Chapter 1
Do you know how it feels to be a black sheep among white sheep? I know that feeling. You see, I'm human and I live in a world of ponies and other fantastic creatures. I somehow came here since I was a little baby. I was found by a unicorn named Ruby during a cold winter day. She took me in and raised me as her own. I wasn't released into the public until I was three; she'd worried that people would kill me for not knowing what I was. Luckily, by law from the prince Shining Armor and his wife princess Amore Cadenza (Cadance for short), that I am accepted into society. My mom was happy, but I wasn't when I came to the age of four when I started kindergarten. When I first came there, all the ponies and mares made fun of me and called me weird or creepy. I felt so alone; no other filly or colt would want to play with me or even talk to me. In the end, I always stay in the corner of the classroom playing with toys, reading a book, and feeling lonely. The only person that I ever had as a friend is my mother, who loved me even if I was different.
By third grade, I found a book in the library of ancient creatures, that looked amazing. I flipped through the book and found a picture of a creature that matches my description. It said that long ago, humans used to thrive in this world, until somehow, most of their population became extinct by an unknown reason. I had many ideas to why I'm still here; maybe I used to have a human mother and father, but they somehow didn't want me or that my real mother didn't have the capability to take care of me because she might've been poor. Whatever the reason to why I'm here, I will never know.
On a rainy day after school, I walk into town, but was stopped by a bully, who really didn't like me for just being different. I couldn't defend myself; I was weak. I didn't have the ability to defend myself and let him do whatever he wanted to do to me. He took me into an alley and got hit so badly in the gut, that I threw up a lot of the lunch I had on that day. I fell to the ground and was being stomped a lot in the chest, until my breathing went bad. Before he could give out a final blow to possibly knock me out or even kill me, a voice called out to him. The both of us look at the entrance of the alley, but me, I couldn't see anything with my vision being all blurry. The voice had a strong and feminine voice that sounded like royalty, making the bully run away afraid. I wanted to see who my savior was, but all I could see is a white blur at the entrance of the alley with two large white things from its side. It looked like an angel; another mythical creature I looked up from the library, which in ancient times, say that humans use to see them in a certain period of near death. Before I could even say a 'thank you', I passed out.
I woke up and found myself in a hospital, with my mother looking down at me with tears in her eyes. She hugged me tightly, as I weakly hugged her back. I asked her of how I got to the hospital and she says that somepony special has saved my life. I had two broken ribs and a little of internal bleeding. I cried tears of joy, knowing that somepony has saved me from certain death. The door to the room opens and there, she was, the prettiest mare I have ever seen in my life. She has white fur, beautiful light-opal eyes, pink mane and tail with light blue streaks, and large white wings on her side like that of an angel. Her age from what I guess, is about a year or two younger than I. In her mouth was a bouquet of flowers, as she walks up to me and drops them onto my lap.
"You feeling okay, Diamond?" she asked me, as I gave her a weak smile.
"Thank... y-you," I said, as I raised a weak hand.
She takes it onto her hoof and held it tightly, but gently.
"My name is Flurry," she said. "Flurry Heart."
"My name is Diamond," I responded. "D-Diamond Grovel."
Since that day at the hospital, she would visit me nearly every day and talk about her day. Never have I met another pony (or in this case, an alicorn) that has talked to me so much, besides mother. When I finally got released out of the hospital, she walked me out and introduce her family to me that waited outside for her. My mouth gaped open when I discovered that she's the daughter of Shining Armor and princess Cadance. This alicorn of a princess, eventually became my very first friend.
When I came back to school, Flurry and I would walk around together, making everypony surprised or even jealous. Meeting Flurry has changed my life; she and I would eat lunch together, help each other with homework problems, and even walk home together. From elementary school to college, Flurry Heart has always been by my side to be the best friend a human could ever have. During my years of being friends with her, I began to grow feelings for her; feelings that I don't know that are right. She's a princess and I'm nothing, but a commoner. Even if we were to fall in love, I doubt we'll ever be married. Her parents don't seem to mind me whenever I came to the castle. In fact, they treat me just like one of the family.
My name is Diamond Grovel; a twenty-two-year-old human that lives in Equestria and I can care less of what ponies say, because I have an angel on my side.
