Author's Note
This is a random story I randomly came up with to help me clear my writers block for my main story, After Death. Enjoy! Or not. I don't really care. :D
Oh and by the way, I might stick to working on this story for a little while. I'm having wicked bad writers block for my main story right now :/
The Train Ride
Diamond Tiara sat upon her seat on the rather noisy train back to her home town, Ponyville. She stared blankly out the window, openly bored. She huffed a rather loud sigh. Her father, Filthy Rich, picked up on this. He nudged her shoulder gently with his muzzle, making the pink filly jump. Her head whipped around to face her father as he chuckled.
"It's not funny," The filly huffed. "You just startled me, that's all."
"I know," Her father replied with a final small chuckle. "You bored, pumpkin?"
"No, not at all!" Diamond retorted sarcastically. "I'm extremely content just staring out this window into the bland forest."
"Ok, ok. I get it. Well if your so bored, then you should do something. I packed some books if you'd like to read to pass the time." Rich offered.
Diamond Tiara was about to decline, but decided a little summer reading wouldn't hurt. Besides, the filly thought. I will have less work to do when i get home. "Sure, I would like a book, please."
A surprised look flashed across the stallions face for a brief moment, but quickly turned into a pleased one. He reached into his saddlebag and pulled out a book titled Daring Do and the Quest For the Sapphire Statue. He smiled and handed the book to his daughter. "You know, this book is from one of my favorite series. I've always loved these books."
"Oh, goody." Diamond Tiara said with a sarcastic tone, making her father frown.
"Well, you won't be bored for much longer. This book is very exciting and full of adventure and suspense that leaves you on the edge of your seat!" He informed her, and it didn't take long for her to realize he was just reading one of the few reviews on the back cover of the book. She arched a brow at him. "AND we will be home in about half an hour."
Diamond Tiara smiled brightly and started reading to pass what little time was left of her train ride back home.
***
Being a rather fast reader at her age, Diamond Tiara was already at the part when Daring Do was being captured by Ahuizotl. She was so enveloped in her book, that she didn't notice that the train was nearing it's destination. So when the train lurched as it came to a halt, she wasn't prepared, and she flung forward into the seat in front of her, head first.
"Owwwww..." She groaned as she sat up and rubbed her forehead gingerly, the exciting book still in her hooves.
Her father chuckled behind her. "I see your enjoying your book, pumpkin." He said as he pulled his daughter back onto their seat.
"Yes, I am." She replied as she picked up one of the smaller bags in their luggage compartment. "It's so so so SO good! I especially liked the part when she used the vine to swing herself over the river, it was AWESOME!"
Filthy Rich chuckled again. "Well, I'm glad you liked it, pumpkin. You can finish the book when we get home, if you'd like."
Diamond Tiara smiled and nodded, excited to see how Daring Do would escape the dreaded Ahuizotl. She tucked the book into the bag she was already carrying, and helped her father get the rest of them.
They escorted themselves off the train, and Diamond Tiara noticed that her and her father were the only ponies riding the train to Ponyville. Huh, Bon Bon and Lyra are even on the train. Why aren't they getting off? Aw well, maybe they are going somewhere else, she thought to herself, trying to shrug the eeriyness of this off.
They gingerly walked through the usually busy but now seemingly empty train station, eager to get home and relax.
As they approached the closed double doors that was usually open for ponies entering and exiting the train station, Diamond Tiara felt a strange chill run down her spine and froze. She began to question what it was.
A gust of wind? No, i didn't feel any wind. Is it chilly in here? No, I would've noticed when I got off the train, she thought, trying to determine what it was, but to no avail. Hmm... maybe I'm just cold? Diamond Tiara raised a hoof to her forehead and felt a few beads of sweat starting to form. No, it's WAY too hot today.
No matter how much she thought, she just couldn't seem to figure out what the unnatural feeling was. She decided too just shrug it off. She had other things on her mind, like what she was going to eat when she got home, and what she was gonna do with her best friend, Silver Spoon when they went out tomorrow.
Through her thoughts, she heard her father calling her name, sounding rather faint for some odd reason. She snapped back into reality and swung her head around in many directions, looking for her father in the empty train station. After a moment she spotted him waving to her by the big, closed double doors. Diamond Tiara ran towards her father. "What happened there, pumpkin?" Filthy Rich asked his daughter when she reached him. "You suddenly just froze up. Are you okay?"
Diamond nodded. "Yea I'm fine, daddy."
Filthy Rich smiled. "Okay, then let's get home." He turned around and kicked the doors open with his hind legs, for his fore hooves were full with luggage. The two earth ponies walked through the now open double doors and trotted carefully down the short flight of stairs watching there hooves and the ground below them carefully so they didn't fall and spill everything out of their bags.
When they reached the bottom of the small flight of stairs, they put down their luggage to take a small brake and froze up when the looked at the town before them.
"Holy buck..." Filthy Rich said, unable to say anything else.
"What the buck happened to our home?!" Diamond Tiara said. She wasn't usually allowed to say swear words, but this time, her father let it slide.
They stood in the presence of what looked to be a ghost town. All the buildings and houses looked to be broken to the point that they could all be condemned. The dirt roads that wound all throughout town and that were usually rather clean had broken nails, stray pieces of wood and other pieces of trash strewn about it. Usually, the streets of Ponyville would be bustling with activity at this time of day, but not a single pony seemed to even be in this monstrosity of what was once a beautiful, simple town. Even the fountain seemed to be in horrible condition; there were multiple chips along the body of the statue in the middle and on the "bowl" that held the water inside. Every few seconds, they could here a small drip coming from the fountain as a single drop of water fell from the hose; even the smallest noises could be heard seeing as though there wasn't any other sounds at all.
