The Album

by Peregrine Caged

First published 3rd of October, 2012

A collection of 'snapshots', short stories that represent Moments in the lives of various ponies

You heard right, friends and fellows--The Album 2 has been begun! Sign up today!

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Interested in joining more collabs? Then come to The Collab Cage! A group that hopes to be ALL things collab for this entire fandom!

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The Album is a collaborative project between over seventy different authors. This project was designed to not only create something entirely unique and creative, but to test these authors to write in a different manner than they might normally be used to. The exercise was to take a single character--one per author and no repeats--and imagine a mental 'snapshot' of them during daily life, during a Moment we might not normally see or even think about, and write a story from said picture. So enjoy this collection of short Slice of Life tales--and be sure to check out each author's page and stories. They've worked hard to produce something amazing; please reward them for their effort!

Note: Individual Snapshots are posted in a random order (including my own), with one or two more added per day. Character tags and Rating are subject to change, but each individual snapshot will be marked appropriately.

There's still room for more; visit The Album and see if there's anypony remaining you would like to write.

Cover made by: Skunkiss
Edited by: Peregrine Caged

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Synopsis:

In anypony's life, there are the big days--tragedies and adventures, moments of loss and love, treasured memories to share and never forget.

But for every single day that comes once in a lifetime, there are hundreds that pass by unnoticed. Sometimes the simplest of moments can have just as much importance and life as the dramatic ones.

Here one can find snapshots of these moments--the every day, often unseen or even unregarded days of the lives of a variety of ponies.

Because every picture, no matter how common, is worth a thousand words.

Cheerilee -- Her Very Special Someponies

Written by: Sunchaser
Rated Everyone

The sun hung low in the western sky and the schoolhouse had long since lapsed into comfortable silence with the hours-past dismissal of the Friday class. Well, almost silence; the particularly sharp ear could pick up the scratching of a pen across paper, alongside the barely audible mumblings of a certain raspberry mare who was even now seated before her desk.

The sunlight had crept up the schoolhouse walls unnoticed since Cheerilee had sat down to her end-of-week grading, in no small part due to her vision being initially obscured by the not insignificant mass of paper she had by now thankfully put a large dent in.

She set her pen down again and hoofed the now-graded paper to the ‘complete’ pile--

She paused, her eye caught by the name at the top of the page. Apple Bloom was proudly scrawled there, a little too excitedly to have stayed entirely in the lines, and memories of the energetic filly bounded unbidden to mind. Her prideful retelling of being the brave pony who had finally befriended Zecora, the local zebra who had been so unfairly maligned in the past, her beaming smile as she finally got a cutie mark, and then the chaos that had quickly resulted when it hadn’t stopped at just one.

Cheerilee allowed herself a quiet laugh and smiled, setting the page down and moving to the next assignment awaiting summary judgement.

The name on this one was a flowing, elegant script that spoke of private lessons in calligraphy during after school hours, which the name Diamond Tiara explained. A quick glance confirmed that yes, as expected, the similarly flowing name Silver Spoon was on the very next page. Rather inseparable, those two, but then they didn't have all that much of a choice, isolated as they'd become.

It was perhaps the one part of her class she wasn't happy with--the two young fillies of money, and their well-to-do parents passing on their lessons on 'the importance of social class'. Which had led to the two girls feeling alone among an entire group of other students that ought to have been their friends, the imperious high society masks they were forced to wear by parental expectations continuing a seemingly insurmountable barrier.

Cheerilee, however, could see past them easily enough to know that the pair weren't arrogant and mean-spirited by choice, but because they didn't think they could be anything else, and it truly saddened her that a few more years of it would begin to change those habits into natures. She could try to steer them away from it, inspire them by example...well, only time would tell, in the end. Celestia willing, they wouldn't be defined by their wealthy upbringing.

She added the two marked papers to the complete pile and allowed herself a moment of rest. Bouts of nostalgia notwithstanding, she was making good time. With a quick glance at the wall clock...why, if she was unreasonably lucky, she could make it home before dusk! But then her eyes returned to the remaining pile of unmarked student work... Well, it was still nice to dream.

With a quiet sigh, a resolved hoof brought over the next page and she took up her pen and retook her seat as the Ponyville arbiter of academic fate. It wasn't such a terrible burden, really, in no small part because her students had a lovely habit of doing well in their studies. There were times when one or another needed some personal attention, but that was to be expected; students would naturally grasp some subjects more easily than others. Not unrelated to how everypony had their own unique talents, she imagined.

