[i]Why did I make this thing...?[/i]

"Krastos, let her go!"

Rarity screamed as the creature's thin claws pulled at the gooey strand of mucus around her neck. Its cold, clammy skin shimmered in the light of fires that the townsponies of Ponyville rushed to extinguish. Water dripped from a mane like seaweed, and though the creature had the face of a horse, it stood upon two powerful legs, its body twisted and emaciated, in but one of many forms it had assumed during the fight with the Elements of Harmony.

"No running from Krastos the Gluemaker," it wheezed. "This pony is mine now too!"

As one, the five ponies latched onto Rarity's hindquarters and held her steady, evenly matched against Krastos' preternatural strength. Rainbow Dash rose into the air and shot off, circling Krastos tightly. Though she held his attention, he did not cease pulling Rarity ever closer, as he was now able to slightly overcome the ponies' combined strength.

"Rainbow, stop!" Twilight cried. "We need you here!"

"Just a little more, Twilight... There!" Dipping slightly, the tip of Rainbow's wing clipped the sticky strand holding Rarity captive and snapped it, sending Krastos tumbling head over heels as her friends collapsed in a heap.

"Thank you, Rainbow Dash, that was absolutely dreadful." Rarity's legs shook as she clambered to her hooves.

Twilight's eyes were hard set as she watched Krastos' form shift, first becoming the imposing grey and green horse they had first seen him as, then back to his bipedal form, regaining his footing. He flicked his hands and released two more sticky lines to his sides.

"No running, ponies, no no. Krastos will take you all!"

"This ends now!" Twilight shouted, dropping her head and pawing at the ground. "Formation!"

Krastos' rheumy eyes flicked back and forth as the six ponies drew together, fanning out on the ground and in the air, their pieces of personalized jewelry glowing.

"Hmm, hmm, Elements of Harmony again?" A low chuckle scraped in his throat as the glow intensified. Spheres of light enwrapped his hands and feet, severing the lines he had been holding and tugging his limbs away from each other. "Reduce this nuggle to atoms if you will, ponies, but he will return, for Krastos understands the bindings which hold the universe together!"

Twilight could barely watch as the Elements did their work. More and more rings of light appeared on Krastos' body, drawing his form apart slowly. It was just as Celestia had described, when she had defeated Krastos two hundred years after banishing Nightmare Moon. The Elements couldn't be controlled; their effects were dependent upon their target. Seeing this creature, for all its wrongdoing, being torn asunder before her eyes made her stomach churn.

Scream and laugh mixed on Krastos' lips as the light engulfed him completely. In a flash, it was all over, the light splitting into hundreds of individual motes and shooting off toward the horizon, never to return. The ponies released a collective sigh, but Twilight was already off running.

"Rarity, you're with me. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, grab Pinkie and Applejack and meet us at Highland Reservoir! Get anypony you meet on your way there to join you! There's no time to celebrate; without Krastos' magic to preserve them, we have to save those ponies [i]now[/i]!"

Her friends acted immediately, while she formulated and released a teleportation spell over herself and Rarity, bringing them to the edge of the Reservoir in a blink. Beneath the surface of the water, two dozen ponies were flailing in panic.

"Twilight, they're going to drown if we don't do something fast!"

"Grab a line or anything and start pulling them out! Sea Swirl!" Twilight ignored Rarity's stricken look and searched instead for Krastos' first victim, finding her at the very edge of her vision, toward the center of the water. With luck, she was able to make eye contact, and the other unicorn nodded to her, strangely calm beneath the waves. A sphere of space formed around her as her horn glowed and she lifted toward the surface. Having seen its casting in full, Twilight copied the water manipulation spell, diving into the water for the nearest pony she could see.

The others arrived shortly thereafter, with a half dozen ponies in tow who hadn't been busy fighting fires. Between Rainbow's surprising skill at swimming, Applejack's accurate lassoing ability, and Sea Swirl and Twilight's water manipulation spells, they were able to pull every last victim to safety in short order. Once on land, however, the situation became more dire, as more than half of them had passed out with water in their lungs. Under Nurse Tenderheart's care, they were able to save them all, but Twilight had to admit there had a point at which she hadn't held out hope for some of them.

"Rarity!" Sweetie Belle, one of the lucky victims who had been able to hold her breath, clung to her older sister. Now that the crisis was over, it was time for tears of relief. Ponies sat down with their friends and loved ones, even with total strangers, shivering beneath warm blankets, thankful to be alive. A tense stillness fell over the scene until one shrill voice near the water's edge cried out,

"I want it!"

All heads turned to see a bedraggled and soaked pink filly, her eyes locked on Twilight despite her shivering.

"Diamond Tiara?" Sweetie found herself at a loss for words as her classmate stalked over, shedding her blanket, until she was nose to nose with Twilight.

"I lost my tiara because of that monster, so you should totally give me yours!" the filly screeched. Twilight threw an awkward look at Rainbow Dash, who laughed and brought the blanket back over to cover Diamond Tiara again.

"Sorry kiddo, no can do. That right there is an Element of Harmony. You kinda have to be chosen to wear it and stuff."

The filly sneered, undeterred. "It's not fair! [i]My[/i] talent is jewelry modeling, so why does she get a bigger tiara than me?"

Twilight sighed. "Diamond Tiara, it's not that simple. Shouldn't you just be thankful you're alive?"

Diamond rolled her eyes. "What's the point in living if you don't have anything nice to wear? This is my [i]talent[/i] we're talking about! My destiny?"

Sweetie Belle, face scrunched up in indignation, stalked over. "Well maybe we should just throw you back into the reservoir so you can get your dumb tiara back!"
 
"Yeah!" called a voice from the crowd. "Who cares about some jewelry?"

"Sheesh, have you ever seen a pony with her priorities so backward?"

"I've never met anypony so ungrateful..."

"Why, if I was her dad, I'd–"

"Everypony, please," Rarity said, dragging Sweetie back by the tail. "Let us not all gang up on a filly who is obviously shaken from this [i]awful [/i]experience and not thinking correctly!"

