> A Snails Pace > by Bee Propaganda > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Who I Am > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- It was nice and sunny. This was the ideal day for Diamond Tiara. Well it would have been better if she did not have to spend it cooped up in a carriage heading towards Canterlot with her father, Filthy Rich. Why she would like nothing more than to be sitting on the porch of the family manor reading a book from their library. It seems, however, that her father had other plans for her today. Her father Filthy Rich, has aged well into his twilight years. His mane and tail have started showing signs of silver streaks that only he seems to be able to pull off. Even though he is getting older each day, he keeps getting more jovial and expressive with his friends and family. He has basically handed his whole business to his daughter except for a few dealings that he personally sees to, but in time he will pass on those to her as well. Teaching Tiara was hard at first, but she seemed to catch on rather quickly for a filly of her age. 'She was always great at learning' Filthy thought to himself while looking at his daughter admiring how much she looked like her mother. A tired sigh escaped his lips as he adjusted his gaze out of the side window of the carriage She heard thes sigh and turned her head towards her father "Something on your mind, Dad?" Diamond asked "Nothing important, princess" Filthy Rich responded rather quickly. It seemed he wanted to change the subject rather quickly. "Just thinking and enjoying the view." He averted his gaze from the field that was basking in the noon sunlight. He grabbed a zap apple from his personal basket of apples that he bought from the apples. He made a mental note to restock his supply for the next trip. "Is there anything that I need to worry about?" Diamond asked her father looking quizzically. He guffawed looking at her "It's just a business trip, Princess. You have nothing to worry about. You can unwind once we get to the Canterlot. Everything will be all apples" He chuckled at his little joke. Diamond rolled her eyes and resumed looking back outside. He eyed his daughter and a smile crept onto his lips once again. He started "You know, If you want we can stop by that store you like. It is along the way towards the hotel" he suggested. She look back at him searching his face for any mischievous antics, but found none. It wasn't like him to just give her something. She always had to work for everything, that was their family motto, but she would be lying if she said she didn't want to look at the new up and coming fashion designs in Canterlot. It just felt fishy to Diamond somehow. She decided to try and do some digging. It would give her practice anyways for her future in business. "So... what is the catch? Dad." Diamond Tiara deadpanned 'straight to the point, I guess' she thought. Filthy stared back at his daughter smirking he took another bite "You know, I knew you would ask that question, glad to know you still remember one of the family mottoes" He was proud his daughter caught onto these little things that aid in everyday business ventures. "yea yea, dad" Diamond Tiara said. She was glad that she was able to figure it out so fast, and by the look of it to her he was pretty satisfied with her understanding of the business world. "Anyways, What do you want from me in exchange for the clothes?" she asked getting straight to the point. "A trip" he stated blatantly. The smirk on his face left as he continued "Diamond, my daughter, it is time for you to fully take over the family business. As you already know, I am beginning to enter into my twilight years. I feel that I have done all I can for you, to ensure your future is stable. Hence, why I brought you with me on this little business venture." Filthy Rich took a second to look at his daughter to make sure she was following along. She nodded "O.K. I understand. You want me to do this business trip. Where am I going?" Diamond Tiara asked her father. To say Diamond Tiara was ecstatic was an understatement. She wanted to make her dad proud by showing him she could handle all of the things he could and then some. She already had plans to make bigger profits once she had full control over the business. She just needed to do this last "trial" as she put it. Filthy Rich chuckled "heh.. heh.. Don't get too cocky, princess." he looked at her raised eyebrow and quickly explained. "Where you are going won't be in Equestria. It will be in Griffonia, The coastal city of Feathereach to be exact. We have trade dealings that need to be renewed with them. I decided that if you can handle this, you can handle the whole operation. Once, you have made it back, and I have received a letter that things went smoothly, then I will hand the whole business over to you." Again Filthy Rich took a moment to study his daughters face. 