/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Ponyville Elementary...
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

“...Okay, Diamond, what's going on?” Apple Bloom asked.

The pink Earth pony filly just smirked, her eye twitching as she struggled to maintain her poise. “What does it look like, blank flanks?” she said, flinching as she said 'blank flanks.' “I'm going all out to win the class president spot.”

Scootaloo looked at the statue of Diamond Tiara in a regal pose set up in the center of the playground. “This is the most gaudy piece of crap you've ever come up with, and that's saying a lot.”

Diamond Tiara agreed. Not that she'd ever admit it. “My mother had the finest sculptors in Equestria build this!” she said.

The Crusaders gave their one-time nemesis incredulous looks. She had been on her best behavior since Nightmare Gardener nearly killed them all. This sudden display of her old ego, which had started after they had all been freed from the Doomtree, made no damn sense.

“Diamond? Are you okay?” Sweetie asked.

“FINE!” Diamond Tiara lied. “Perfectly fine. Just looking forward to winning this election. Yep!”

Silver Spoon frowned. “Diamond, talk to me,” she said. “This doesn't make any sense...”

“Of course it does,” Diamond said softly. “This is who I have to be...” Louder, she added, “So remember who's always been your most fabulous leader! Who has the MONEY, the STATUS, and the POWER in this town! And vote for ME! DIAMOND TIARA!”

Apple Bloom frowned. “Where's Soldier in all of this?” she asked.

“He took one look at the statue and walked off,” Scootaloo said. “I'm starting to think he was the smart one.”

Sweetie Belle shook her head. “This... this isn't right,” she said. “Something must have happened...”

“Nothing happened!” Diamond Tiara insisted. “I'm the same as I was before!” She forced a smile, a facsimile of the old arrogant smirk she wore before the Nightmare Gardner incident. “Now why don't you losers go cast your vote for a REAL leader for class president?”

“...” The three Cutie Mark Crusaders just stared, noticing something wrong. “Diamond... your Cutie Mark...” Sweetie Belle said.

“It's fading...” Scootaloo said softly.

Diamond's eyes widened, although she kept the forced smile on her face. Indeed, the tiara on her flank was starting to become less distinct. “I may have overdone it on the coat powder this morning, that's all. NOW!” she said, deliberately deflecting the subject. “We all know that I have the strongest leadership abilities. So just cast your vote for me!”

Scootaloo frowned. “No way,” she said. “No way we're dealing with the old Diamond again. Who's running against her?”

Sweetie Belle shook her head. “No one... Nopony even considered running against her until she started backsliding... ever since we got out of the tree...”

Cheerilee came forward from a group of assembled teachers, looking worried. “...Diamond? Has your mother been... 'talking' with you?” The way Cheerilee phrased the word 'talking' made several of the students realize that their teacher was referring to some kind of abuse.

“No,” Diamond lied.

“I know she went through a lot of trauma even before the Doomtree... That she was in an asylum for a while even before that... Diamond, has she done anything to you? Said anything to distress you?” Cheerilee pressed.

“Everything's fine,” Diamond Tiara lied. “Mom and I are great!”

“What's this now!?” shouted Demoman's voice, startling her. She whirled, seeing Soldier, Demoman, and Heavy, the latter carrying a shipping dolly under one arm. All of them staring at the statue with almost identical expressions of disgust. “Who the bloody hell made this ugly piece of crap?”

“Statue is STUPID,” Heavy rumbled. “Not even sure who that's supposed to be.”

“It's supposed to be ME!” Diamond almost shrieked.

“Lass, whoever made that statue is a brainless git,” Demoman said quite frankly, staring at her. “It's ugly, it's silly-looking, it looks more like me BUM than it does like you, and if what I can see in yuir face right now is real, then you don't like the bloody thing either.”

Soldier nodded. “It's an eyesore. Help me get rid of it,” he said.

“Da,” Heavy said. “Heavy sees why you want dolly now.”

Demoman shook his head. “Take it to the quarry,” he said. “With the Diamond Dog pack gone, it'll be the safest place to blow it up.”

Diamond Tiara gave them a horrified look. “Wha... NO!”

Soldier frowned at her. “It serves no practical purpose, it's UGLY AS SIN, and it's out of character for you from what I've seen since the Nightmare Gardner mess. I'm doing you a favor by getting rid of it,” he said, helping Heavy get the statue onto the dolly. One of the fillies came forward, showing surprising strength, helping put the statue on the dolly. Heavy ruffled the filly's mane, chuckling, the youngster blushing as she went back to join the other students. Heavy and Demoman both left, leaving a concerned Soldier with the rest of the teachers.

Diamond Tiara bit back a growl. “Well... There's still the class president election!” she said. “I know I'm going to win at that!”

Cheerilee shook her head. “No,” she said. “The other teachers and I have talked it over... unless somepony else comes forward to run, we're not holding an election.”

“But...” Diamond started.

Cheerilee shook her head. “You're the only one running, Diamond Tiara. And right now you're too unstable-seeming to be trusted in a leadership position. I'm sorry, but we can't in good conscience go on with the election.”

“WHAT?!” Diamond shouted. “But...”

“I'm sorry, Diamond Tiara,” Cheerilee said. “Also, I need you to have your mother come in for a conference. You've been so good lately, but now you seem to be reverting to your previous behavior.”

Diamond shivered fearfully. “I... egh... okay. I'll talk to her,” she said. Under her breath, she added. “It's not like it'll make any difference...”

Silver Spoon frowned, coming up behind her. “Diamond?”

Diamond just shook her head.

“Di, please... It's me. You know you can talk to me!” Silver Spoon insisted.

“Not about this...” Diamond said. “Just... leave me alone for a bit, okay? I need to do this on my own.”

“Are you sure?” Silver Spoon asked, visibly concerned.

Diamond Tiara forced a smile. “Hey, you know me. Solid as my namesake, right?” she said, chuckling weakly and walking away.

Silver Spoon watched her go, concerned. She then turned to the Cutie Mark Crusaders. “...Please help her,” she asked. “I know you have no reason to do it, because of everything that's passed between us over the past couple years, but please... help her.”

Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo all gave each other worried looks. “Okay Silver,” Apple Bloom said after a moment. “We'll see what we can do.” And with that, the three of them left, discreetly following behind Diamond Tiara.

Cheerilee sighed. “Well...” she said. “Normally I wouldn't let so many students go, but there are extraordinary circumstances involved...” She agreed that the Crusaders would probably be best for helping Diamond, as the four of them had bonded with each other since the Nightmare Gardner incident. “Silver, will you take notes for your classmates?”

Silver Spoon nodded, sighing as she looked in the direction her best friend went. “Please be okay, Di...” she said softly.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Elsewhere...
Later...
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

“Unacceptable,” Spoiled Rich said, glaring down at her daughter.

“I can't control what Miss Cheerilee does, Mommy,” Diamond Tiara said, looking at the floor.

“You should, though,” Spoiled Rich said. “I'm the head of the schoolboard. Invoke my name if you have to!”

Diamond flinched. “Even if that would work on Miss Cheerilee, Soldier wouldn't buy it at all,” she said softly. “He's too stubborn.”

“You let me worry about that lout,” Spoiled snapped. “I'll have his teaching license by the end of the week, mark my words.” She paced about. “What worries me, Diamond, is that you seem to be abandoning everything I've ever taught you.”

Diamond said nothing. She just shuddered. “Yes mother. I'm sorry mother.”

“You'll never be able to survive in high society without ruthlessness,” Spoiled said. “Never let them exploit you. Never let them bring you down to their level.”

“They weren't trying to bring me down...” Diamond said softly. “They just want to be friends...”

“What?” Spoiled snapped.

“Nothing,” Diamond said quickly. When Spoiled narrowed her eyes, Diamond added, “Nothing, mother.”

Spoiled sighed. “I don't know what to do with you, Diamond,” she said. “Everything I've taught to you, you've been ignoring lately. All the strength I've been teaching you to show, you've abandoned. You're a Rich. That means you're supposed to be a leader. Somepony magnificent for other ponies to aspire to be. And yet you're playing nice with your inferiors. Making 'friends' with ponies you should be talking down to. I let you go on with what you've been doing after the Nightmare Gardner incident out of pity, because you'd been through a lot. But to see how far you'd gone... I'm VERY disappointed, Diamond Tiara.”

“I'm sorry, mother,” Diamond said, staring at the ground, her ears drooping.

“Do you want to be seen as weak, Diamond?” Spoiled asked.

“No, mother,” Diamond said, unable to look at her.

“Do you want your fellow elite to take advantage of you, like they did me?” Spoiled said.

“No, mother,” Diamond said.

“Do you want others to exploit you, to turn your weaknesses against you?” Spoiled said.

“No, mother,” Diamond said, sniffling a little.

Spoiled glared at her. “They almost drove me mad, Diamond,” she said. “But I overcame them. I overcame my friends betraying me, I overcame what that freak Discord did to my mind, I overcame the doctors, I overcome Filthy's weakness EVERY DAY, I OVERCAME IT ALL! I will NOT let you be weak, Diamond! You are a RICH. You are BETTER than other ponies. NEVER FORGET THAT.”

“Yes, mother,” Diamond said, shivering fearfully.

“Good. Now, go tell Cheerilee where she can put her 'talk,'” she said, huffing. Diamond Tiara nodded and ran off, just glad to get away.

Spoiled Rich sighed, and shook her head. “She won't be weak like I was,” she said firmly. “She...”

“BAD MOMMY,” growled a raspy voice. She turned, and saw a furious Pyro storming towards her, her eyes wide and glaring straight at her. Engineer, Prince Blueblood, Derpy, and that automaton of Engineer's (Gem, she thought its name was) were trying to hold her back, to little avail, the little blue unicorn pushing them along with each step.

“BAD MOMMY,” growled Pyro again. “Bad mommy says bad things to her little girl. Good mommies don't make their little girls scared of them. But bad mommies do. Bad mommies BURN...”

“W-What?!” Spoiled said, realizing she was in danger, backing away fearfully. “Get away!”

“Pyro, she ain't worth it!” Engineer said.

“Please, Pyro, let us handle this!” Derpy said.

“Oh Celestia why am I doing this,” Blueblood moaned. “I don't want to get burned again...”

Their pleas fell on deaf ears, Spoiled accidentally backing herself into a corner. She could feel the heat radiating off of Pyro as she got closer and closer and...

Gem let out a quick, frantic series of beeps. Pyro shook, as if struck, and paused, the heat coming off her body fading instantly. “No... No, that won't do...” Pyro said, hugging Gem tightly, the robot visibly relaxing. “Nono... I'll stop... I'm sorry...” She stroked Gem's crystalline mane, her eyes glazing over slightly.

Blueblood nearly fainted with relief. Derpy smiled warmly, taking to the air. Engineer wiped his forehead, chuckling nervously. “Whew... Okay. Pyro, darlin', why don't you take Gem out for some ice cream?”

“Can she even eat ice cream?” Blueblood asked.

Engineer nodded. “Eeyup,” he said. “She's solar powered, but I gave her a matter converter in case she's cut off from the sun for a long time.”

Pyro glanced at Spoiled, who flinched. Engineer smiled. “It'll be all right,” he said, giving Pyro some bits from the toolbelt he wore. “We'll talk to her.”

Pyro seemed unsatisfied, but she turned to leave. “C'mon, Gem! Let's get some ice cream!” she said. The crystalline alicorn automaton beeped happily, the two walking off.

Spoiled waited until Pyro was out of eyeshot, and relaxed. “Thank you... That freak, was she really...”

“Watch your tone, missy,” Engineer said, glaring at her. “That's the love of my life you're talking about. And...” He sighed. “She probably would have. Her own mother was... hilariously abusive. It's left her with a bit of a complex about those she perceives as 'bad mothers.'”

“'Bit of a complex.' You are the master of understatement, Engineer,” Blueblood muttered.

Spoiled shook her head. Damned crazy... She let the line of thought drop. “Well... what did the robot say to her to get her to stop?”

“Her name's Gem,” Engineer said. “And what she said was 'Please, Pyro-mommy, stop it. You're scaring me.'”