She put on her best smile and moved over to Diamond Tiara. "Now Miss Tiara, I know Twilight's crown is very fashionable and I can understand why you might want it. But the fact is, to be able to bear an Element of Harmony requires many things"–she lowered her voice so only the filly could hear–"which you do not possess."

Diamond glared at her, but Rarity continued.

"Grace. Maturity. Self-restraint. Generosity, in my case, and [i]magic[/i]"–she lowered her head so Diamond could see her horn–"in Twilight's." She was cut off from further criticisms as Filthy Rich pushed his way through the crowd. 

"Diamond! Diamond!" He knelt down as his daughter rushed to him, nuzzling her affectionately. "Oh, thank Celestia you're all right!"

Diamond Tiara put on the largest pout she could muster. "Daddy, these ponies are being mean to me! I lost my tiara in the reservoir and they said I can't wear that big crown because I'm not old enough!"

"Oh they did, did they?" Filthy squared up and stared Rarity down, who, for her part, shied away from his gaze. "And just who are you to tell my daughter what she can and cannot do, hmm?"

Rainbow Dash flitted forward, hooves crossed over her chest. "How about the ponies who saved your daughter's life, huh?"

"Rainbow." Twilight held up a hoof. "Look, Mister Filthy..."

"That's Mr. Rich to you!"

Twilight winced. "Mr. Rich, I'm sorry, but the fact is, until a time comes when my friends and I are no longer needed to bear the Elements of Harmony, Diamond Tiara simply can't have this crown." With a thought, she returned her Element to its base state, a purple jewel in the shape of her cutie mark. "That's just how it works. Why don't you both come with me to the library? I'll loan you a book that will explain all about the Elements."

Filthy glowered at her, but nodded and followed Twilight as she walked back into town. Applejack sighed, rubbing her face with a hoof.

"Okay, everypony, show's over! We can start thinkin' 'bout rebuildin' now. Let's get the victims somewhere warm, how about that?"

As the crowd nodded assent and began to gather themselves up, one shrill voice called out from the periphery, as it was lead away.

"I wanna be an Element of Harmony!"

[hr]

Filthy Rich rubbed his eyes; he'd spent the whole evening reading [i]The Elements of Harmony: A Reference Guide[/i] while his daughter slept on his bed, just a few feet away. She'd fallen asleep somewhere between the library and their house, and he just couldn't bear to let her out of his sight after what had happened. Yet, as much relief as he felt at her safe return, he had to consider a very unsavory proposition: Twilight Sparkle and her friends were right.

Ever since her mother had died in childbirth, Diamond Tiara had been his reason for living. When he wasn't busy running Rich's Barnyard Bargains, he had spent his every waking moment doting on her. The truth was, he'd spoiled her, spoiled her rotten. He'd been all too willing to overlook her transgressions, to dismiss the accusations of poor behavior as coming from unsavory types, jealous of their wealth or success.

"Rich, you've been blind for long enough," he said with a sigh. "You can't ignore the accusations any more."

He turned his gaze towards her as she stirred and awoke with a hiccup.

"D-Daddy?"

"Right here, Princess." Stepping off his chair, he moved over to the bed and nudged her gently. "I'm right here."

Groggy, she wiggled over until she could just touch the tip of his nose. "I was really scared, Daddy."

"I was, too."

"Am I..." Her eyes turned away from his. "Am I a bad pony, daddy?"

He sucked in breath through his teeth. There was no time like the present. "No, honey, you're not a bad pony." [i]Don't drop the ball this time, Filthy.
[/i]
Diamond's face scrunched up into a pout. "Then why are ponies always mean to me? Why did they say those things to me?"

Filthy sighed and clambered up onto the bed, giving himself a little more time to formulate a response. "Sometimes, sweetheart..." He held his filly close and cleared his throat. "Other ponies say mean things because they're jealous or mean themselves and want to hurt you. And you shouldn't let such things hurt you, because then you give those ponies power over you. But sometimes..."

Tiara was all rapt attention and wide eyes. He sighed. "Sometimes, dearest, ponies say things that are hurtful, not because they want to hurt you, but because they care. They may be things you don't want to hear, but..."

"Wait."

Filthy cringed as his daughter's eyes hardened. This wasn't going to be easy.

"You're saying that all those things they said about me are [i]true[/i]?"

"No, pumpkin, believe me! I mean, you've... You've got grace! Loads of grace!"

"Daddy." Her tone was dangerous. "You said I'm not a bad pony. Are you [i]lying[/i] to me?"

"Diamond Tiara, I am not lying to you!" He put force behind the words, trying to regain the upper hoof in the conversation. "You've got flaws, everypony does, but that doesn't make you a bad pony!" He let out a breath. "Listen to me. I read that book from start to finish, and you know what it told me? A bearer of the Elements of Harmony has to be giving, kind, honest, loyal and fun! You need to be mature, Diamond! Above all else, you have to be a good friend, or you'll never be able to have one of the Elements. That's just the way it works."

The filly's face brightened immediately. "Well, I'm great friends with Silver Spoon! We have all kinds of fun, and we're totally loyal to one another! As soon as I get mature enough, I'll totally be able to be an Element of Harmony! I'll be the Element of Magic and then I'll have the biggest tiara ever and nopony will ever laugh at me again!"

"Diamond, I..." He sighed. She was already up and bouncing around the bed, giggling over her fantasy. "One step at a time, I guess. You'd better start with the growing up."

[hr]

"...And then he said he'd buy me a new tiara today! Whatever I like! Somepony dragged the old one out of the reservoir, but it was all gross and covered in weeds and mud so I said to throw it away."

"Eww, double yuck! I hope you find a nice one, you totally look better with one on."

"Like, I know, right?" Diamond and Silver Spoon giggled together, relaxing beneath the shade of a tree on the playground during recess. "It'll be soooo much better having a tiara again. All my old ones are so... old! And some of them don't even fit anymore. Anyway, this will make me feel way better until I can grow up and become the Element of Magic!"

Silver Spoon formed her mouth into an 'o' and giggled again. "Hey Diamond Tiara, do you think I could be an Element of Harmony too?"