'She really has a good poker face' he thought. Diamond Tiara played out the scenario in her head. On one hand she would be able to visit a foreign land and learn a new culture, even if it was for just a few days. On the other hand she didn't want to be gone that long. She still had things to do with the business. "What about..." "The store and warehouse I will handle and take care of while you are gone" Filthy cut her off already answering her question. "I will not force you to go on the trip if you do not want too." he stated. "I just want you to be able to handle other species, and the way they do business. I wanted you to start with the griffons because they are the reason our business has flourished." he smiled and leaned over to his daughter to whisper "all our family motto's they are actually griffon mottos." He laughed. She deadpanned, but soon started to chuckle with her father. "Are you... sure you aren't... aging backwards?" Diamond Tiara asked her father in between breaths. Her chuckling started to die down with her father's. "I know I have been acting childish lately, but it is another thing I want you to learn. Not everything has to be about work. You need time to unwind and laugh for no reason." She agreed by nodding along "Anyways back to the topic. Think about it. We will be in Canterlot in a few hours. I want you to take that time to see if YOU..." he started pointing a hoof out at her "... want to do this. I do not want you to consider what I want. You need to decide if you want this. OK?" He asked confirming that he made his point clear. Again Diamond Tiara nodded. Her mind was made up already, but she agreed with her father. She did want to think about this. "Ok father. I will give you my answer once we reach the city." She resumed looking back out to the field. She saw Canterlot in the background approaching slowly. It was still a few hours away just like her father said. She sighed and began going through more scenarios in her head for the pros and cons about this business venture. > A Chance Meeting: Part one > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Dad, how does this look?" Diamond asked her father while walking out of a dressing room towards a full body mirror. She was wearing a white and gold dress that hugged her barrel and withers snugly. The trims of the dress ended in alternating colors of white and gold that hung right above the ground so as not to drag. The right side of the dress was split to show the cutie mark of the one wearing it. "You look fantastic, princess." Filthy Rich informed his daughter. He knew exactly what she was doing. He knew Diamond Tiara wouldn't just use this chance to get a new dress that she wanted. She was using this opportunity to get a dress that would appeal to the customs and cultures of the griffon kingdom. He started "Nothing says business in Griffonia more than white and gold" That put ease into the young mare. She honestly did not know what colors griffons preferred, so she went with her instincts and chose the two colors that represented wealth. 'Maybe I should get some purple eyeliner to make this dress pop out' Diamond thought to herself. "Dad?" Diamond asked. "Yes, Princess?" He answered while browsing through the party stallion ties. He wanted to get another funny tie. It was sort of a hobby for him. Knowing she had his attention she continued. "I know I agreed to this, and I will not take that back. However, I need to know. What kind of trade deals require us to stop in Canterlot first?" She looked at her father expactantly wanting to get a legitimate answer. She looked at him to signal she was serious with this question. He looked up at her and noticed her expression. He sighed. "I am so happy that you are so perceptive. It does a father proud..." He looked at her and chuckled. "You need an escort." He paused taking and started to explain after seeing his daughters visible confusion. " You are going to Griffonia. They may be wealthy business people, but they are sneaky and sometimes they go to extreme measures trying to take what they do not own." He looked at her as she nodded to him that she understood now. "So basically, I am going to be needing a guard..." She confirmed with her father. He nodded. "Ok, that makes sense, but why didn't we just ask for an escort from Princess Twilight?" she asked her dad confusion once again greeting her. She started towards the dressing room intent on taking of the dress and preparing for the purchase. "Well, you see. We could of went to Princess Twilight, but all the guards there are cadets. Protecting Twilight is basically like an internship for the big league right now. Maybe later down the line, she will set up her own defense regiment and elect a shield major of her own, but until then I want to request one that has the experience necessary to travel outside of Equestria." Filthy replied. He thought for a moment. Maybe he should make some time to talk to princess twilight to set up a barracks for training of guards ponies. It would benefit the town immensely and bring in profit for the business. Plus it would quiet things down in Ponyville. The town needs more quiet times and less monster raids. "So we are going to be requesting a guard from princess Celestia's regiment?" She asked while behind the curtain. The dress was easier to get