Spoiled shifted uncomfortably. “Well, thank you for saving me,” she said. “I should...”

Derpy landed next to her. “Why were you talking to your daughter like that?” she asked, frowning.

Spoiled grimaced. She never liked talking to Derpy. Her eyes always confused Spoiled, making her not sure where to look. “I don't see what business is it of yours,” she said.

“We did just keep a crazy mare from incinerating you,” Derpy said, smiling wryly. “A little conversation never hurt.”

Spoiled just glared at her. “...All right, fine. You're a mother too, so I suppose you might understand,” she said. “I was a blank flank for years. I used to have a business of my own, before I met Filthy. It was doing rather well. I even had a pair of unicorn partners. But they slowly stole the business right out from under me and ran off with the profits. I tried to pursue legal action, but they started calling my SANITY into question, claiming that they had always been the owners and I was just their assistant. My 'friends' tried to make me seem insane. It took more wheeling and dealing than what should have been necessary, but I managed to stay out of the asylum. They still robbed me of everything, though. I met Filthy, and things were fine for a while... We got married, and out of respect for him I took on the name Spoiled Rich.”

Engineer blinked. “Wait, that's not your real name?”

Spoiled rolled her eyes, a warm smile briefly coming to her face before being replaced with her usual sneer. “No, it's Diamond Ring. Filthy's family has a... rather embarrassing naming scheme. I took on a similar name as a gesture of solidarity with him. Anyway, I got my Cutie Mark soon after when I started helping him with his business. When Diamond was born, I swore that I would never let her be taken advantage of. I'd teach her all the ins and outs of high society. I'd teach her all the tricks of exploitation and politics, so she'd be able to see them coming.” Spoiled smiled arrogantly. “Under my tutelage, she'll rise to the top of Canterlot high society, I guarantee it.”

Blueblood snickered.

Spoiled blinked. “What's so funny?”

Blueblood laughed again. “Forgive me, but... you do know how badly deluded you are, right?”

Spoiled jerked back, as if struck. “What?!”

Engineer scowled. “Explain y'self,” he said.

Blueblood shook his head, smiling wryly. “Well, first of all, there's one thing you absolutely must have to find any sort of success in Canterlot,” he said, tapping his horn. At Spoiled's dismayed expression, Blueblood nodded. “Canterlot's an old city, filled with old unicorn money. There's even a geass on the city that makes pegasi and Earth ponies find the city unpleasant. Auntie Celestia's spent years trying to find where the source of it is. Honestly, I don't think anypony alive today knows where it is...”

“Filthy's family has owned Barnyard Bargains for generations,” Spoiled protested.

“Which is fine for him, but it wouldn't save you or your daughter. And aside from that, you'd still be considered new money by the Canterlot Elite. No, to truly be high society in Canterlot, you'd have to be an old money banker or a politician with a family line extending back to... well, before Auntie Celestia and Auntie Luna. In addition to that, you're quite obviously a poser.”

“W-What?!” Spoiled stammered.

Blueblood smirked. “A wannabe. Someone playing at being what is generally viewed as their station. You're not even good at it, like Rarity. Now, I'm no tribalist, but most of my peers are. At the most? You might be invited to a Feast of Fools now and then.”

Derpy frowned. “What's that?”

“A party where some of the highborn of Canterlot invite an entertaining idiot as a guest. Oh, you'd be informed of it. We decided to make it fair, and reward our entertainment for the evening with a fine meal and a fancy hotel room for the night afterwards. Displaced Changelings were popular choices for a while after the debacle of Cadance's wedding,” Blueblood explained casually. “I remember the last one I brought... I convinced him to play the role of a Prench land baron... Oh, that was fun...”

Engineer scowled at Blueblood. Spoiled staggered, suddenly feeling weak in the knees. Derpy went to help her, bracing her on her side. “But wait,” Spoiled tried. “Sapphire Shores, Hoity Toity, Photo Finish... They're all Earth ponies...”

“They're celebrities who work in Canterlot but live outside of the city,” Blueblood said. “Celebrity is different from being high society. They're a connection to be exploited, nothing more.” Blueblood, amused, continued. “Plus, Canterlot's higher echelons run on two questions: 'Who do you know?' and 'What have you done for me lately?' The original six Element bearers, for example, would have a lot of weight to throw around.”