"Oh, for sure!" Diamond closed one eye and stuck her tongue out, trying to remember what the Elements were. "Uhh, you'd totally be... The Element of Loyalty, because you're my P.F.F.!"

That seemed to please Silver Spoon, who initiated a bump, bump, sugarlump rump. "Who do you think would be the other Elements, then?"

That question stumped them both. They scanned the playground, and both their gazes fell upon the Cutie Mark Crusaders playing hopscotch with Twist.

They exchanged horrified glances, then snorted before rolling on their backs, releasing peals of laughter.

"Oh, as if!"

"Gag me with two spoons!"

Silver Spoon gathered herself up and grinned. "Let's go make fun of them."

Diamond nodded, regaining her hooves. "Good idea! We can totally tell them we're going to be Elements of Harmony, and that will like, sooo get them mad!"

They trotted off toward the blacktop. After a few moments, the four fillies noticed they had been targeted. Twist made some excuse and took off in the opposite direction, but the other three stood their ground, expressions hardening.

"Well, well, well," Silver Spoon began, "if it isn't our [i]least[/i] favorite trio of blank flanks!"

"Weren't there four of them, Silver Spoon? Oh, that's right, Twist chickened out and ran away!" They shared a prim laugh.

"Hey, you leave her alone!" Scootaloo shouted. "It's no fair picking on somepony who's not even here!"

"Is that so?" Diamond raised an eyebrow. "Then I'll just have to pick on you blank flanks instead, how about that?"

Apple Bloom smirked, setting her off her guard. "Well good luck with that, 'cuz we ain't blank flanks no more!"

"Not all of us, anyway!" Sweetie Belle added. Scootaloo turned, giving them a view of her flank.

Silver Spoon and Diamond Tiara recoiled as though they'd been shown a can of worms or a picture of something gross, rather than a heart surrounded by flowing blue lines. Silver Spoon made a disgusted noise and laughed dryly.

"What kind of a cutie mark is that? It sure doesn't look like a Scootaloo to me."

"Yeah," Diamond added, "what are all those lines? Does it mean you love lace and ribbons?" Their laughter was cut short as Scootaloo drew herself up, puffing out her chest and glaring at them.

"Those are speed lines, dummies. My special talent is going fast. It doesn't matter if I'm on a scooter or flying... Well, I still can't fly yet, but when I can, I'm gonna love moving way faster than either of you two slugs ever will!"

Silver Spoon gave her a disgusted look. "Yuck! Who'd want to go fast anyway? That's a dumb talent!"

The idea of one of the Cutie Mark Crusaders actually having her cutie mark now made Diamond's bile rise. "Yeah, uh... I mean, your mane would get all messed up and... And it's nowhere near as interesting as being an Element of Harmony!"

"My sister's one of those!" cried Sweetie Belle.

"Mine too!"

"And we will be too, someday!" Silver Spoon lifted her chin.

"Like hay you will!" Scootaloo pointed a hoof at them. "You two aren't anywhere near cool enough to be an Element like Rainbow Dash!"

Silver Spoon sneered at her. "Well, it doesn't change the fact that there are more blank flanks in your dumb little group than not. Looks like you're the Cutie Mark Duo now, hah!"

"Yeah!" Diamond was very glad that Silver Spoon was so good at this; she was still recovering from the shock of seeing that cutie mark and having a hard time thinking up comebacks. She sauntered into the midst of the Crusaders, head held high. "I mean, as if! Once a blank flank, always a blank flank!"

"Uh, Diamond Tiara," Apple Bloom said slowly, "that don't make no sense. Wouldn't that mean [i]you're[/i] both still blank flanks?"

Diamond scowled. "Shut up! You think you're so smart, but now that Scootaloo loves going fast so much, she'll leave you two in the dust from now on!" She leaned in close and glowered at Sweetie Belle. "Looks like we've seen the last of the Cutie Ma–"

Diamond wasn't really sure what happened. One moment, she'd been taunting her favorite punching bags in the playground, and the next she was looking at a bright blue sky that was strangely filled with stars. Miss Cheerilee's voice floated somewhere overhead.

"...Does [i]not[/i] give you the right to resort to violence! Since you three won't fess up to who did this, you'll all be spending the rest of the week in detention and writing letters of apology to Diamond Tiara!"

There was a chorus of "Awww!"s and Diamond's head lolled to the side. It hurt something awful. She blinked and her vision became blurry, but through the tears, she could see Silver Spoon, staring at her and shifting from one hoof to another. Strong hooves helped her stand and her head swam; the next thing she knew, she was in the school infirmary with a bag of ice on her forehead. Voices murmured out in the hallway, and Silver Spoon sat in the corner opposite her. She perked up as Diamond Tiara's words caught in her throat, making her cough.

"Wow," she said, "that blank flank really did a number on you."

"What happened?" Diamond was able to croak.

Silver Spoon waved a hoof. "Figure it out. It was kind of embarrassing and I'd rather not talk about it. All I know is we totally need to get revenge on those dumb blank flanks for what they did to you."

Diamond winced. "What d'you mean?"

"You know." Silver Spoon held up her hooves. "Revenge. Do to them what they did to you, only worse. Burn down their little clubhouse or something, I dunno."

"What? But that's like... Wrong..."

"Wrong?" Silver Spoon clucked her tongue. "What's [i]wrong[/i] is [i]them[/i] not knowing their [i]place[/i]! [i]They're[/i] the ones who wanted to make this... physical." She sneered. "So we need to take the fight to them, double time!"

Diamond tried to shake her head, but the room started tilting and she had to catch her breath. The buzzing in her ears coalesced into the voice of her father.

[i]Above all else, you have to be a good friend, or you'll never become one: giving, kind, honest, loyal and fun.

[/i]She closed her eyes. "Would you leave me alone?" she murmured.

"What?"

"Just, get out!" As shouting made her head hurt worse, she lowered her voice. "I need to think."

Silver Spoon hesitated a moment, then shrugged and stood. "Whatever. See you tomorrow, DT."