I wake up to the smell of my mother's pancakes. I lean up and rub my eyes before giving out a big yawn. I look over to my window, as I look at the nest that lies in the middle of the plant shelf. I smile, as I walk up to see the blue birds taking off into the sky. One of the chicks tried to flap its wings as hard as it could. I open up the window, making the bird jolt and land back onto the nest.
"Hey there, little guy," I said, as the bird looks up to me frightened. "Don't be afraid. I won't hurt you."
The chick gives me a smile, as he chirps with glee.
"It's time for you to fly," I said, as I held out my hand for the chick to jump onto.
The chick lands onto my hand, making me chuckle.
"If I picked a day to fly, I choose this day because of its weather and for the birthday of princess Flurry Heart."
The chick gives me a confused look and chirps.
"She's the princess that I met back in elementary school and today is her twenty-first birthday," I explain.
I look up back at the sky, as the mother chirps for her chick to fly with the rest of her babies.
"Go on," I said, as I held up my hand a little higher. "Fly."
The chick makes a leap and flaps as fast as it could. The chick looks down with surprise, then back at me.
"Go on," I said. "Be with your family. No birdie should be left behind."
The chick flies close to my face and rubs its small head against my right cheek, making me giggle. The bird happily flies up to the mother, as the family fly off toward the cable from where Flurry gets prepared for her birthday. I rest my head, as I continue to stare off at that castle.
"I can stare at that castle forever," I said to myself before giving out an exhale.
"Diamond!" called out my mother. "Breakfast is ready! Get your tush down here!"
"Coming mother," I said, as I close my window and make my way down the wooden stairs, breathing more of mother's breakfast smells.
As I make it down, I look to my left to see the dining room with pancakes in the middle of the table with a container of syrup on the side. On the left end of the table is for me, as a plate sits there with a fork and knife on its side. I make it to the bottom of the stairs and walked over to my seat and sat down. In the kitchen, my mother pours in two glasses of orange juices with her magic before making her way to the table. My mother has light-black fur, glasses, dark blue eyes, and has a light-red colored mane and tail.
"Good morning, Diamond," said mother, as she levitates my cup and places it in front of me.
"Good morning, mom," I said, before taking a sip.
"So good for you to visit me," she said, as she goes back into the kitchen and grabs herself a plate, along with a fork and knife.
"It's gonna be a good day," I said, as she walks back, levitating her plate with silverware in the middle of it.
"Why's that?" she asks, as she puts down her plate. "Is it because it's the princess's birthday?"
"Yeah," I said, as I reach over for a pancake and place it on my plate. "I plan on going over to the jewelry store and buy her the best necklace I could find. I saved up a lot of my bits for this occasion."
"You're such a sweet kid," she says, as she levitates a pancake onto her plate and starts cutting it. "I'm glad I raised you to be such a nice human."
"Thanks mom," I said, as I too began cutting my pancake.
"Anything else you got planned for today?"
"At some point, I'd like to spend some alone time with Flurry."
"Alone time?" says mother with surprise. "Is my little boy in love?"
"Mom! Stop it! You're embarrassing me."
"Don't hide it from me. You love her."
"Okay! Okay! Okay! I love her, mom!"
"I'm just messing with you," she says with a chuckle. "I too had a husband."
"You never told me about your husband," I said. "What was he like?"
"He... he was a nice unicorn," she says with a little frown. "He loved me very much, until he went into the mountains."
"Did he get lost?"
"Three of his comrades came to my door and told me that yes, he did go missing up in the mountains. I was depressed for a long while, waiting for him to make his way back, but nothing happens. Everything was going bad for me, until I found you."
"I love you, mom," I said, as I got up from my seat and hugged her.
"I love you too, Diamond," she said, hugging me back.
We hugged for about a minute, until I let go of the hug and went back to my seat.
"Let's eat," I said, as I reach over for the syrup and began pouring it onto my pancake pieces.
"Yes," agreed mother. "Let's."
After a good breakfast and shower, I grab my sack full of bits and walk over to the door. Today, I wear a tie-dye shirt and blue jeans.
"Hold on a second," called out mom, as she makes her way down the stairs. "Give your mother a kiss."
"Aw, mom! Seriously?! I'm not a little kid anymore."
"On my cheek, sweetie."
I sigh, as I take a knee and kiss my mother on her soft cheek.
"Thanks sweetie," she says with a smile, as I get back up. "Have a good day at the festival downtown."
"Thanks mom," I said with a smile. "Love you."
I open the door and was helloed by the sun and the sounds of ponies walking over to downtown. As I walk along the street, some ponies look at me bizarrely, but I didn't care; they can look at me funny, but I am walking over to the party, right after I go to the jewelry store that's not far from mom's.
In town, much more ponies from possibly all over Equestria have come to see Flurry's birthday celebration. As I walk along the sidewalk, I look up to the sky and see princess Celestia flying towards the castle, which is normal to see her niece's daughter.
"Today is definitely gonna be a good one," I said, as I look towards the crowd of ponies making their way towards downtown.
As I continue my way down the sidewalk, I spot the jewelry store up ahead. I smiled, as I picked up the pace of my walking, hoping the place is still open.
When I arrive in front of the place, I am in luck, there's somepony inside at the check-in counter. I push the door open, catching his attention.
"Hello, Diamond," said the stallion. "Can I help you?"
The stallion has grey fur, white mane and tail, and wears a monocle on his left eye.
"Hey there, Sir," I said, as I make my way up to him. "You see, I'm looking for any of your best jewelry you have in this place. I'm getting it for a lady friend for her birthday."
"Wait a second, sonny," said the stallion, as he brings adjusts his monocle. "Aren't you princess Flurry Heart's friend?"
"That's me."
"Well I'll be damned," he said with a chuckle. "Since you are the princess's friend, I'll be nice to ye and take twenty percent off of your purchase."
"Th-thank you, Sir, I said with surprise. "That's very kind of you."
"It's a special day, so why not," he says, as he gets off of his small wooden chair. "Stay right here and I'll be right back with whatever I got."
He goes into a door that'll lead him to a separate room, that I believe will hold some stuff that he saves from robbers that plan on stealing the most valuable. As I wait, I look around the place, looking at the small necklaces for marefriends, rings for marriages, diamonds in cases for show, and rubies too. I felt like I entered a goldmine that ponies dig from mountains.
"Here ya go, sonny," said the stallion, as he comes back to the check in counter with three pretty necklaces in his mouth. "Best I have around this place."
He drops all three of them, then spreads them out for me to get a good look of. The necklace on the right has a red ruby embedded onto it, with diamonds circling around it. The necklace on the left has a blue heart diamond with silver chains around it. That one looks too lovey-dovey. As for the necklace in the middle, that caught my attention. The necklace in the middle has the figure of an alicorn with diamonds for eyes and small blue rubies on the wing feathers.
"Which will it be, then?" asked the stallion.
"I'll take the one in the middle please," I said.
"Good choice," he said. "Princess Flurry would love that."
"I know she would. We're friends after all."
"That'll be thirty bits."
"Thirty bits?" I said with surprise, as I pull out my sack of bits. "Wow, that's a lot."
"Jewelry is expensive," he said, as I pull out the money.
"Here you go," I said, as I handed him the bits.
"Thank you," he said, as he takes the bits and pulls out a paper back and places the necklace in it. "And here you go."
"Thanks, Sir," I said, as I grab the bag. "Have a good day and hope to see you around the festival going on downtown."
"Oh, I'll be there. I hope to see you around too."
The two of us wave each other goodbye, as I exit the place and walk over towards downtown where I can hear cheering and music.
"Today is definitely gonna be a good birthday for Flurry," I said with a smile.
In downtown, everypony celebrates in front of the castle with music, drinks, dance, food, and games to play. For me, I stand in a long line, tenth place, as those with presents for Flurry wait for her and the rest of the family to come out. Being under the castle makes me feel insignificant; I feel like an ant under this castle.
"I wonder how long it'll take for them to come out," I said to myself, as I look forward to the castle doors.
Suddenly, the doors open and out comes a crystal pony soldier. Every pony, including myself, went quiet.
"Attention all!" announced the soldier. "Allow me to announce that crystal empire is proud to announce the twenty-first birthday of princess Flurry Heart! I give to you, her majesty herself!"