Leaving there luggage on the ground where it was, Filthy Rich suddenly started walking in the direction of their house, not saying a word to his daughter.
"Wait! Daddy! Where are you going? You forgot your bags!" Diamond Tiara called after her father, who still remained silent. He didn't even look back. The filly fumbled with the few bags she picked up. She ran as fast as she could under the extra weight of the bags she held to catch up with her father. After a few moments, she was able to trot side by side with him. She looked up at him. He didn't look down at her. Diamond Tiara frowned and looked away, staring at the ground warily. After a few minutes of walking in uncomfortable silence, the two ponies reached their house. When they reached it, they both looked up at it, both wearing matching looks of surprise, confusion, and sadness. Like all the other houses in Ponyville, their house too looked like it was part of the ghost town.
"Daddy, what do you think happened?" Diamond Tiara asked her father, mentally begging for him to actually acknowledge her existence and answer her question, although she knew he wouldn't have an answer. She put the few bags she had grabbed down on their doorstep, backing away quickly as it creaked a bit. Her father didn't answer her. "Daddy?" she asked, turning around. Shock, surprise and fear all hit her at once as she saw something horrible.
She saw nothing.
Her father wasn't there.
He had vanished.
He left his young daughter alone in this deserted ghost town they once called home.
"Dad?! Daddy where did you go?!" a shrill voice shrieked out into the ghostly town. Diamond Tiara grabbed her saddlebag up off the ground and darted to the front door one of the larger houses in Ponyville that she called home. She fumbled with the doorknob, but soon realized that it was locked. In a panic, Diamond Tiara ran back down the few steps and searched through her father's saddlebag, After a few moments of digging around aimlessly, the pink filly finally found what she was looking for, and ran back up the steps to her front door. She stuck the key into the keyhole and turned to the left, then to the right. She heard a soft click in the silence, and shakily turned the doorknob to the right, scared as to what she may find.
Squeezing her eyes shut, she turned the knob all the way and walked inside cautiously. She reluctantly opened her left eye partially to see what the front room of her house now looked like, and fully opened both of her eyes immediately with a small squeak. The room before her was shocking; it seemed worse than outside, in her opinion.
Most of the wallpaper was on the floor in curls, or mostly peeled off the walls. The carpeting was torn and looked to be shredded in some places of the room. The couch and few chairs were torn and tattered. One or two of the chairs seemed to be completely broken. The two end tables had at least two of their legs torn off. Two lamps that had been sitting on separate end tables were smashed into small pieces on the ground.
As Diamond Tiara stood in the doorway, gaping at the scene before her, she rose a hoof and began fumbling for a light switch, unable to take her eyes off her normally welcoming front room. She found one, and flicked the switch upwards. She couldn't stop staring at the mess before her. She blinked a couple of times and shook her head, making herself look away.
She checked out the other rooms in the house as well.
All three bathrooms, all the hall closets, the pantry, the kitchen, the dining room all had similar damages, as well as the guest room and any other miscellaneous rooms in the house.
Diamond Tiara had been avoiding the thought of entering her room, fearful of what she would find in her own little sanctuary. I've put it off long enough... I should see what my room is like... and daddy's...
She sighed, defeated by her own thoughts, and slowly walked to her bedroom door. Slightly shaking, she reached for the doorknob and clutched it gently. Taking a deep breath, and still shaking a bit, she turned the knob to the right, and gently pushed the door open. It creaked a bit, making her jump. She reluctantly trotted through the door of her bedroom, and turned on the light. She stared at her room for a moment, taking it all in. Everything was a complete and utter disaster. Everything.
She stood in the doorway, shaking as she took in the sight before her. Her safe little sanctuary had been completely destroyed. Similar to the other rooms in the now broken house, the wallpaper was mostly off and on the floor, the carpet was shredded, furniture was broken and strewn around the floor in chunks (including her bed)... everything was completely destroyed. Diamond Tiara stood there for a moment, trying to process all of this. She quickly shut the door and darted towards her father's room. Filthy Rich's room had always been her little "hideaway" whenever she was scared. Diamond reached her father's room in mere seconds, seeing as though it was right next to her's, and just as large. The mildly scared filly opened the door, switched on the light, and hurled herself onto his bed.
Only to land in a pile of rubbish that was once her father's cozy bed.
She opened her eyes she felt impact. Diamond Tiara bolted upright and backed away to the wall quickly, her breathing quickening. The young filly was scared. No, she was beyond that point. She was petrified. Diamond Tiara was alone, scared, scarred, and empty. This was like her worst nightmare come true.
Diamond Tiara swiftly ran from the room, down a flight of stairs, and out onto the small landing at her front door. She took a deep breath...
"DADDYYYYYYYYYYY!!" the pink filly screamed as loudly as she could. "DADDYYYY!" she chanted multiple times, as loudly as her vocal chords would let her, until her throat hurt. She stood there on her doorstep, shaking and sobbing.
Diamond Tiara collapsed on her doorstep, sobbing and shaking uncontrollably. "Daddy..." she mumbled countless times in between her sobs and gasps for air.
Her town- no, her whole life has been destroyed. Everything she ever held dear to her was gone.
Her friends? Gone. Her house and sanctuary? Gone. Her home town? Gone.
Her father? Gone.
Everything and everypony she ever loved were gone like the wind.
And the worst part? The worst part was that she was alone.
