and the world feels believable. The world feels big in ways we've seen and implying things we haven't while keeping it all consistent and believable which is a perfect way to approach lore. The canon characters feel in line with their canon inclinations, and the backgrounds & OCs feel well-placed, and the main character is likeable and their reactions are very understandable as a step up from anxiety responses that I'm familiar with. Most importantly, it's charming :)
On another note, this course of action has likely destroyed Spoiled even more thoroughly than if Green had gone straight to Luna. Gossip spreads by wildfire, and breaking a child's leg and striking your own daughter hard enough to make her bleed in public is unforgivable. Even a single strike that caused no visible harm would have been catastrophic. Bitch just sent two kids to the hospital, she may as well be dead and gone already.
edit:
Out of curiosity I went back and took a look over every other story tagged human over 40k words I've ever read. Of the HiEs, only a few are comparable in terms of how much I liked them, and some had advantages over it in other categories but I think I like this one the most. Certainly of them all this is the one I'd be most likely to recommend to another person.
11430519
Quite a distinction between freezing up if someone is getting robbed, purse snatched, or getting in an accident and someone shouting to call for an ambulance, and a prolonged argument between an adult and two children which rapidly escalates into violence. Children which those weird, wonky brains of ours are wired to try and protect. It's also instinctive for society to come down hard on those that enabled violence against children.
Well, that got personal quickly. You... do realize it gives impression that your own personal biases have come into play here to the point where it undermines, right? However, to answer your questions, I reference my comments above about society and the basic expectations we live by. I'm fairly certain that most would find that failing to intervene when a child is being abused, not just in the moment but for an extended period of time, to be the lowest threshold where criticism should be applied.