The principal example of that immediately popped to mind as Cheerilee added another sheet to the complete pile; no doubt helped by her recent wave of nostalgia regarding Apple Bloom, her two co-conspirators in the much debated 'Cutie Mark Crusaders', Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, also took stage in her thoughts. The three were such a well suited group that she had to wonder, every now and then, whether some clever magic hadn't nudged them together. They'd been immediate friends, they balanced and enhanced each others strengths. Even academically they were ideally suited. Apple Bloom, with her visual learning style and talent in mathematics; Sweetie Belle, with her auditory style and love for literature; and Scootaloo's kinesthetic style and boundless energy for physical activities.

The three of them made up a little package that could easily be called every schoolteacher's dream, save for the occasional problems they caused...but then they wouldn't be happily growing fillies if they didn't cause a little trouble now and then, right?

Granted it was easier to forgive them their...overzealous good intentions when one was not tearing apart Ponyville under the effects of an unexpected love poison.

That particular day's memories elicited a full, hearty laugh from Cheerilee. It really was funny enough in hindsight, and everything had turned out alright in the end--the girls had, in a surprisingly grown-up moment, taken responsibility and immediate action to correct their mistake and been impressively clever about it, too.

And it had led to sunday lunches with Big Mac and those were always a lovely afternoon provided that she didn't have to deal too much with his adorable schoolcolt's crush on the butter-colored pegasus across the way. Fluttershy, as she recalled. In all likelihood, neither of them would ever breathe a word to each other on their own...

Making a note to herself about thinking up ways to meddle, Cheerilee added another page to the complete pile and moved to the next.

Ah, Hearts and Hooves day...that one holiday with which she had such a tumultuous relationship. The irony was not lost on her.

Though she would never breathe a word of it, she was to this day so very flattered that the three fillies had been willing to go to such lengths to try to make her happy. After all, it wasn't as though she was disinterested in a special somepony. But due to the demands of her chosen career, in particular that of the primary school teacher, well, she just didn't really have all that much time to get out, not without sacrificing some of the extra time that she put in for the sake of her students.

And that wasn't something she was willing to do. Because while technically none of them were her children, in less straightforward ways they were all her children. She cared for each and every one of them and wanted them to do their very best. If that meant she had to curtail a bustling social life down to a few weekend outings, well, so be it.

Setting the very last marked paper onto the now towering complete pile, Cheerilee finally stood and stretched out her aching legs, absently rubbing a hoof over her neck and shoulders. The last slivers of sunlight were creeping across the ceiling now and it was like to be dark by the time she got home. So, the schoolteacher's usual party-hearty friday night.

But you know? It didn't matter, really, that she wasn't out with fillyfriends having drinks and meeting prospects.

She didn't need to, Cheerilee decided, because she already had an entire classroom full of her own very special someponies.

Blueblood -- The Harrowing Journey

Written by: Ravenscroft
Rated Everyone

An arctic blue eye opened, glaring at the clock on the wall, not knowing such a simple action would mark the beginning of a journey most harrowing, of hardship and sacrifice, of co-operation with the most unlikely allies to accomplish the most necessary of goals. The eye’s owner did not yet know that, all it did was analyze the numbers upon the clock’s face.

Six thirty two AM.

Six. Thirty. Two.

Luna's moon had fully set and Auntie Tia's sun raised for a full two minutes. Blueblood knew this, since he'd been awake for those past two minutes, awakening from habit of being woken at six thirty every day for the past four years by his servants. He would then be bathed for twenty minutes, dried for another ten, dressed for fifteen, and finally give himself fifteen minutes to get a chariot, so that he may arrive to breakfast in the adjoining mansion house five minutes late.

After all, royalty waits on nopony, his being late let them know how important and busy he is, allowed the staff and commonfolk serfs to feel good about themselves for performing for such an admirable pony as himself. Truly, it was the best effort he could exert to bring some small smattering of glory into their dull, uninspired commoner-lives.

But now... NOW... There was a flaw in the routine, an error. It happened on occasion, these things were wont to occur every now and again. But today? Of all days? Today was maple-vanilla oatmeal day for breakfast as their hot food; Auntie only imported enough beans for them to be prepared once or twice a month. Imported oats from Zebrica, vanilla beans from the farthest reaches of Dragadeus, and of course the maple was local. One must support the uncultured local mudponies, after all, and no worry, four unicorn servants sieved the liquid to ensure no low-class contagions remained within.

A fine dish, in these cooler winter months especially. But to come seven minutes late--eight minutes late--instead of his customary five, it would begin to cool and congeal before his thoroughbred enjoyment of it.

At this moment, a pleb both knocked upon his greatdoor and opened it in quick succession. Blueblood stared out the picture window towards his city below, listening for the voice.

"Royal Prince Blueblood, sir, it is time to wake, if it pleases you." It came nervously, uncertain.