As she watched the grey filly leave the infirmary, Diamond was struck by strange doubt. She was good friends with Silver Spoon, right? But Silver hadn't seemed too concerned about her well-being, focused instead on revenge. Why? Who cared if some dumb blank flank knocked her for a loop? They were the ones going to detention. The idea of revenge, of escalating and making things worse, left a cold pit in her stomach. What was the point? Worse, why hadn't her best friend asked how she was doing, or whether she was okay?

That wasn't being a good friend, was it? But...

"Diamond!"

She turned to see her father rushing into the room. "My baby, what did they do to you? I'll make sure they're all..."

"Cool it, Daddy." She winced slightly and shifted the ice pack's position on her head. "Just... take me home?"

Her father exchanged a nod with Miss Cheerilee, helped her to her hooves, and led her out of the schoolhouse.

"See you tomorrow, Diamond Tiara," her teacher said with a smile as they left. "I hope you'll be feeling better."

Diamond returned the smile fleetingly and shuffled out the door.

"Daddy," she began once they were well on the road back to their home, "are you still going to get me a new tiara?"

"Of course, princess, of course."

Diamond waited a few moments before speaking again. "I still want the one Miss Sparkle has. A-and... I want to get it the real way. What do I have to do?"

Her father gave her a sidelong glance. "Are you sure you're up for it, pumpkin? I could always have somepony make you one that looks the same..."

"It'd be fake!" The shouting made her wince again; the pain dulled her anger. "Are you saying I don't have what it takes to really become an Element of Harmony."

She missed the smile that passed his lips. "Well, I don't know, sweetheart. That's entirely up to you. But if you're sure you want to try, here's what you have to do:

"Get some real friends. Not like that nasty Silver Spoon, I mean ponies your age who will care about you when you're hurt and who you'll do the same for. Get a hoof on controlling your temper; you even know how bad it can get. Learn how to give instead of just asking for things. Maybe try little manual labor."

As each iota was spelled out, Diamond Tiara cringed. Maybe her father was right; maybe she wasn't cut out for this.

"That sounds like a lot of work."

"Well, it is, sweetheart, but those are the rules. It's up to you whether you follow them. And let me tell you something else: you've got your whole life ahead of you to practice until you get each one right. You have to grow up first anyway before you can have an Element, right? So there's no rush, take your time."

She couldn't nod, so she just "mmm"-ed instead. She was going to have a lot to think about when she got home.

[hr]

Her temper was the first thing to work on. She thought that keeping in mind the pain she'd experienced after that fight with the Crusaders would remind how much it hurt when she got mad.

It didn't help. For weeks, she floundered by herself, trying everything she could think of to get herself to change. Nothing worked. She couldn't change herself and she couldn't bear to leave Silver Spoon's company, even though her friend began to grow more and more distant because of her strange behavior.

One day, Silver Spoon showed up at her house. She didn't even blink when Diamond Tiara suggested they go up to her room.

"I just came to tell you that my family's moving to Canterlot," she said plainly.

"W... You're moving away?"

"Yeah. I didn't even really want to tell you, but my mother said I should."

Diamond blinked. "But..."

"We're going to the new house tomorrow." She paused. "I guess maybe we should bump, bump sugarlump rump one last time, huh?"

"Silver Spoon."

"What?"

"You're my friend, right?"

The grey filly shrugged. "Yeah, I guess, why?"

"You're my only friend." Tears crept into the corners of Diamond's eyes. "The only friend I've ever had. And now you're just leaving. Do you have any idea how that makes me feel?"

Silver Spoon frowned. "No, not really."

Anger welled up inside Diamond, and once again she was unable to quell it. "Don't you feel, I don't know, the least little bit sad that you'll never see me again? Wouldn't you at least rather hug instead of bump, bump?"

Silver Spoon made a face. "Ew. When did you get so gross?"

"You don't even know the meaning of friendship, do you?"

"Whatever. Look, here's my new address. We can write letters or some junk to each other." She produced a card and dropped it at Diamond's hooves. "But if you're gonna be all weird on me, maybe we just shouldn't."

"Yeah." The word was out of her mouth before she had a chance to think about it. "Maybe we shouldn't."

They stood in silence until one of them coughed and the other scratched at the back of her hoof.

"Goodbye, I guess," Diamond said.

"Yeah."

Diamond watched her former friend trot down her front stairs and off down the road. After a few paces, Silver Spoon stopped and turned to look at her. Her heart leapt.

"Hey, just because... Don't lower yourself to their level, okay? That would just be stupid. Seeya."

Diamond Tiara shook her head. "No," she whispered, "you won't."

[hr]

The next day, Diamond Tiara went to school alone. She sat in class alone. She ate lunch alone. She sat on a swing during recess, alone. One pony on the playground gave her a pitying look and she hated it. She walked home alone.

At home, in her pink-festooned room, she sat, alone, feeling numb, empty, and sorry for herself. There was nothing to do, nopony to see. Slowly, her left hoof reached out and opened her desk drawer. She felt around for a moment, before producing a yellow piece of construction paper. The right drawer yielded her collection of markers.

Reverently, she drew up the first marker to her eye level. It was red. She uncapped it and smelled the heady artificial cherry it had been scented with. Taking it in her mouth, she lowered her head and with broad strokes wrote "BE A" at the top of the page.

Only then did she look at the rest of her marker collection. Purple seemed the appropriate choice. She squeezed her eyes shut, remembering the day she was pulled out of the water: the hurtful words, the anger, the shivering cold, and that crown. Slowly, carefully, she began to sketch with the marker. Sweat beaded on her forehead. When the marker began to shake, she would sit up, only to go right back to drawing.

After the better part of an hour, she finally stopped. It was not completely symmetrical, and with rounded tips that should have been sharp, but it sat before her on the page and she felt proud to have created it: a facsimile of Twilight's crown, complete with the six-pointed star cutie mark that she now began to fill in with pink.

Once she was satisfied that she had left no yellow inside the outline, she took up the red marker again. Then, frowning, she dropped it in the drawer and went instead for the blue, uncapping it with her hooves as she held it in her mouth. Red was a color that commanded attention, if not respect; blue was softer, more friendly. With it, she wrote "BETTER" in over-large letters beneath the image of the crown. Then she took the orange marker, for contrast, and wrote "PONY" beside the first word, though she hadn't left quite enough space and the Y became smashed against the side of the page.