off than to put on. She just had to make sure it didn't wrinkle. "Nope, We are going to be requesting a Guard from Princess Luna's Regiment." Filthy Rich stated matter of factly "Why would we request guards from princess Luna's regiment?" Diamond Tiara asked clearly confused. "I am surprised you do not keep up with the military..." Filthy mused "...Then again, you never needed a reason to know." Filthy completed his statement mumbling the last part mostly to himself. Diamond opened the door and gave her father her signature deadpan expression. Clearly she wanted him to elaborate further "Care to elaborate, other than muse over my lack of knowledge" She stated with a hint of irritation in her voice, she didn't want to be irritated, but Diamond was the type of mare that didn't like being left out of the loop. She could assure to Celestia that she will be reviewing this subject while on her free time. Filthy smirked again "Sorry for being inconsiderate, princess. The reason why we should always request a lunar guard would be because of the unicorns." Filthy took a moment to pause and see if she was following along. She still seemed confused over this subject. He sighed and smiled at his daughter. "Princess, this is a long subject that I do not wish to discuss right now. How about we go to dinner and discuss this? We are holding up the line after all." He said while smiling and tilting his head forward to somepony behind Diamond. She looked behind her and saw that the cashier was waiting patiently with a big smile on his face. Diamond tiara cantered over to the register to pay for her dress. Filthy walked outside of the store He looked around the area to find a restaurant for dinner. He soon spotted one towards the end of strip mall.'Doesn't look that busy to me' he thought to himself. 'I wonder if they sell apples?' he was hoping they would sell apples. 'Probably won't be as good as the apples from sweet apple acres though.' he continued to think more about those apples with their nice crisp flesh and juicy insides. He could feel his mouth watering from the thought of eating one. *Bump* Filthy was brought out of his thoughts by something bumping into his foreleg. He looked down at the young fuschia unicorn filly that seemed to be dazed by the impact. He chuckled to himself, "Well well, I didn't know I was that boring that foals couldn't see me." The filly looked up at him, she still adorned the dazed expression, but it slowly started to fade. "Hi, mister!" she beamed her pearly whites at him. "Sorry, I ran into you. Daddy said he would get me some ice cream before his next mission and I just got so excited IstartedrunningasfastasIcouldeventhoughheisaslowwalkerand MPPHHH!?!?!?!?" She was silenced by a yellow magical aura that gently encased her lips. "Sorry about her, Mr. Rich" A light gray lanky lunar guard pony said to the amused earth pony. "She just gets so excitable. I don't know where she gets it from." The guard started explaining. A tired yet amused sigh escaped his lips. He let the aura dissipitate getting a false glare from his daughter. Filthy raised a brow "Do I know you? Your voice sounds semi familiar..." he asked the guard. "but I don't remember befriending a member of the lunar guard" He started recollecting his past interactions with lunar member in his memories, but nothing came into his mind. "Well, I can't speak for the other Lunar Guardsponies, but we know eachother, Mr. Rich, Don'tcha remember me?" The guard tried to reassure him. Then something clicked in his head "duh, of course ya don't recognize me with this helmet on..." He took the helmet off, and his fur started to change color from a light gray to a buttercup colored coat with a sea green cropped mane and tail. "... there we go, that should be abit easier for ya." "I like that trick daddy, Can I put on your helmet, PLEASE. I promise I won't drop it. Please please please please please ple-mmmpphh?" The same yellow aura gently grabbed her lips again. Filthy chuckled as he saw the scene unfold in front of him. This reminded him of his early years raising Diamond. 'It's always the fillies that seem to be the ones filled with never ending energy.' he thought to himself "Sure thing, Escargot" Snails chuckled along with filthy and gently placed the helmet on her head. Her coat color started to change to that of her dad's previous color. "Keep guard and make sure nopony eavesdrops while I talk to our spy, then we can go and get some food, sound good slugger?" Snails said to his daughter with a hint of a smile on his face "Ok daddy, no spies will make it past my super eyes" Escargot said giving a salute to her dad. She started pacing around them in circles giggling every so often. Snails turned his attention towards Filthy rich again. If this is gonna be like anyother interaction with a ponyville resident he might as well state the obvious question. "Anyways, What's on your mind Mr.Rich? I know you have a question for me. Every other Ponyville resident has one when they find out what my job is." Filthy Rich was pulled from his thoughts and looked at snails. "I am going to be honest