“W-What do you mean?” Spoiled asked, feeling her worldview shatter around her.

“Well, for one thing, there's the whole 'saved the world' thing. And consider their individual connections. The Apples, for example, are from what I understand a well-respected noble Earth pony family...” Blueblood said.

“Those RUBES? Nobles?!” Spoiled almost shrieked.

Blueblood nodded. “I was curious one day, and confirmed it. Auntie Celestia gave them the land that eventually became Ponyville. Land awarded by royalty makes them the Barons of this little town. They could have easily run this town as a barony, but decided to let this 'democracy' nonsense reign. They signed over their rights to the town to Twilight when she ascended, keeping only the farmland for themselves. As for the others, Fluttershy's a celebrity herself, a former model. Rainbow Dash is a Wonderbolt, Rarity has three wildly successful fashion boutiques here, in Canterlot, and more recently in Manehattan, they're all national heroes several times over... really, all that and the fact that they can name-drop ALICORNS as personal friends is bordering on overkill.”

“Stop talking,” Engineer said, glowering. Blueblood flinched.

“She asked,” Blueblood muttered, going off to one side and pouting.

Spoiled shook her head, barely able to stand. Indeed, she would have fallen to her knees by now if Derpy wasn't helping her up. Derpy frowned. “All that's bad enough... but you do realize what you've been doing to Diamond, don't you?”

“What are you talking about?!” Spoiled snapped, the combination of Blueblood telling her that her dreams were garbage plus the scare from Pyro earlier leaving her irritable. “I've been teaching her to be strong!”

“Don't you realize how badly she's been hurting?” Derpy said softly. “She'd been making friends, playing... she was happy.”

Spoiled glared at Derpy. “Friends will just betray you,” she said.

“Then why did you get married to Filthy Rich?” she asked. “Marriage requires a lot of trust. Why are you STILL married to him?”

Spoiled found, to her surprise, that she didn't have a good answer. “...I don't know.”

Derpy stared at her. “Her Cutie Mark's been fading ever since the Doomtree. Have you noticed?”

Spoiled couldn't bring herself to meet Derpy's gaze. “We were going to see a specialist next week,” she said quietly.

“Let's go talk to her,” Derpy said. “Let's find out what she wants in life...”

Spoiled stared at her for a long moment. “...Fine,” she muttered. She and Derpy both went into town to look for Diamond, a curious Engineer and Blueblood following behind. As they approached the square, they found Diamond Tiara staring at a large diamond in a window. Before any of them could say anything, however, music began to fill the air.

“Heartsong,” Derpy said quietly.

Engineer frowned, but went quiet with the rest of them. Twilight had explained that sometimes a pony's emotions can be so strong that they manifest through their internal magic as a song, the ambient magic in the air providing the music (and sometimes special effects). It was considered cathartic to have a Heartsong, a release of internal pressure, so it was considered polite to keep your voice down until the song was over if you weren't a part of it. If the emotions were happy enough, there was a strong chance that the Heartsong would become a group number.

It sounded silly to Engineer. Still did. But Pinkie Pie's very existence proved the theory correct.

As for the Heartsong going on now... to Spoiled's surprise, the one to start singing was Diamond Tiara. The filly began singing a melancholy tune as she wandered aimlessly away from the jeweler.

“If I'm a diamond, then why do I feel so rough?

I'm as strong as a stone, even that's not enough.

There's something jagged in me, and I've made such mistakes.

I thought that diamonds were hard, though I feel I could break.

Would you believe

That I've always wished I could be somepony else?

Yet I can't see

What I need to do to be the pony I want to be.”

Spoiled stared, shocked. She had no idea that her daughter was hurting so badly... Derpy just sighed, the four of them following quietly behind Diamond as her Heartsong continued.

Diamond continued. “I've been told my whole life,

What to do, what to say.

Nopony showed me that there might be some better way.

And now I feel like I'm lost, I don't know what to do.

The ground is sinking away, I'm about to fall through.

Would you believe

That I've always wished I could be somepony else?