No matter. She held it up, tacking it to the wall above her desk, and smiled.

"Tomorrow, I make friends," she said. Implicit was the proclamation that it wasn't because she was lonely, only because she wanted the tiara. But something about that felt hollow and so she left it unsaid.

Turning, she began to clean up the markers: orange, pink, purple, red, blue. She paused with the blue marker in her mouth, and held it up, as though she were looking at it for the first time.

In a rush, she tore down the poster and flipped it over. In a space near the top, where it wouldn't bleed through and interfere much with the front side, she wrote, in very tiny print, "Blue is better." Then she squinted at it, uncomprehending.

Shaking her head, she capped the marker, set it in the drawer, and climbed atop her desk so she could tack the poster in a more permanent position higher up the wall. It was in a spot where she would be able to see it as she went to sleep and woke up each day. With any luck, it would remind her just what she was trying to do, if her resolve should ever waver.

[hr]

Diamond Tiara drew in a breath, closed her eyes, and strode toward the trees in the back corner of the playground. Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo all noticed her immediately and kept their eyes on her. When she reached their position, her mouth suddenly went dry, so she kept it shut.

"Uhh..."

"D'you want somethin'?" Apple Bloom asked, one eyebrow cocked.

"I, uh... I wanted to apologize."

"Apologize?" Scootaloo nearly took to the air, her wings buzzing angrily. "What for?"

"For..." Hot shame flushed her face. Her head felt heavy. "For all the mean things I've said to you three over all the time we've known each other. Especially last week." She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to visualize the crown. "I just said those things because I was jealous and wanted to hurt you all. I'm sorry."

She stood there a moment longer, and when nopony said anything, began to walk away.

"Diamond Tiara, wait!" Apple Bloom's voice made her lift her head, to see the yellow filly rushing over to her.

"Do... D'you mean that, what you said?"

Diamond nodded, if a bit sullenly.

"That's nice. Nice o' you to say, I mean. What about Silver Spoon?"

Diamond maintained a stoic expression. "She moved away. I can't apologize for her. But I doubt she'd want to anyway."

Apple Bloom turned to look back at her friends. "Well, uh... I noticed you looked kinda lonely yesterday, I guess that explains that..."

"I am not lonely!" She gritted her teeth against further outbursts. "Spare me your pity. I just want to do the right thing, okay? Don't make me regret it."

Apple Bloom actually smiled at her. "Well, if'n you need some friends, you're welcome to come play with us."

"No she's not!" Scootaloo shouted, and Sweetie Belle nodded, her eyes serious. Diamond frowned back.

"Well, I mean..." Apple Bloom looked nervously away. "I'll talk to 'em. Or maybe you 'n me can play together sometime, if they don't wanna."

Diamond forced herself to smile; she was surprised that it didn't take much effort on her part. "Thank you. I'd... like that."

Apple Bloom's smile widened. "Every pony needs a friend, after all. Well... see you around, I guess."

Diamond nodded and watched her rejoin her friends. It hadn't been a perfect first try, but she felt better already.

[hr]

The next day, the image of the crown poster was forefront in her mind as Diamond Tiara pushed open the door with "Foal Free Press" painted on the window. Typists at their keyboards, gophers running hither and thither, the ever-churning printing press: all came to a sudden halt as she entered the basement press room. The colt running the press stepped out from behind it, leveling a bemused smirk at her.

"Well," he said, his voice thickly nasal, "never though I'd see [i]you[/i] here again."

"I'd like to speak to the Editor in Chief please, Shady Daze, if you wouldn't mind." She spoke the words 'Editor in Chief' as though she didn't know the identity of the colt sitting in the oversized chair behind the desk at the head of the room.

Shady turned his head and called, "Hey Chief! Your... predecessor wants to see you."

The giant maroon chair slowly swiveled about, revealing the scrawny white colt who had usurped Diamond's once glorious position. She ground her teeth together as his calm smile washed over her.

"Well, well, if it isn't Diamond Tiara," he said, his quiet voice carrying a sinister undercurrent. "I'd heard from Miss Cheerilee that you'd be coming back, but that doesn't answer the question: To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Diamond narrowed her eyes. The last thing she needed was this pipsqueak getting under her skin. She stalked up to the desk and placed her forehooves on it, so she could talk to him without being overheard. "Don't think I don't know what you and Shady Daze did to take my place running the newspaper."

One of his eyebrows raised. "Oh? And what would that be?"

She growled. "It doesn't matter. I couldn't prove it if I tried."

"No," he said, his grin only widening, "no you couldn't."

"I just want you to know that [I]I[/I] know." She took a deep breath and settled back off the desk. "As for why I'm here, I asked, and Miss Cheerilee that if I behaved myself, she'd let me back on the paper staff. As a reporter."

"Is that so? Just what could you report on, I wonder? We're not the dirt rag [i]you[/i] ran anymore, I'll have you know."

She allowed herself a little smirk. "I could cover fashion. It's my area of expertise, you see. Or maybe a who's-who of Ponyville Elementary. I know all about the popular foals, after all."

"So you do, so you do." It was maddening just how calm Featherweight was. "I think that would suit you just fine, actually."

Diamond's smile became genuine. "Good, because I think..."

"Lemon Daze!"

A white earth pony filly with blond mane perked up from where she'd been reviewing an article she'd written.

"You're moving up to city beat. We've got a new playground reporter as of today."

Lemon Daze clopped her hooves happily and dashed out the door, while Diamond Tiara could only look shocked.

"What? Playground? But I..."

"You're going to be reporting on popular students, Diamond Tiara," Featherweight crowed, leaning forward on his desk. "Starting with the kindergartners. Isn't that what you wanted?

Diamond stood, mouth open, staring straight ahead.

"At the very least, it will give you something to work your way up to."

She remained staring, open-mouthed, for the remainder of the day as she interviewed little foals on the playground after school.

