Happily Ever After*

by Trick Question

Rating: everyone
Tags: Cranky Doodle Donkey, Slice of Life, Drama, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Matilda
Length: 1061

It's the morning after Cranky and Matilda's wedding. Cranky is very happy, but there's something missing.

It's the morning after Cranky and Matilda's wedding. Naturally, Cranky is thrilled with his new bride, but there's something missing he can't quite put his hoof on.

What could it be?

Written for The Writeoff Association's "The Morning After" contest.

Published 2016-11-30 16:00:02 UTC
Last updated 2016-11-30 16:00:02 UTC

Happily Ever After*

Happily Ever After*

Yesterday had been the craziest day in Cranky Doodle Donkey's life, despite the fact that the pink tornado hadn't been involved. And yet, it had also been the happiest.

Cranky slipped out of bed and stepped quietly across the room to his mahogany writing desk. Then he sat down in his chair and turned to look over his shoulder at his new wife: the perfect angel dozing peacefully beneath their bedcovers. For many years now, his internal clock would wake him shortly before Celestia's Sun had risen. Now that he shared a home with Matilda, he felt duly obligated to avoid waking her early.

The stealthy morning ritual had become a welcome part of his routine. Over the past few months since she'd moved in, Cranky would wake up, kiss his fillyfriend on the cheek, and quietly start his day. Not with breakfast or tea, since the aroma of food could rouse anyone from slumber. He preferred to wait the necessary hour or so for her to get up on her own. That way, they could share the morning meal together.

Instead, Cranky's day began with writing.

He had been penning a dramatic romance novel for many years now. Even back when he was spending his days searching for Matilda, the side hobby had become essential. It had helped keep his spirits up through even the darkest of times. He'd only ever worked on a single story because the novel he envisioned contained everything that he needed to say to the world. Perhaps being an author of a single work meant he wasn't a "true" writer, but then he never placed much stock in labels.

Since Cranky had only one thing he needed to write, he learned to improve his writing by rewriting the early chapters, over and over again. Over time, he improved to the point he felt comfortable sharing his incomplete work. Ponies he'd shown the book to universally loved it. He had no aspirations beyond his magnum opus, but at the very least, someday soon he'd be able to share this one remarkable piece of his heart with the rest of Equestria.

Only the final chapter remained unwritten, which would contain the all-important climax of the tale and its resolution: two star-crossed lovers, an epiphany between them to provoke the final action, and the myriad consequences of love laid bare. Most of the plot had been planned in advance, but the message of the tale he drew from his soul as he wrote.

The donkey turned, picked up his quill, and dipped it into the inkwell. He opened the current draft of his book for reference, and placed a fresh sheet of parchment below it on the writing surface. Then he held his pen on the paper until the place it touched began to bleed ink into a small dot... which slowly grew into a larger dot.

After several moments, Cranky lay his quill flat on the table. He stared at the empty canvas before him, puzzled.

Something was different this morning. For one thing, Cranky had never before experienced this kind of happiness. Although his depression abated months ago when he finally found Matilda, there was something curious about actually being married to her. It was real now, no longer just a half-baked fantasy. Matilda was his, and he was hers, and there was no pretending otherwise. He had no choice but to accept the facts.

It had made sense for Cranky to be nervous before the wedding. Even though they'd already been living together and loved one another, the constant fear he'd lose her again picked at the back of his mind. