Foals happily ran about as the constant ringing of the bell announced the end of school. One pink filly, however, slowly walked out of the school building with a frown.
Diamond Tiara let out a discontented grunt. Of all the days for Silver Spoon to get sick, why must it be today? And I don’t even have those blank flanks around to make fun of!
Diamond walked away from the schoolhouse, taking the dusty road in front of it and heading east in the direction of the center of the town and towards her house.
The warm rays of the sun and the soft chirps of the birds did nothing to better her mood.
Stupid sun making everything so hot, and stupid birds that don’t stop singing! Diamond’s line of thought was abruptly lost, half-stride, when she noticed a strange, jumping silhouette in the distance.
What? she thought, unsure what to make of it. Curiosity taking over, Diamond changed her course, and walked over the grassy field towards the mysterious silhouette. Well, it’s better than just going home…
When she got to where the silhouette was, her jaw dropped.
Playing in a big pool of mud (that probably appeared because of the tempest that plagued Ponyville last night), was the orange and green colt known as Snails. With the energy that only a foal has, he jumped and landed in the pool, the mud splashing everywhere and covering his yellow coat with a brown color for a brief moment, before most of the brown liquid flowed back into the pool.
Diamond looked on, perplexed. She knew that Snails was a bit strange - but to play in the mud, as if he was a pig, was something that she never thought even he would be capable of.
“Um… Snails?”
Hearing his name, Snails turned around to see Diamond Tiara standing a few meters away from him.
“Oh hi, Diamond Tiara!” the colt responded with his usual goofy smile.
“What exactly are you doing?”
“I’m playing in the mud! It’s really fun, it’s like playing in a pool and in the sand at the same time. It’s also really warm!”
“Huh…” was the only thing she could say in the face of Snails’ logic. “Why?” she finally asked, after recomposing her mental integrity.
Snails stopped to think for a second. “Because it’s fun!” he exclaimed with a big grin as he nodded up and down.
Diamond Tiara stared, dumbfounded, at him, her brain failing to register such logic.
“Fun?” she said with a mocking tone. “How could such a… horrendous thing as getting yourself dirty be fun? Only a slow and dumb pony like yourself could think that such thing would be fu-” At that moment a big blob of mud hit her right in the face, spreading the mud through most of her fur and making her tiara fall on the grass.
Laughter filled the air as Diamond blinked, unsure of what had just happened. Then her attention darted to the source of the laughter: a certain unicorn that was rolling around in laughter, just a few meters away in the mud.
“It. Is. On…” Diamond said with a intense stare.
Snails continued to roll and laugh, but then a pink bolt jumped on him, sinking his body into the mud.
“How dare you dirty me and my tiara!?”
The response was Snails popping his head out from the mud and sputtering mud on her face with his mouth.
Letting out a indistinguishable grunt Diamond slammed her two hooves on Snails’ face, making him sink into the mud once again.
With incredible agility, Snails, still inside the mud, moved from the spot where he was to a few feet behind Diamond Tiara, who was looking around for him.
Using his horn he enveloped two blobs of mud with his yellow aura. He then levitated them, ready to strike the pink filly down.
A whistle grabbed Diamond’s attention and made her turn around to see Snails ready to attack her. Thinking fast, Diamond charged at him, making him preemptively throw the two blobs at her. With incredible reflexes she dodged them and tackled Snails into the mud.
What followed was an extensive battle with both ponies using their unique qualities to get the upper hand. Snails used his magic to launch a barrage of mud blobs, and in return Diamond Tiara used her quick wits to avoid the blobs and move close enough to him so that her legs could send a wave of mud in his direction. Of course neither pony dispensed with the old trick of just running up to their opponent and then tackling them into the mud.
While that happened, that goofy smile never left Snails’ face. And the feelings of disdain and anger that Diamond Tiara had became feelings of joy that caused her to smile like she never smiled before.
After a few minutes, both ponies lay panting, with their backs on the grass outside the pool of mud. At the same time, they looked at each other and saw their completely messy manes and the mud that covered their fur, causing them to laugh with all their hearts at how ridiculous they looked.
The laughter continued for a few more minutes before they stopped. But they still kept their smiles.
As Diamond Tiara lay there, she noticed a strange feeling within her mind, a feeling that made her heart beat fast and froze the smile on her face. A feeling that reminded her of a simpler time, when she was a small foal and she would chase her dad and mom through the gardens of her house. The Sun majestically beaming down on them, and their joyful laughter filling the air.
The memory sparked an idea within her mind. She got up from the grass and walked towards Snails. Noticing this, he rolled on his stomach and looked at her.
“Hey Snails…” she said with a soft tone.
“Yes?”
Diamond slowly approached his face with her’s until they were only a few centimeters apart. “I have… something to tell you….”
Having her face so close caused Snails to stare at her beautiful and calming light-blue eyes that shined like two jewels. Finding himself lost on them for a brief moment made him blush a light red. “Wha- what is it?” he managed to stutter, slightly regaining his composure.
Diamond gave a warm smile, which made Snails blush even more, and then she touched the top of his head with her hoof. “You’re it,” she said before turning around and quickly sprinting away.
It took a few seconds for the dumbfounded Snails to register what just happened, and when he did so he quickly got up and proceeded to chase Diamond Tiara. “Hey! Not fair!”
Diamond happily giggled as she ran from him, Snails following behind with a big grin.
They ran and ran through the grassy field, the sun beaming down on them and a soothing wind caressing their fur. Snails was never able to catch Diamond Tiara, since every time he got close, she would make a unexpected turn and avoid him. But that never stopped him from trying: in fact it actually made him more eager to catch her.
In a flash, an idea appeared on Snails’ mind, an idea that turned his happy grin into a wicked smile.
Making use of his long legs Snails jumped at Diamond Tiara. Noticing the absence of Snails’ hoofsteps she turned her head around to see what had happened. Looking up, Diamond Tiara watched in awe as Snails ascended to the sky as if he wanted to fly and then descended right into her.
The impact caused them to roll through the soft grass for a few seconds before stopping a few meters away from a bush, Diamond lying with her back on the grass and Snails standing atop of her.
They both looked deeply at each others eyes for a few seconds, then Snails started to move his face down. And as he got closer Diamond Tiara felt a strange feeling on her stomach, as if there was a bunch of butterflies flying inside it. But then Snails dived his face on Diamond’s belly and proceeded to raspberry it causing the strange feeling to be replaced by a loud laughter.
“Ah ha ha ha ha! Snails! Stop it! Ha ha ha ha!” Diamond’s legs flailed around aimlessly as he continued to mercilessly raspberry her.
But then, something caught Snails’ attention and made him stop. He raised his head and walked away from Diamond Tiara, towards a nearby bush.
“Hey, why did you stop?” she asked with an annoyed voice to Snails, who had his back turned to her.
Getting no answer, Diamond rolled on her belly and got up from the ground. “What is over there that’s so entertaining?” she asked while walking to Snails.
Diamond tried to peek over Snails shoulder to see what he was doing but the only thing she could see was him moving his head inside the bush.
“Snails? What are you doing?”
With a blinding speed Snails’ head came out of the bush causing Diamond Tiara to jump back. “Look Diamond Tiara! It’s a lily!” he said, with a flower floating within a yellow aura beside his head.
The flower had six long petals that fell to its side. Each one had a light, almost white, pink color, very similar to Diamond Tiara’s coat. Each contrasted with the pure white that its center had.
By instinct, Diamond Tiara’s mouth was already open ready to launch a snarky comment directly to Snails. But before she could do so she noticed his small black eyes that were glittering with excitement and the big happy smile that he had, causing her mouth to close and the comment to vanish from her mind, replacing it with the butterflies that had created such a commotion within her stomach.
Why… why am I feeling like this? I had the perfect insult but I let it slide… it can’t be because of him, can it? It doesn't matter: so if we had fun? He still is Snails! The dumbest, slowest and most unpopular pony in all of Equestria! Yeah! He threw mud at you, made you run around like a small foal and had the nerve to raspberry you! I don’t know what got into me to hang out with him. I’m just gonna tell him off and then head back home for a well deserved bath.
Once again Diamond Tiara opened her mouth, but this time what closed it was the lily that gently floated to her and was put on her mane. “Way prettier than with the tiara,” Snails said with a big smile.
A small but warm smile formed on Diamond’s face, a smile that erased all of her previous thoughts. Maybe… maybe being popular is not that important…
Diamond’s line of thought was broken by Snails suddenly walked up to her. “Hey, Diamond Tiara. There’s something that I want to show you.”
“What is it?”
“Follow me and you will see!” Snails said, trotting to the west.
“Hey! Wait for me!” she exclaimed following behind.
They didn’t utter a single word to each other as they ran through the clean grassy field. They didn’t need to, their wide and sincere smiles were enough to them.
Soon they found themselves on the edge of what looked like a forest.
“Hey, Snails. I don’t think we should go there,” Diamond said backing off.