"...An' then we saw a kraken!" The brown and white colt continued to hop in a circle around her as he spoke. "It was big an' green with lots o' tentacles and it went 'Whoosh, roar, crash!' so then I tole my crew, I said, 'Git to the mizzenmast! All cannons away!' an' then we blew it outta the water, boosh!"

"That's... so very riveting..." Her left eye had developed a twitch somewhere between Dinky Doo's discourse on her favorite muffin recipes and Pipsqueak's recounting of his make-believe pirate adventures. The notebook and pencil dangled limp on a cord around her neck. There was no way she was going to survive this.

"An' then I said, I said... Hey, umm, Miss Diamond, are you listenin' to me still?"

Diamond's entire mouth twitched. She tried desperately to think of the crown, but it was getting harder to focus on through the haze of privateers and merponies. Her saving grace came unexpectedly in the form of Apple Bloom, who hailed her from the pathway in front of the school.

"Hey Diamond Tiara, what're you doin'?"

"Thank you, Pipsqueak," she said hurriedly, "I think I can make a [i]wonderful[/i] story out of this." She turned and galloped off toward Apple Bloom before he could respond.

"Thank Celestia you're here," she gushed, "I was going out of my mind listening to kindergartners and their dumb playground games!"

Apple Bloom laughed, and Diamond realized that her older sister was with her.

"Well, that sure don't seem like somethin' you'd do willingly," she said. "What's up?"

A defiant response presented itself, but she let her head and shoulders droop instead. "Working my way up."

Applejack smiled. "Sounds like yer learnin' a lesson about humility there, sugarcube. This sure don't seem like somethin' the filly I pulled outta the reservoir woulda done. Why the sudden change?"

This time the defiance showed through as Diamond lifted her head, eyes blazing up at Applejack. "I want to become an Element of Harmony, like you! And I want that crown! It's the biggest, most amazing tiara I've seen in my entire life, even better than Princess Celestia's, and it should be mine!" The words coming out of her mouth were like sandpaper. "And... And I need to find some friends." She turned her face away, mumbling, "I'm trying to be a better pony than I used to be."

"Well now!" Applejack exclaimed, smiling wide. "There ain't nothin' with havin' a goal and makin' friends!" She tousled Diamond's mane, and the filly responded with a frozen expression of horrified disgust. "Good luck with gettin' your priorities sorted out, kiddo!"

The Apples took off down the road, but Apple Bloom stopped after a few paces. "Applejack, d'you think maybe Diamond Tiara could come visit our house sometime?"

Applejack shrugged. "Don't see why not, if you're willin' to be friends with 'er. How 'bout it, DT?"

Diamond's eye began twitching again. Forcing her mouth into a smile, she croaked, "Sure!" before reverting to her previous look of disgust.

"See you later then, Diamond!" Apple Bloom called. Diamond waved after them, but inwardly was still screaming about her tousled mane. If she was going to be visiting the Apples' barn, she'd need a long bath first.

[hr]

"Why did I make this thing?"

That simple question had brought the last six years back in a rush of memory. Diamond Tiara was now a far cry from the snot-nosed little brat she had been once, almost a full-grown mare. As she stared at the sun-faded marker on the blanched poster, she realized just how much she'd forgotten about it.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders, bullied by Apple Bloom, had eventually come around to accepting her, or at least tolerating her presence. She got the feeling Sweetie still didn't like her all that much, but in time, even Twist had made friends with her. She climbed the ranks of the Foal Free Press and kept up fashion reporting into middle and high school. She got another tiara – she really did feel incomplete without one – but neither it nor its successors had been anywhere near as gaudy as what she had worn as a foal.

She was almost certain it was the anniversary of the day Ponyville had been attacked, so many years ago. It was a day she almost lost her life, and instead found a new one. It was the only reason she would find herself now staring at that faded poster and reminiscing about everything it had done for her.

"Diamond!" Her father's voice floated up the stairs. "Your friends are here!"

She moved toward the door, then stopped. "One second, Daddy, I'll be right down!"

Swiftly, she hopped onto her desk, shoving her textbooks to one side and sending newspaper clippings scattering to the floor. Acting under a sudden mania, she unpinned the poster from her wall and flipped it over. There, at the top of the rear side, far closer to the original yellow of the paper, she found what she'd been looking for.

"Blue is better."

She read the words aloud with reverence, yet still she had no idea what they meant beyond being a simple description of a word on the obverse side. She laughed, shaking her head, and repinned the paper to the wall, with that cryptic line now facing outward.

"Am I blue yet, I wonder?"

"Diamond, theriouthly, you take forever to do anything, I thwear." Red mane poked the bedroom door open. "Did you forget about what we're doing today?"

"Sorry, Twist, I was just thinking about something. I haven't forgotten." She turned to her friend, smiling. "Let's go."

They trotted downstairs and Diamond gave her father a smile as they headed out. "Bye, Daddy, we're off to the retirement home!"

"Have a good time," he replied, smiling proudly.

That, she thought, made it all worthwhile. Truth be told, she wasn't a hundred percent excited about helping the old ponies. They could be weird sometimes, weird in the head, and some of them smelled bad – she had made peace long ago with the idea that, no matter how much she might have changed, she would never be able to abide dirt or foul odors – and sometimes they told rambling, depressing stories. It wasn't where she wanted to be for the rest of her life, but for now? It was a great way to provide a valuable service to the community, and that made her feel good.

"Tho, I wath working with Pinkie Pie today and we came up with the betht idea: cupcake candy caneth!"

"Pinkie's been making candy cane cupcakes since we were foals, Twist."

"No, no, I mean candy caneth that tathte like cupcaketh! It'th thtill in the early rethearch thtageth, but I think it'th gonna be the thtart of a beautiful friendthip between candy and thweetth!"

Diamond laughed. "With the two of you working on it, I'm sure it will be great!"

As they meandered through town, they met up with Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom. Out of the four of them, Sweetie was the only one lacking a cutie mark, a fact which none of the rest of them tried to notice, but Diamond sometimes blamed herself for. Sweetie had a tendency, when it was pointed out to her, to lash out at whoever was doing the pointing, and she still hadn't let Diamond forget the "Once a blank flank, always a blank flank" line. Despite this, everypony knew that it was her slavish devotion to being just like her older sister that kept Sweetie's flank blank. Diamond still felt twinges of guilt now and then.

