The Light Of Your Cutie Mark
Diamond Tiara jumped, trying to get a better view of the large, currently empty stage. She pushed her way towards the front of the crowd, Silver Spoon following behind her nervously. It wasn’t every day that a pop star came to Ponyville, and Silver wasn’t about to let her friend get left in the dust.
“Excuse us! Coming through! Sorry!” Silver shouted as Diamond charged through the crowd, jumping up and hanging off the front of the stage, Silver mimicking her.
“Aren’t you excited?” Diamond squealed, Silver nodding in a much calmer agreement. Diamond had been waiting to see this since, well, forever! Suddenly, the lights dimmed, and the concert began.
“What was that?” Diamond Tiara exclaimed, looking back at the now-empty stage with a mixture of happiness and confusion. “I wanted to see Countess Coloratura!”
“You have to admit, it was really good,” Silver noted, “and that was the Countess. She has just decided to try another kind of music. Singers do that."
“But- but-” Diamond stammered, still a bit annoyed that she didn’t get what she had wanted. Her cousin had given her these tickets, but she did remember the former countess mentioning a change. Perhaps her cousin didn't know that she'd be doing that?
“Dia, c’mon, let's go to my house.” Silver tried to comfort her friend, but Diamond shook her head.
“No. it’s fine.” Diamond smiled. “I’ve got to go talk to somepony.” She nodded, and Silver glanced back before trotting off.
Diamond turned back to the stage, looking around for any sign that somepony might be there. It seemed like everypony had left, but if she knew her cousin, she knew he’d still be there.
“Cuz?” Diamond shouted into the cool night air, but no response came. She trotted closer to the stage, seeing a faint figure standing next to the stage, picking up what Diamond assumed as trash. This must be the janitor, Diamond thought, wondering if maybe he knew of her cousin’s whereabouts.
“Hey, you!” Diamond shouted, and as the pony turned, she gasped. “Cousin-”
“Di!” Svengallop smiled wide, trotting over to his cousin and giving her a huge hug. “So good to see you again!”
“Hehe, no problem!” Diamond giggled, but she noticed that his eyes were a bit watery. Had he been crying earlier, she thought, or is this just my mind playing pranks on me? “How’s it been going in Manehattan?”
“Not bad.” he replied nonchalantly, stepping back and smiling. “Except for…” he trailed off, his smile faltering slightly.
“What? What’s wrong?” Diamond asked, somewhat jokingly. Maybe he was just messing with her- or maybe not.
“Nothing.” he said, but Diamond could tell he was trying to hide something. Her cousin was usually just as proud as she was, and when he acted like this, Diamond knew something was off.
“I know for a fact that it’s not nothing.” Diamond persisted, her tone becoming serious. “C’mon Sven, I’m not stupid.”
“Alright.” Svengallop sighed, sitting down next to his cousin and sighing. “I… I lost my client. I tried to use her to get what I wanted.”
“Oh.” Diamond said, listening with concern as he continued his story.
“You know Countess Coloratura, right? The pony I gave you the concert tickets to see?” he continued, and Diamond nodded, wide-eyed. “Well, I’m her manager. Or at least I used to be.”
"So that's where you got the tickets!" Diamond realized, and Svengallop nodded. "Wow, you mean you really see Countess Coloratura? Like, every day?"
"Well, yeah." Svengallop nodded, although he didn't seem quite as happy about it as Diamond was. "At least until today. I pushed her too far.”
“I was planning her concert, but I really wanted to cancel it. I wanted to use the money for myself… That sounds really pathetic when I say it out loud.” Svengallop muttered, frowning.
"What made you do that? Made you try to control her like that? She said something about that before her concert, right?" Diamond asked. Her cousin replied with a sigh, then continued.
"Yeah, you're right. I guess it all comes back to my cutie mark. You weren't born when I got it, but you might remember that it was a spotlight shining on a purple star." Svengallop pulled out a picture from his pocket- it was a picture of him and Diamond as younger ponies, Diamond barely older than 3, Svengallop an older teen. He was playing with her in the photo, both of them prancing around and dancing to a song at somepony's party. While the younger Svengallop stood off to the side, little Diamond was dancing more prominently in a tiny spotlight. "I helped you become the star at your 3rd birthday party!"
"I remember that." Diamond smiled. "That was one of the best days of my life."
"Anyway, I always assumed my talent was to help other ponies become stars. I decided to become a manager, and headed off to Manehattan to look for work. Soon, I discovered Countess Coloratura, and helped her become the star she is today. But now..." Sven sighed, looking down. "I don't know why, but I think I made a mistake somewhere. I guess I just got so controlling of her, thinking more of the fame and less of what she wanted."
"I get what you mean," Diamond Tiara nodded, smiling. "Something really similar happened to me. When I got my cutie mark which symbolized leadership, I thought that leadership meant hurting other ponies to get to the top. But now that I know my true talent, and that I control my own destiny, I've become a better pony." She put a hoof around Svengallop's shoulder and looked up at her cousin. "And so can you!"
"I don't know, Diamond." Svengallop shook his head, eyes watering slightly. "I'm older than you. I've made so many more mistakes, worse mistakes. I tried to control somepony, I'd taken over her life. That's a lot worse than just mean names."
"I wouldn't say that." Diamond reassured him. "Just wanting to change is the first step in becoming the pony you want to be. And you sound like you've got the second step down, too."
"What's that?" Svengallop asked, and Diamond pointed to the picture.
"Seeing the real meaning of your cutie mark." She smiled, and embraced her cousin, who hugged her back, finally letting the tears fall. It might be a long, hard road to change, but at least he knew he was on the right track. After all, they were just ponies, and they could make mistakes from time to time.