The soldier moves aside, as princess Cadance and Shining Armor walk forth, waving to everypony, as they all, including myself, waved and cheered. Then coming from between them is none other than Flurry herself. Everypony cheered, except for me. I am captivated by her beauty, as she waves to the ponies of her kingdom and those from outside the domain. She was beautiful in a pearly-white dress, her hair in a small bundle, her tail braided, and wearing her usual silver tiara. Never have I seen Flurry look so beautiful in my life; more beautiful like the first time I met her.
The family walk down the steps and make their way towards the line, making myself stand up straight. One-by-one, presents come to the princess, as she smiles with glee by all of the presents ponies give her. When it was my turn, my cheeks feel warm, my hands tremble, and my knees felt wobbly as I come up to the royal family holding Flurry's gift. Flurry gives me a smile, along with her family.
"Diamond," said Flurry, as she walks up to me. "So good to see you here."
"I couldn't miss my best friend's birthday," I said, as I open the bag. "Here. I hope you like it."
Her horn lights up, as she levitates the necklace out of the bag and gives out a small gasp.
"Oh... my," said Flurry with cheeks flushing. "Diamond... you didn't."
"Anything best for the princess," I said, as I crumple up the bag.
She uses her magic, as she brings the necklace over her head, as it slides down to her neck, which fits perfectly.
"You are the best friend a princess can ask for, Diamond," she says with a giggle.
"Th-thanks, princess," I said with a blush.
"Okay you two," said Celestia, as she makes her way over to the family. "I can see you two are being friends, but I want you two to talk when present taking is over, okay?"
"S-sorry for the delay, princess Celestia," I said, as I make my leave. "See you when you're done, Flurry."
"See ya," she says with a wave, as I disappear into the crowd.
"She loves my gift," I said to myself, as I pass by ponies. "She really loves my gift."
I walk over to a stand that sells apple cider. The mare has orange fur, blonde mane, and a cowgirl hat.
"Howdy," she says with a tip of her hat. "What ya like to drink?"
"I'll have an apple cider, please," I asked.
"Coming right, up," she says, as she grabs something underneath her booth and holds up a plastic cup with cider. "Here ya go."
"Thanks," I said, as I hand her two bits.
"Are you the human named Diamond?" asked the mare.
"That's me."
"What are you doing here?"
"I live in the crystal empire and I'm here for my friend's birthday."
"Oh! That's right! Flurry Heart is friends with ya!"
"That's right."
"My name is Applejack," she says, as she sticks out her hoof.
"Wait? The Applejack? One of those elements of harmony she told me about?" I ask with surprise.
"That's me."
"It's a pleasure to meet you," I said, as I shake her hoof.
"Good to meet you too," she says, as we break the shake.
"See you around," I said, as I walk back into the crowd and towards the tables set for whoever likes a seat.
I sit down at an empty table, away from the crowd and with a bunch of ponies snacking down on ice cream, salad, etc. I see a mare and her daughter at one of the tables sharing an ice cream, then laughing when the filly had a lot of ice cream on her muzzle.
"So good to be here today," I said, as I take a sip of my cider. "Everypony seems nice today. If only it was like this everyday."
I look over to the line of where ponies hand over their presents, but Cadance herself, isn't there. I look to my left and to my right, but she's nowhere in sight.
"Boo!" shouted a voice from behind me, making me nearly drop my drink.
I turn around to see Flurry laughing at me.
"Flurry!" I shouted. "Scared me good."
"Sure did."
"Why aren't you seeing more of your presents?"
"Got bored of seeing what ponies give me," she says with a roll of her eyes. "I noticed you sitting here by yourself and wanted to hang out with you."
"Is your family okay with that?"
"They don't care. It's my birthday and they say I'm an adult and that I can make my own decisions."
"That's correct."
She takes a seat beside me and looks down at the necklace I gave her. She gives off a soft smile, then looks back at me.
"This is such a pretty necklace, Diamond," she says, as she holds the necklace piece on her hoof.
"It reminded me of you and I had to give you it," I said before taking a sip of my cider.
"Can I have a sip of that?" she asks, as she points a hoof.
"Sure," I said, as magic engulfs my cup and is brought to Flurry's lips.
She takes a small gulp before handing it back to me. She makes a funny face and gives out a hiccup.