Yet I can't see

What I need to do to be the pony I want to be.

To be the pony I want to be.”

Spoiled just stared, gobsmacked. She had no idea her daughter felt this way. “I...” she stammered. “I just...”

Derpy gently nuzzled Spoiled. “Children listen to everything their parents say. But they don't always understand it. You let her have that moment of happiness, only to take it away by going back to your old lessons. Now she's confused, and doesn't know what she's supposed to do with her life.”

Spoiled shivered fearfully. “I'm a little confused myself right now...” she said. “Why... why wouldn't she come to me with this?”

Engineer stepped forward. “You taught her to be strong. Don't you think admitting confusion would be a sign of weakness?”

Spoiled's eyes widened as she started to realize, for the first time, just what she was doing to her daughter. She turned, only to see the Crusaders talking to Diamond.

“You... you wanna come over to our clubhouse and talk?” Sweetie Belle asked her.

Diamond, looking physically and emotionally exhausted, just nodded. “Yeah, sure...”

The four of them started to leave. Spoiled started to follow, but Derpy held her back. “No...” she said. “Let them talk to her first. They're her friends, maybe they can help her work out things in her head.”

Spoiled just nodded numbly. She didn't know what she could say to Diamond at this point.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Crusader Clubhouse...
Later...
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

“So this where the magic happens, huh?” Diamond said, looking around at all the posters, maps, and plans.

Apple Bloom smiled. “Eeyup!”

Diamond rolled her eyes. “So... what, you just plan out ways to try and get your Cutie Marks all day?”

The three nodded happily.

Diamond just barely resisted the urge to facehoof. “You three...” she started to say. She stopped herself, sighing, and finished with, “...are really lucky.”

Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo all traded confused looks. “What do you mean?” Scootaloo asked.

“You still have options,” Diamond said. “You get to try all this cool stuff, do all sorts of new things. You're not stuck with a Cutie Mark you barely understand. You aren't getting...” She trailed off.

The Crusaders all traded worried looks. “Diamond?” Sweetie asked. “Are... are you okay?”

“I'm fine,” Diamond lied. “This was a mistake. Just...” She turned to leave. “Just leave me alone.”

“Those things your mother said to you,” Apple Bloom said, “you don't have to be like that, you know.”

Diamond froze. Apple Bloom took that as a sign. “Look. Remember when you got your Cutie Mark?” the Earth pony asked.

Diamond smiled warmly. “I'll never forget it...” she said softly.

Sweetie Belle came up to her. “I remember too. You led the class in a big group project, one that helped us win a big inter-school contest,” she said.

Scootaloo nodded. “Yeah...” she said. “Isn't that what your talent is?”

Diamond Tiara looked at her fading Cutie Mark. “I... I just don't know anymore. Mom tells me one thing, everypony else tells me another... I was happy. But Mom...” She gave them a desperate look. “I can't just disobey my mother, can't I?”

Scootaloo and Apple Bloom traded worried looks. Lacking parents themselves, they were underqualified to give advice on the matter. Sweetie Belle, however, took initiative. “Soldier said this in class one time, he... He said, 'If the commander's orders will only result in ponies being hurt, then the commander must be disobeyed.'”

Diamond Tiara frowned. It made sense... but Spoiled Rich was her mother. She couldn't just disregard what her mother said. ...Right?

Scootaloo sighed, leaning up against the clubhouse's desk. “Look, for what it's worth, you aren't as much of a jerk as you used to be. I'm guessing your Mom's responsible for a lot of the way you acted, right?”

Diamond sighed. “I can't give her full credit...” she said. “But yeah. I learned what I know from her. She had some business partners burn her in the past, steal her business out from under her. Tried to make her look insane. Then Discord came and actually DID make her insane. Remember that?"

Apple Bloom nodded. “Yeah, yeah... She started dying her coat and mane after that...” she said.

Diamond nodded. “She said she didn't want a reminder of her failures... That she didn't want me to go through the same thing...”

“Not everypony's like those jerks who turned on your mother,” Scootaloo said simply.

“...No, I suppose not,” Diamond Tiara said.