Snails turned his head to her. “Don’t worry, Diamond Tiara. Me and Snips go here all the time,” he said before smiling at her.
Diamond looked at his smile, that pure and sincere smile that carried no malice or vice. A smile capable, somehow, of washing away her fears and doubt. “Okay,” she said taking a step forward.
When they walked in the scenery made Diamond gasp with surprise. All around them were trees, but not just any trees. These trees had a lustrous, red bark that shined brightly with the few rays of the sun that were able to penetrate the artificial green sky, that the leaves that stood above had created. At their hooves, she saw flowers of all types and colors, that combined their petals to create a kaleidoscope that spread as far as the eye could see.
“Snails… this is beautiful,” she said, looking around.
“Yeah, but this isn’t what I want to show you.”
“Then what is it?” she asked, tilting her head.
“That would ruin the surprise,” he responded with a smile.
As they walked, a serene and beautiful symphony created by the soft chirp of the birds and the sound of the small critters filled their ears with delight. Suddenly, a flight of butterflies flew by them, the variety of their colors creating a moving painting before their youthful eyes. Such a beautiful display created a big smile on Diamond Tiara’s mouth and caused her eyes to widen and sparkle. Seeing how amazed Diamond was made Snails chuckle lightly.
Both of them were so engrossed with their surroundings, that they didn’t even notice the ground growing steeper, until they could already see the end of the forest.
“We’re here!” Snails exclaimed as he trotted towards it.
“Here where?” Diamond asked, once again following behind. Outside the forest she founded herself on a small grassy hill with a single tree that had Snails sitting at its roots. She walked towards him to ask him again where they were, but before she could do so the view gave her the answer.
Stretching as far as the eye could see was Ponyville, its cottages creating an ocean made of thatch. Surrounded by it were the more distinct buildings that looked as if they were islands floating in that ocean: the Town Hall that, like a tower, stood firm and imposing; the Boutique with its rich and detailed architecture; the easily spotted Sugarcube Corner that was able to bring drool to a pony’s mouth with only its image; and many others. And standing above all of this was the bright yellow sun, its flaming crown blessing the town with warmth and light.
Diamond Tiara’s mouth hung open. She couldn’t speak or think. The only thing she could do was sit beside Snails, and gaze upon what was before her.
After a few minutes of watching the scenery, Diamond’s attention was grabbed by a soft whistling. She turned her head to see that Snails was the one whistling.
Noticing the filly staring at him Snails stopped and turned to her. “Do you like it, Diamond Tiara?”
“Yes, it’s really beautiful.”
“Thanks, my dad taught me. He was a great musician once, had a band called the Seabells.”
“Really? That sounds like fun.”
“Yeah, he told me stories about how he and his friends played all across the world! They even played for the gryphons once! And, he also told me that they calmed a rampaging dragon with only their music!”
A giggle left Diamond’s mouth as she watched Snails flail his forelegs in excitement from the tale he was telling.
“Hey Snails.”
Snails stopped the tale of his father’s journeys and looked at Diamond Tiara. “What?”
“Could you please whistle more of the song. And…” Diamond shuffled closer to Snails’ side, causing her pink fur to mix with his yellow fur, “you can call me Dia if you want.”
A warm smile formed on Snails face, which caused Diamond Tiara to also smile.
“Sure,” he responded before continuing the song.
Nothing mattered to them. Their entire world became each other and that solemn song.
Soon, the sun started to set, the yellow melting into the blue sky, creating a vast shade of orange that spread through the skies above and below, glinting off the tips of the thatched waves of the city and that the clouds absorbed into their soft white surface. A sighting so beautiful that it found a way on the minds of the two youngsters.
Enchanted by the setting sun and the song that filled the air, neither pony moved a muscle, even when the sun had already set and the coldness of the night appeared. They didn’t care: the heat of each other’s bodies kept them both warm.
Noticing how late it was, Diamond Tiara turned to Snails. “I have to go home, or else my dad’s gonna get worried.” Then she left his side and began walking away.
At those words the whistling stopped and Snails, who before was staring lively at the night sky, now only saw the blades of grass. But as quickly as sadness came, it disappeared when an idea appeared on his mind.
Snails’ head turned so quickly that any other pony would have suffered from severe whiplash, but this was a risk that he wanted to take, since he didn’t want her to be so far that she wouldn’t hear him. “Hey Dia, can we do this again tomorrow?” he asked with his goofy smile.
Without stopping to think about it, Diamond Tiara turned around, and with a big smile exclaimed, “Sure!”