Snails, I never took you as one to join the guard." Filthy looked at his daughter to make sure she was indeed there and not a hallucination. "Let alone have a foal of all things. My burning question is how did all of this happen?" Filthy Rich asked with disbelief that this was the same snails from before. Snails stifled a laugh "Yea, I hafta agree with ya on that one. If you told me 10 years ago that I was going to be in the lunar guard, AND that I was gonna be a father taking his foal for ice cream every other week I woulda just been confused by why you were even talking to me." he chuckled and looked at the earth pony. "Wanna go get something to eat with me and my daughter?" he invited the earth stallion. "There is this place just down the street that servers candied everything basically, and I would love to get my foal some of that tasty tasty ice cream that she 'desperately needed' as her mother put it. Filthy chuckled along with him " Sure thing Snails. Do you mind if we wait on my daughter first. She is finishing up an order in the store. She should be out in a few more minutes." Snails nodded. "We don't mind waiting on her, Do we slugger?" Snails asked to his daughter that just started intently listening after the word ice cream came into play. She shook her head and beamed her pearly whites once more "The fun shall be doubled, that's what mommy always says" The light gray filly said while resuming her pacing incorporating jumps every now and then around the two stallions that continued to idly chat about their lives thus far. > A Chance Meeting: Part Two > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Diamond tiara let a content sigh escape her lips as she exited the boutique. She was happy to get out of there. She wanted nothing more than to get some food and to read for the rest of the evening in a hotel room. Looking for her father she found him nearby sitting on a bench chatting with a lanky, light gray guardpony. She swore that guardpony looked familiar, but she couldn't place her hoof on it. She did not feel like wasting anymore time standing about. She started to trot her way over to the two stallions. Once in earshot she could hear them chatting about trivial topics. She made her presence known by lightly tapping her father withers interrupting the conversation. "Hmmm? Oh Hey, Princess. How was it?" He asked her wanting to know if anything went wrong. "Everything is fine dad..." She responded with a smile "...I was thinking maybe we should get something to eat and call it a night." She stated. "You are right about that, Princess..." Filthy agreed looking at the northern clock tower seeing that it was nearing six o'clock "My friend here tells me there is a small quaint place just down the street where we could eat." Diamond looked at this stallion her dad was talking about. He seemed to be focused on a little fuchsia filly, that she apparently failed to notice when she walked up to them. He seemed to be playing magic, wings, earth with the little filly. She pumped her hoof after she won the round. Not wanting to be a rude mare, she introduced herself to the stallion. "Hello sir, My name is Diamond Tiara. Nice to meet you." She said offering a hoof to the addressed "Nice to meet ya too. Diamond..." Snails replied blatantly taking the hoof and started to eagerly shake it. "It's been a while hasn't it?." He Diamond was even more confused now that she heard the voice of the stallion. She swore she could pinpoint this stallion, but his color scheme just didn't ring a bell. "Do I know you from somewhere. You seem a bit familiar, but I just can not place it.' She squinting her eyes at the enigma of a stallion hoping for anything to pop up that would explain this situation further. "You don't remember me?" Snails said sounding a little dejected Filthy tried to muffle a chuckle, but Diamond was able to slightly hear him. She turned towards him ready to ask for information in the matter, but she was interrupted by the small filly talking to the unknown stallion. "Daddy, You put your helmet back on remember?" The filly said in an innocent voice. Snail's ears perked back up. He gave a pat on the head for his daughter. "Oh Yea heh heh..." He said chuckling rubbing the back of his neck with a hoof. "Thanks for reminding me Slugger" He said as he took off his helmet again with his magic. Once again his coat started to change from light gray to a yellowish buttercup. His mane and tail changed from being black to that of a sea green. He produced a dorky smile at the young mare. She stared on in awe. Now she remembered who this stallion was. She couldn't believe this is what he's been up to since Miss Cheerilee's middle school class. On top of that she couldn't believe he would even be happy to see her after what she did to him last time they met. Not even her father knew about that. Diamond Tiara forced a smile as to not be rude. "Snail's it is so nice to see you after all these years." Diamond Tiara said without a tremble in her voice. She could act perfectly, but that did not stop her thoughts from panicking. "I see you joined the guard sometime during