Sweetie Belle nuzzled Diamond, the Earth pony flinching slightly. “It's your life, Diamond. What she went through isn't what you're gonna go through,” Sweetie said.

“And you need to tell her that,” Apple Bloom said firmly.

“Wait a minute,” Sweetie said.

“I can't just...” Diamond started. “She's my mother!”

“Apple Bloom, we just got her here,” Scootaloo protested. “She's not ready to...”

“I know it's rough,” Apple Bloom said. “But y'cain't run away from it forever.” The farmer pointed to Diamond's fading Cutie Mark. “You're a leader, Diamond. You want to inspire ponies? Be the star, have all the power? You gotta take control of your life.”

Diamond Tiara stared at Apple Bloom a long moment, her Cutie Mark becoming more visible, returning to its natural state. “You're... You're right,” she said softly. “I have to stand up to her, otherwise she'll just keep dictating my life to me. Never letting me have a chance to make my own way...”

Apple Bloom nodded. “And you won't have to do it alone, either,” she said. “Me and the girls, and Silver Spoon, we'll all be with you when you confront her.”

Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo grinned at each other, pleased with Apple Bloom's plan. “Yeah, you betcha!” Scootaloo said, Sweetie Belle nodding vigorously.

“Thank you...” Diamond said, tearing up a little. “We... we should probably go back to school. Silver and Miss Cheerilee will be worried...”

The four left the clubhouse, heading back to school. Once they reached town, they passed a cafe where Spoiled Rich and Derpy Hooves were passing the time. Engineer and Blueblood had left them to complete other chores they had today, the two mares left to each other's company.

“She seems happier,” Spoiled said softly.

Derpy smiled. “The Crusaders are rambunctious, but they're good ponies,” she said. “I'm sure everything will be all right.”

“Hnf...” Spoiled muttered. “I thought the magician and the fiery lunatic were the Elements of Hope.”

Derpy smiled. “Love is believing in those you care for,” she said. “And trusting them to do the right thing.”

Spoiled said nothing, just fidgeted with her drink. A couple hours passed in awkward silence, the only sound being the two occasionally ordering refills of their drinks. Finally...

“School's out soon,” Derpy said. “I should go pick up Dinky.” When Spoiled hesitated, Derpy offered. “I can pick up Diamond, bring her over to your mansion?”

“I...” Spoiled said, before trailing off with a frustrated grunt. “Why are you doing this?”

Derpy smiled warmly. “Being a Mom is tough, I know,” she said. “We want what's best for them, but sometimes it's hard to tell the difference between what is best for them, and what we think is best for them. I want to help you learn the difference.”

Spoiled stared at her, confused. She was trying to think of what Derpy's angle might be, but for the life of her, she couldn't see it. For all she could tell, Derpy truly did want to help her. “Ngh...” she said. “I'll go pick Diamond up myself...”

Derpy nodded, the two mares walking to the schoolhouse together. They got there as the foals were filing out, chatting amiably with one another. Silver, Diamond, and the Crusaders were all together in a group when they noticed Spoiled approaching them.

Derpy smiled encouragingly at Spoiled, who went to go meet up with Dinky. Spoiled took a deep breath, and went to talk to her daughter.

“Diamond,” Spoiled said, not trusting herself to say more.

Diamond's ears drooped back fearfully, but Silver nuzzled her encouragingly. “You can do this, Di,” Silver Spoon said, the Crusaders nodding in agreement.

Diamond bit her lip, and took a deep breath. She stepped forward. “Mom... I know you just want me to be able to stand up for myself... but my life isn't your life. I... I'm happy. My friends... Silver Spoon and the Crusaders... I trust them. And they trust me. Some of what you've said makes sense... but I don't think it applies to me.”

Spoiled fidgeted, uncomfortable. “I... I saw you in town, earlier...” Spoiled said.

Diamond gulped nervously. “O-Oh?”

Spoiled frowned sadly. “Why... why did you never come to me with your concerns, Diamond? I would have listened...”

Diamond grimaced. “I... It would have been showing weakness. You taught me never to do that...” she said, looking away.