"Nope," she says, shaking her head. "Too strong for me."
"I guess you're not into alcohol, huh?"
"I just turned twenty-one. This is my first time taking a sip of it."
"When you drink more of it in time, you'll get use to the taste."
"Also, Diamond," she says, as she nudges my shoulder. "There's gonna be a dance in a minute under the castle. Wanna be my dance partner?"
"D-dance partner?" I said with surprise. "I... I don't know how to dance, plus I-"
She takes a hoof to my lips, making me stop my saying.
"It's okay, Diamond," she says, as she takes her hoof away from my lips. "Even if you're not a good dancer, I'll teach you."
"B-but I don't know how to dance with a-"
"Don't fret," she says, as she brings her hoof to my lips yet again. "Have an idea how we'll dance."
"You do?" I said, as she takes her hoof away from my lips.
"I've been practicing on how to dance with you for a little in my room and I think it'll be fantastic."
"B-but what if I screw up? Or break your leg or-"
Before I could continue, Flurry lands a kiss on my cheek, making my body stop functioning for a second or two.
"You'll do fine," she says softly. "I'll be with you all the way, okay?"
"Okay," I said, as I place a hand on the cheek she kissed from.
"Have I ever told you, that you are cute when you blush?"
"N-no," I said before taking a sip of my drink.
"Oh! They're about to start!" says Flurry, as she stands up. "Come on! Let's go dance."
"Okay," I said, as I leave my drink on the table and walk beside Flurry.
As we make our way, many ponies moved out of the way, as the two of us walk over to the castle.
"So this is what it feels like when walking through the crystal empire?" I asked.
"Yep."
As we walk over to the small crowd of ponies with their lovers talking to one another, as the band prepares to play their instruments.
"You ready?" asks Flurry, as I stand beside her nervously.
"Y-yeah," I said, as I fidgeted.
"Don't worry, Diamond," she says, as she places a hoof on my hand. "You're gonna be fine."
"O-okay."
I look over to the crystal pony conductor, as he uses his magic to lift his baton. The band plays soft music, making everypony close by dance with their sweeties. I look over to Flurry, as she gives me a blush.
"Princess Flurry," I say with a bow. "Care for a dance?"
"I'd love to," she said, as she stands onto her two legs and places her front hooves over my shoulder.
"Whoa!" I said with a surprise. "Are you comfortable dancing like this?"
"I don't feel embarrassed."
The two of us walked around slowly together, as we stare deep into each other's eyes.
"You feeling alright?" she asks.
"I feel... fine, actually," I replied. "It feels nice dancing with you."
She giggles, as I look over to the crowd watching, surprised to see some ponies looking at me without disgust, but with surprise and amazement. I don't see most ponies looking at me with surprise like that. This is the first time dancing and I'm beginning to have a nice dance with Flurry.
In the crowd, I spot Shining Armor and Cadance watching us from afar. I give them a wave, as they do the same. Princess Celestia gives me a wink, making me blush.
"What's up?" asks Flurry, getting my attention.
"N-nothing," I said. "Just waving to your family."
"I want you to stay focused on me, okay?"
"S-sorry."
I grab ahold on her hooves from my shoulder, as I stare deeply into her gaze. Her eyes glow with life from within, making me fall into a lovable trance.
"Flurry," I said. "If you have the time later, I need to talk to you about something that I can't hold onto forever."
"Why not now?" she asks.
"It's... for your ears only."
"Aww," she says, as she falls backwards, wings spread open.
"Whoa!" I said, as I quickly bring my hands to her back and held her.
I look around to see ponies look with astonishment. I look back at Flurry, who gives me a smile.
"I knew you had it in you," she said, as I bring her back up and onto her four hooves.
The music ends, as ponies clap with their hooves, including Flurry. After clapping, ponies are coming up to me with smiles on their faces.
"My word," said a mare in a pink dress. "You, young man, are quite a good dancer."
"I am?" I asked.
"Why of course," said a stallion in a tuxedo. "You are spot on with the princess."
"Thanks."
"How about a dance with me for later?" asks a mare wearing a green dress.
"I think not," said Flurry, as she jumps in front of me. "Go get your own special somepony to dance with."
Is she jealous? No way! She's actually defending me from being some other mare's dancer.