the past 10 years." She inferred by the look of his garb. "Yea four years next month. The princesses gave me a small break to bond with my daughter before I am assigned my last mission before I retire" he stated proudly. For Snails this was just one big step into the next chapter of his life. He couldn't wait to start being a proper father figure for his young daughter. That would be an even better job than being a member of the elite guard. "That's spirit Snail's..." Filthy complemented "I can attest to that. There is nothing better than being a a proper father for our next generation, but I must ask why retire at such a young age?" Filthy rich asked wanting to know why someone of his standing would give up a position like his. Diamond Tiara looked in disbelief at the scene unfolding in front of her. Not only was snails here in broad daylight, but he was a member of the royal guard, and he also had a daughter. A small part of her was hurt. She didn't know why though. she continued to watch. Ocassionally glancing at the young filly that seemed to be playing with the helmet that he sat down next to his legs. "I guess retirement would be the wrong word to use. It is more like a promotion. I am being retired from the front lines to become a training officer." He stated again pride filling his chest at the thought of being able to do more for the citizen of Equestria. He continued "I can explain more, but first lets go get some food. I think I made my daughter wait long enough" He said as he scuffled her mane. "Daddy..." She fake pouted "My mane is all messy now." Filthy, Snails, and Escargot all chuckled at the situation. They all knew she did not care for her mane that much yet. Diamond was taken out of her thoughts from chuckling. She looked up at the three ponies who were smiling waiting for her to join in on the fun. She faked a laugh that seemed to satisfy the three jovial ponies. The two visiting ponies followed Snail's, who just put his helmet on again, and his daughter to the restaurant he was talking about. They walked in silence welcoming the noise of ponies fretting to and fro. Snail interupted the silence addressing his daughter "...So what do ya want to get, slugger?" "I want to get the sweetest ice cream they got" She replied without hesitation. She started her eager bouncing again. Snails noticed the bouncing and gently put a little pressure on her withers with his magic. "Calm down there, slugger" He said with a knowing smile "I know ya are eager to get that ice cream, but let's not run off again, If you promise to stay close until we get there, I will ask them to put an extra scoop in your bowl" He bargained with the young filly. She liked that idea, and she immediately stuck to his foreleg like glue. Filthy chuckled just witnessing the scene unfold. He would be lying if he said he didn't feel a hint of jealousy. Oh the feeling of raising a foal is something special. To be able to watch your progeny grow up and succeed you was something all parents should strive for. He had a feeling that filly had one of the best parents anyone could ask for. Diamond on the other hoof was feeling conflicting emotions. She couldn't stop thinking about her past with snails. She thought he would be offended seeing her, but no, He just acts like everything is dandy with her. Nothing. She deserved to be yelled at for what she did to him, but it felt like she was getting a second chance to make things right between them. However, She couldn't just come out and say her past feelings. For one, she doesn't even know if she still feels the same way she did ten years ago, and secondly, He has a child. That either means he started a family with out her, which makes her angry and sad at the same time, or he isn't interested in her anymore. 'I need to think this over later tonight' She thought to herself. Unbeknownst to her she was so deep in thought she was about to run straight into the door of the restaurant. She felt herself stop abruptly as a yellow aura locked her hoofs in place. "Woah there!!!" Snails said releasing his magical grasp on her "Can't let you ram right into a wall" He chuckled gaining her attention Diamond Tiara blushed and turned her head whispering something that resembled a thank you to the stallion that just saved her from looking like an absolute fool. She looked up at the sign and read it aloud "Candied Ornaments?" She looked to snails for confirmation that this was indeed the place. "Yea, Don't let the name fool ya though" he said while holding the door open for the group. He ushered Escargot into the building "They serve more than candy, stuff like salad and all that. They try to appeal to everypony" He said as he closed the door behind them. "Take a look at there menu after the show us our table." He finished as he walked over to welcoming mare that was behind the cash register. Escargot walked with her father still swayed that she had to be next to him until they get to there seats. Filthy made his presence beside Diamond who was admiring the Interior decorations at play. It was obvious that it wanted to look like a candy shop you would