Spoiled stared at Diamond, the reality of she had been doing to her daughter finally sinking in. “I've done so wrong by you, Diamond...” she said softly. “I wanted so much for you to not make my mistakes that I almost robbed you of the chance to live your own way...” She gently hugged her daughter. “Can you forgive me?”

Diamond, teary-eyed, smiled lovingly and cuddled into her mother's grip. “You're my mom. Of course I do...”

Soldier and Cheerilee, watching the exchange, grinned. “Huh...” Soldier said. “Well, that's good.”

Cheerilee nodded. “It's a start,” she conceded. “They're both going to have to go through a lot of therapy before they truly recover.”

Soldier smirked a little. “Good thing we have an army of shrinks coming here every day, right?” he said. Cheerilee chuckled, nodding.

Derpy, Dinky riding on her back, came up to the two of them. “They'll get through it. They'll both work through their issues and be all the stronger a family for it,” she said, nodding.

“I hope you're right,” Cheerilee said, sighing.

“I know I am,” Derpy said, grinning. “I can tell she truly does love her daughter. They'll make it work.”

Dinky giggled and hugged her mother. “Mom is so smart!” she cheered.

Soldier grinned, and kissed Derpy on the cheek, making the mailmare blush. “One of the many things I love about her,” he said.

Nearby, the Cutie Mark Crusaders watched Diamond and Spoiled make up with one another with happy expressions on their faces.

“...Okay,” Scootaloo said after a moment. “This is gonna sound weird, especially coming from me, but I think we should give up on Crusading for our own marks for a while.”

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle gave Scootaloo a surprised look. “...Wow. I didn't know changeling disguises could be that good,” Sweetie Belle teased.

“Ha ha,” Scootaloo said, rolling her eyes. “I'm serious.”

Apple Bloom looked thoughtful. “No, no, I see where she's going with this,” she said. “We helped Diamond feel confident about her Cutie Mark again today.”

“Plus the whole helping her stand up to her Mom thing,” Sweetie added.

Apple Bloom nodded. “Right, right,” she said. “Plus, a few months earlier, we helped Troubleshoes figure out the real meaning of his Cutie Mark. What if there are other ponies who are struggling to get their own marks, or cain't figure out what their own destinies are once they got them?”

“...Crusade for others?” Sweetie Belle said, grinning. “I like that. With everything that's happening, we really should focus on helping others over ourselves.”

Scootaloo grinned. “Yeah!” she said excitedly. “We can always get ours later. I just like hanging out with you girls. And if we can help other ponies while doing it, even better!”

Apple Bloom grinned. “So what do you say, girls? You in?”

“Yeah!” Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo cheered. The three fillies high-hoofed.

And then they were all engulfed in a bright flash of light, briefly blinding everypony in the schoolyard. When the light faded and everypony could see the dazed Crusaders again, they grinned.

“Oh wow...” said one foal.

“Huh,” Soldier said, smiling. “Didn't see THAT coming...”

“Finally...” Cheerilee said, grinning brightly.

“What?” Apple Bloom said, shaking her head to try and clear it. “What happened?”

Diamond Tiara smirked. “Let me put it this way. If I were still bullying you, I'd have to stop using 'blank flanks' as an insult.”

Scootaloo frowned, confused. “Why?”

“It doesn't apply to you three anymore,” Diamond said, her smirk turning into a happy grin.

The Crusaders all went wide-eyed at that, their eyes darting to their flanks. Adorning them now was a colorful shield mark, each individual mark with a different symbol inside, but the colors matching between the three of them. The growing joy on their faces was like a sunrise.

“WE ALL GOT THE SAME CUTIE MARK!” they cheered. “CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS FOREVER!!!”

The crowd cheered. Derpy grinned happily. “C'mon!” she said to Dinky. “Let's go tell their sisters!”

“And Pinkie Pie!” Dinky added. “They gotta have a party!”

“They'll have one,” Derpy said, smiling. “Let's go!” She flew off into town. In the nearby shadows, a shadowy figure watched them leave, heading for Rainbow Dash's cloudhouse. A few minutes later, a wildly cheering streak of rainbow light zipped out, Derpy moving on to Carousel Boutique.

“Three left to fall,” Nightmare Moon said. “And the first to fall... will be you, oh Element of Love...”