The mare that wanted to dance with me scoffs and walks away.
"Not on my watch," says Flurry Heart, as she looks back to me.
"Quite a cute dance you two did," said Cadance, as she and Shining walk up to us.
"I say, Diamond," said Shining. "You were quite a good dancer. That was a great finish when Flurry fell and you caught her in your arms."
"I didn't expect that to happen," I said, looking away from him.
"You two look so cute together," said Cadance. "You remind me of when Shining and I had our first dance."
"I too was like you," said Shining. "Nervous and shy."
Cadance walks up to Flurry and looks at me with a funny grin.
"I'd love it if you two got married," says Cadance to Flurry.
"Mom!" said Flurry with embarrassment, as she gives out a blush.
"M-married?" I said with surprise.
"Diamond," said Cadance. "May I have a word with you in the castle and away from the crowd?"
"Yes, princess Cadance."
"Mother?" said Flurry. "Why are you taking Diamond into the castle?"
"For a private talk," replied Cadance, as she places a wing on my back, pushing me gently towards the Castle doors.
We walk through a small crowd and away from the party, as we enter the castle and having the doors shut behind us.
"What is it that you like to talk about, Cadance?" I ask, as we walk over to the left, where one of the waiting couches stands on a small portion of crystal.
"Have a seat," she says, as she lies down on the couch. "I want to talk to you about Flurry."
"Is there something wrong?" I ask, as I sit beside her.
"Oh no. Nothing of a sort."
"Then what is it."
"Diamond, since Flurry has saved you from that alley, you two have had a very strong bond that I'm not blind to see."
"She's the only friend I have," I said. "My world has changed because of her."
"Really?"
"May I ask you something? Do you know how it feels to be a black sheep?"
"Not really."
"When I grew up, I never had many friends. I was always the odd one out and no pony wanted to say hi or even play with me."
"Oh... my," said Cadance, feeling pity for me.
"I was never the popular kid. I would always be bullied and get insulted because I'm not a pony or a unicorn or even a pegasi. Mother was all I had and she loves me deeply with all her heart."
"You poor thing," said Cadance, as she scoots closer to me and places a hoof on my hand. "I'm very sorry to hear."
"When I met Flurry," I continued. "She was an angel that came to my rescue and has always been there for me when times were rough."
"Flurry was raised well."
"She's the reason why I'm still here and I'm happy because of her. Never has any other pony cared so much about me, but her."
"I remember her when you two were still young and she talks about you here and there."
"She talks about me to you?"
"She does," says Cadance, as she looks up to the ceiling. "I still remember when you first visited the castle. You were such a shy creature and to me, you were so cute that I'm glad Flurry has made friends with you. You were like another member of the family."
"If only," I said.
"While you two hang out nearly every week, I noticed something going on between the two of you."
"And that is?"
"Diamond," says Cadance, as she looks at me. "Do you love my daughter?"
"I... um... ah..." I said speechlessly.
"Do you?"
I give out a sigh of defeat and scratched my left shoulder.
"I do," I said. "She's the most beautiful mare I have met and she means a lot to me. I'm in love with her."
She gives out a happy little squeak and jumps up off the couch and to the floor with wings spread out.
"Oh my gosh, Diamond!" she says loudly with a large smile on her face. "I totally called it!"
"You knew?" I asked with a cocked eyebrow.
"Diamond, I knew you had feelings for her and I'm very much okay with you two dating."
"I've never dated her before," I said, feeling embarrassed. "We hang out together and at times we go get some ice cream. I guess those times are considered dates."
"Diamond," says Cadance, as she folds her wings. "Tonight, I will let you two have a lovey-dovey moment and get your first kiss."
"You're okay with us dating? Because I always thought that she needed to marry someone with royalty."
"She can marry whoever she likes, Diamond. If she marries you, then Shining and I won't argue about it."
"Really?"
"Would I lie?"
"If you say so, I'd be glad to marry her when the timing is right."
She walks up to me and puts her head behind mine as a way of hugging.
"I'd be happy if you became my son-in-law," she whispers to me before pulling her head away from mine. "Come. Let's get back to the party. Better start having cake before my aunt gobbles it up for herself."
"Sure," I said, as the two of us head back to the party.