see anywhere else, but it also held the same fine dining vibe that the other establishments around this restaurant held. "It feels cozy" Filthy stated his input to his silent daughter "This establishment has a nice ambiance to it." Diamond concluded looking towards her father. "It's feels like a mixture of Bon Bon's Bon Bons and The Everfree Night from Ponyville" It was not half bad. She expected worse, for something named Candy Ornaments at least. "I never took ya for the type to eat at Bon Bon's Bon Bons" Snails said as he came back with a mare that was to show them to their table. The group was ushered too a window seat that overlook the street. Before they sat down she placed three adult menu's down and one kiddie menu. She took out her small pocket notebook to await their drink orders. "What would you guys like to drink?" she asked with a friendly smile on her face. "I'll have a Fruity Flier please" Snails said returning her friendly smile. "What would you like slugger?" he reflected towards his daughter. Escargot quickly opened her kiddie menu and eyed over all the funny named drinks "Ummm, Can I get... a..." She was deeply conflicted between two drinks that sounded yummy to her. She did not want to hold up the table so she closed her eyes and put her hoof on one of them. Opening her eyes she said what her hoof landed on "... Dairy Drowned" She said with finality and a friendly smile. The mare scribbled the two orders down as they came and looked over to the other two ponies. "And for you guys?" She asked addressing the two that were silently reading the menu. Filthy Rich answered first "Just a plain apple juice, please" he stated with yet another friendly smile. He continued to look over the menu for something that would pique his interests. The mare looked to Diamond "And for you miss?" She asked with her signature smile that appeared to be infectious to everyone that looked at it. "I'll take a Burriednade?" She said with slight confusion fousing on the menu entirely The mare scribbled down the last of the drink orders "I'll be right back with your drinks" she walked off towards the kitchen giving the group to look over the menu to decide what they wanted. "Just a reminder, this place does have more than sweets" Snails reminded "We had a big lunch, so we are going to be ordering a light snack. If you guys haven't eaten yet. I recommend the dinner selection." He stated before he started to talk with his daughter about what flavors of ice cream she wanted "These names are weird for a restaurant" Diamond Tiara mumbled to herself. Her father looked over to her and chuckled "Diamond..." Filthy started ready to give her some mundane pony knowledge "...everything is weird in it's own way" He said wittily "Just like how you have this weird obsession with apples?" She stated bluntly "yes, like, wait what. I do not have an obsession with apples" He bumbled out acting like he was overly offended by the comment. Filthy chuckled after the little exchange which caused Diamond to chuckle in response. This elicited a chuckle from the two ponies that were finished discussing what they would order. A whole lot of chuckling could be heard emanating from the group. "You two are funny" Escargot giggled innocently "I wish mommy was here she loves making new friends and you guys would be the bestest of friends cause mommy doesn't get out much but she needs to make more time for friends Daddy we should bring her something sweet home I was thinking maybe we should *Mppph*" Escargot was finally cut of from her tangent as yet again a yellow aura smooshed her lips together. Snails started to get up from his seat much to the confusion of everyone at the table "Sorry to put a damper on things, but I just received a message from the princess, she has requested my presence at once." He explained as he started pushing his chair in. "Escargot, lets go meet your auntie" snails said while placing a bag of bits down on the table "Here you guys go, this should pay for your meal in whole." "we couldn't poss.." Filthy started to protest but was quickly cut off by snails "I won't take no for an answer, I offered to pay for a meal, and I plan on keeping that promise even if we can't enjoy it with ya. maybe next time we can enjoy a meal. It was nice catching up Mr. Rich and Diamond" As snails walked out of the door, the only thing on Diamond tiara's mind was what snails said to his daughter. 'let's go meet your auntie. That couldn't possibly be right could it? Could he actually be marr....' Diamond was cut off from her thoughts as her father poked her side. "Considering we are the only two left want to order something light and head off to the hotel?" Filthy inquired. "Yeah, sure dad" Diamond said while her eyes were focused on the door that snails and escargot just left. Maybe she could talk with her father about this later. He basically new everything that was happening in Canterlot. 'just another thing to add on the list' diamond thought to herself as she saw the waiter walking back to the table carrying drinks and get ready to take the two orders of the ponies that were at the table.