"So Sweetie, how's your coltfriend doing?"

Sweetie snorted. "We're not speaking right now."

Diamond gave Apple Bloom a look. "Again? Come on, Sweetie, that's like the third time this year."

The unicorn shook her mane primly. "And it'll be a fourth time if he doesn't learn to keep his dumb mouth shut! Honestly, he says the stupidest things!"

Diamond sighed. "I wonder why you put up with him sometimes."

A light prance peppered her step as Sweetie blithely replied, "Because he's just the best!"

Laughing, the four girls entered the retirement home. The foyer was warmly if dimly lit, showcasing tacky worn carpeting and faded wallpaper framing generic still lifes. Diamond shuddered a little, as she always did when she set hoof in this place, but then the receptionist greeted them and her thoughts were taken over with her tasks for the day.

At the home, they folded laundry, chatted with the elderly, sometimes did cooking if they came around dinner time. Try as they might, none of them could convince Sweetie to sing, but then nopony ever could, not that it had stopped their attempts. Today wasn't a day for teasing her, however, considering the mood she was in. Diamond took her turn on laundry duty and listened to Apple Bloom discussing the week's news with the residents back in the communal area.

"I remember you."

The oily voice caused her to jump and drop the sheet she'd been folding. Whipping around, she saw a wizened male pony, his sallow coat greasy and unkempt, leering at her.

"Well, you [i]should[/i] remember me, I was here last week!" she said, trying to catch her breath. "You know, you really shouldn't be sneaking up on young fillies, sir. You scared me half to death!"

Thin lips parted, revealing chipped yellow teeth. "Half to death..." The old pony began chuckling, fetid breath washing out over her.

The sound of that laughter made her blood freeze more than any sudden scare possibly could. Pins pricked at her skin as some buried memory sparked in the back of her mind. Heedless of decorum, forgetting the sheets, she turned and galloped past the others, down the hallway to the reception desk.

"Are you all right, dear? Ya look like you seen a ghost!"

Panting, Diamond gasped, "The old stallion with the yellow coat and stringy green mane: how long has he been here?"

The receptionist frowned. "That doesn't sound familiar... Are you sure you don't mean Mister Withers?"

"I know Old Mister Withers, and that was [i]not[/i] Old Mister Withers!"

The receptionist shrugged. "I'm sorry, honey, I don't think we have a resident who fits that description. Maybe he wandered in off the street. I'll call for an orderly."

"DT, you okay?" Apple Bloom and the others caught up to her, worry etched over their features.

Diamond shook her head, unable to give voice to the fear that still coursed through her veins. She didn't have to, however, as a deep, roiling laughter echoed through the hallway.

"So many pretty young ponies... All for me to take..."

"No!" cried Sweetie, whirling, her face frozen in terror. "I-it can't be!"

The sallow pony appeared in the hallway then, lips still pulled back in a grimace. "I come to take back what's mine."

With speed belying his apparent age, the old pony barrelled headlong into Sweetie Belle, knocking her off her hooves before anypony else could react. The receptionist, cowering behind her desk, screeched at the intercom for orderlies. As Sweetie's attacker rolled to his hooves, the unicorn remained stuck to his back, all four legs kicking in the air.

His form began to bubble and slide, more than doubling in size as the pony transformed into a gaunt and bloated horse. He tossed his soggy mane and laughed in a voice like gargling water.

"Catch Krastos if ye can!" He took off out the door, even faster than before, Sweetie Belle screaming atop him.

"We gotta do thomething!" Twist, panicking, began to shake Apple Bloom.

"Aaah, stoppit! I'll go get my sister! DT, you 'n Twist, uh..."

"Apple Bloom, we need the Elements of Harmony! They defeated Krastos last time!" Diamond Tiara's eyes widened in horror as she realized the futility of that statement.

"But Twilight Thparkle'th in Canterlot!"

"And Rarity's sister's in Manehattan! An' Rainbow Dash is in Cloudsdale!"

For a moment, the three shared a look of despairing realization. Diamond Tiara swallowed.

"Apple Bloom, get your sister; Twist, get Pinkie Pie. We'll have to hope they're enough. I'll... go after Sweetie, I guess."

The other two nodded, the tasks giving them focus.

"If I see Scootaloo, I'll tell her to follow ya!" Apple Bloom called. "But where d'you think he's takin' her?"

"To the same place as last time: the Highland Reservoir!"

[hr]

Diamond had no idea what she was doing, but she charged headlong towards the reservoir, hoping beyond hope that she could do [i]something[/i] to either save Sweetie or keep Krastos occupied until an adult, somepony who could actually do something, showed up. She was heartened by the sudden appearance of Scootaloo, who dipped down to fly beside her.

"Tiara, what's going on?"

"It's Krastos the Gluemaker, he's back and he's got Sweetie Belle!"

The pegasus's eyes went wide. "What? Where?"

"The Reservoir! Go, I'll meet you there!"

Scootaloo put on a burst of speed, and Diamond had to pause for a moment to cough the dust out of her face. At least Scootaloo would be able to buy some time, if not rescue Sweetie outright; Diamond wasn't accustomed to running long distances, feeling winded already.

An idea came to her then, as she wondered just what good her presence could do. She began to shout at the top of her lungs, slowing just a bit.

"Everypony, it's Krastos! Krastos is back! To Highland Reservoir!"

Through the town she shouting, alerting everypony in earshot. After a few minutes had passed, half the town was ready for action and organizing a resistance and rescue effort, and she was within sight of the Reservoir. The scene that greeted her made her heart sink.

Krastos had assumed his bipedal shape and was tussling with Scootaloo, who was flying around him at high speed, trying to keep him occupied. Sweetie was nowhere in sight. As Diamond came to within shouting distance, Scootaloo moved in close to Krastos and swung, scoring a hit.

"No! Scootaloo, stop!"

It was too late. Krastos staggered backward at the blow, but where her hoof had made contact with his skin, it stuck fast, and his cry of pain quickly turned into deep laughter.