The serf was a mudpony, coat as dark dirt-toned as his breed. Blueblood knew that doctors ensured none of the miscreants making a show of trying to serve him were infective, but he was glad nonetheless that he had other ponies, with commoner antibodies to fight off commoner disease, to touch that door now. He almost caught commoner disease once, it was a fearful and eye-opening experience.

Regardless, the fact it was such a subspecies made him understand, he would need to speak slowly.

"You were, and are, three minutes late to your job. I have been lying here in bed for all that time and nopony thought it pertinent to wake me." The noble unicorn paused a bit, realizing something important; always be clear with those under-privileged and under-evolved. "Pertinent means 'To be important or of immediate interest'."

The mudpony took a moment to take that in. Of course he did, they were not the brightest after all. The servant deemed it necessary to ask a question, even, when he should have been readying a bathrobe.

"If you were awake, with all due respect, why didn't you just get up?" Clearly, this poor soul was a bit slow in the head. But one can never tell with these...ponies. The slow ones were sometimes quite quick to anger when it was pointed out to them, even if he was just trying to help.

"If I woke myself up, you would be out of a job. Then you would not buy goods in the local marketplace and would not stimulate the economy of my city. But clearly this is a bit beyond your abilities, so latrine duties might be more appropriate for you." Really, the way commoners let their mouths hang open like that, trying to catch flies, in a way it almost impressed Blueblood, akin to seeing the impressive yawn of a raccoon.

Either way, time was wasting, and the base servant finally managed to bring him his bath coat. Five minutes already had passed and the prince took no time in leaving his down feather bed. It was a gift of the griffons, made of, apparently, their foes, as a way to show contempt for the fallen. More importantly, it was oh so very soft, and sewn with thread-of-gold and both red and blue silk. If griffin civil war generated more products like it, he was all for it. But regardless, bathing awaited.

At least that task had competent ponies. His four unicorn team heard of his delay and determined themselves that they could expedite his morning rituals by four minutes. That was the proper way of the servant pony, solving problems. Of course, they were unicorns, it would be unfair to compare them to those other poor unfortunates like the one awaiting his return in his room. Whatever his name was. Mudpony names all sounded the same, really.

Hygiene was very important to nobility. They were the exemplar form for ponies to aspire to. It was not so much a desire as a duty to appear immaculate for the public, to be a shining star that illuminates the dreariness of their daily lives, if only for a moment. Scrub, soap, shampoo, sparkle, shine, and many other "s" words were key in that process, and a finish with a magic-induced drying; brushing every spot on the coat one hundred times and his mane two. It was needlessly time consuming, even with his good and proper subjects doing the best they could to hurry.

...The pains we go through to help others...

Seven oh one. There was still the need to shave one minute off the routine. He returned to his room to dress for the day, uncertain on how to get this done, as that base servant began picking out his day's attire.

"Sir, if you skip the bowtie, it'll probably take a minute or two off your dressing time." Well, at least the charity case was trying.

"And attempt a straight tie instead? Those are so nouveau riche. Well, I suppose I can feign incompetence of the staff should anypony make comment." Blueblood doubted his dresser today had the intellect to grasp the irony of the statement, but one never knew.

Carefully and delicately the tuxedo was placed upon him, along with a sapphire blue tie and black shining shoes. The royal unicorn checked the clock once more. Somehow he had lost a minute!

"I've lost any time I may have gained, I am back at square one! Clearly this is your fault once more for taking so much time talking instead of moving from one spot and actually doing something about it." No time to wait on the mudpony's inept excuses, there was a carriage to catch. Oh, the poor had it so easy, they could simply teleport instead of all this pomp and circumstance, but the golden diamond-studded chariot was necessary as a display of confidence, a show of solidity of the upper class.

Blueblood left in a dignified and only slightly faster than normal canter. As the doors closed, he could hear the mudpony moan: "I swear I'm transferring to Luna, this is impossible."

No time for that to be dealt with now, though. Many were too base to realize how much like the sun he shone, so far above them that they could merely not see it. It was a good thing indeed that his carriage pullers were pegasi. Not the brightest, but they were wise enough to know their place, protectorates of the unicorns. And that included protecting his schedule.

"Go faster! We must catch up in time before coming into sight of the manse, then slow right back down!" The order was well-received, his vehicle nearly taking off as the good and proper serfs put in their 100%. And as required, slowing to a trot brought Blueblood to the front of his destination as if they were at a leisurely pace the entire way, holding back any displays of weakness from the sprint.

Miraculously, it seemed like no other terrible misfortune would befall the poor Prince as the guards opened the door. Auntie Tia was there, awaiting him as always, as was the promising scent of the vanilla-maple oatmeal. With a concealed sigh of relief, he took his spot, and the family began their breakfast.

It was fairly decent, all things considered.