"Haa haa haa, more ponies for Krastos! Come to his domain, you will find sleep forever!"

"Leave her alone!" Diamond's first instinct was to charge headlong at him, but she stopped. If she did that, she'd likely only wind up stuck to him as well. Mind whirling in panic, she did the only thing she could think to do. "Krastos, wait, please!"

"Krastos does not wait." The equine head turned toward her. "Ahh, it is you. I remember you. You will have your turn soon enough, little pony, and be mine again." He chuckled low in his throat, long fingers hypnotizing Scootaloo as he made for the water.

"Krastos, stop! Let her go and... And you can have me!"

The figure paused. "What?"

"I give you myself in exchange for her!" She stood her ground, staring defiantly into his murky green eyes. "A pony for a pony!"

Those eyes narrowed. "You would give yourself? No pony ever gives to Krastos..."

She glowered at him. "Well, there's a first time for everything, isn't there?'

There was a sucking sound and Scootaloo dislodged from Krastos' side, gasping for breath as she lay immobile on the ground. The creature stalked toward Diamond, sticky ropes extending from his fingers.

"What do you think of Krastos' return, hmm? Didn't need centuries this time; Krastos is getting better at this. He will take you instead, for now."

Diamond closed her eyes; all she could do was hope she'd bought enough time.

"Hi-ya!"

An orange blur dashed into her field of vision and knocked Krastos for a loop.

"Applejack, no, stop, you'll..."

Applejack jumped back, grinning. Four yellow galoshes stuck to Krastos' side as he thrashed and bellowed on the ground.

"Don't worry, DT, Ah came prepared!"

"Tho did we!"

Twist and Pinkie Pie galloped into the area, carrying a sack of flour between them. As they approached Krastos, they began to separate, until the sack, stretched taut, impacted with Krastos and exploded all over him, coating him entirely in powder. He went back down with a cry of pain, thrashing about on the ground.

"Yaaaaargh!"

Applejack grinning. "Darn good thinkin', Pinkie! Now we can kick his keester without worryin' about that sticky gunk he's covered in!"

"You said it, AJ!" The pink pony reared up on her hind legs, bearing her teeth. "Now let's show him what a pony can do!"

"Wait!" Diamond interposed herself between AJ, Pinkie and Krastos. Not knowing what she was doing, she looked over at the being, still writhing on the ground and screeching in agony.

"Diamond, this is serious business, get outta the way!"

She shook her head. "He said something to me... We may not have to fight him." She dashed off toward Krastos, stopping slightly out of his reach. Some of the flour was already beginning to rub off his back where he'd been rolling in the grass.

"Mister Krastos..." She swallowed. "You said nopony ever gives you anything."

Krastos stopped thrashing suddenly and turned his eyes away from her. "No... Never..."

"When you came six years ago, all you did was take ponies and put them underwater. Like you were collecting them. But really, I think... you were lonely." Her eyes searched left and right. "I know what being lonely is like; it's no fun. It eats you up inside and you lash out at others because you think that will fill the hole, even though it never does. But I know one thing that will."

She ducked her head, and with a hoof, kicked off her tiara, letting it settle on the grass.

"Friendship."

Wild eyes rolled at her, uncomprehending. "What?"

"Please, take this, as a sign of my friendship. It's very important to me – it represents who I am – but I want you to have it."

Krastos blinked a number of times, then slowly, very slowly, reached out a hand.

"Diamond, look out!"

Diamond held up her hoof, face set in determination. She watched carefully as the hand snaked through the grass, coming to rest on the simple silver tiara. Krastos scooped it up almost reverently and brought it to his face, then looked at her.

"You want to give this to Krastos?"

"I do. Please have it."

The water that ran continually out of Krastos' mane began to intermingle with water from his eyes as a grin split his mouth wide. He sniffled and scrubbed at his face with his free hand, leaving streaks in the white.

"Krastos has much to think about," he said softly, and all at once became a cloud of mist. The flour fell to earth in globs, but the tiara stayed afloat within the mist, which sped off eastward and was gone in the blink of an eye.

There was a bubbling noise behind them and they all turned in time to see Sweetie Belle being ejected from the reservoir near Scootaloo, coughing and sputtering. Apple Bloom and Twist ran over and hugged both of them, helping them to their hooves, as Applejack and Pinkie Pie moved over to Diamond.

"Wow, Diamond Tiara," cried Pinkie, "how'd you know that would stop him?"

"I... I didn't! Oh my Celestia, what if that hadn't worked? I could have been captured again, you all would have!" A huge sob wracked her body and she collapsed to the ground, tears running down her cheeks.

"Hey now, don't cry," Applejack said, placing a hoof around her withers. "You just did a real brave thing, not to mention generous and kind to boot."

Diamond sniffed and rubbed her nose on the grass. "I-I did?"

Applejack nodded. "You took what was in your heart and made it real, for the rest of the world to see. Even after you made friends with my sister, Ah wouldn'ta pegged ya for the type, but... Well, Ah'm plum sorry Ah underestimated ya, Diamond."

Diamond smiled. "It's okay. I underestimated myself too. I just hope I never have to do something like that again!"

Applejack chuckled and helped her to her hooves. "I dunno, you might be capable o' more than ya think. I seem to recall a little filly who really wanted t' have a big ol' crown thingy of her own..."

Diamond wrinkled her nose. "Don't remind me. As long as we have you, Pinkie and the others to be the Elements of Harmony, I'm way fine never having to go through that ever again!"

"Besides," Pinkie Pie chimed in, "I don't think you'd really work as the Element of Magic anyway! After what you did with Krastos, you're obviously the Element of Generosity!"

Applejack laughed. "Don't that beat all? We'll hafta tell Rarity her spot's up for grabs!"

Diamond tried to laugh off the suggestion, but couldn't help noticing Sweetie Belle glaring at her as Twist helped her back toward them. Luckily, nopony said anything as the townsfolk arrived on the scene. With nothing left to do, they simply carried the seven ponies, victim and hero alike, on their shoulders back to Ponyville.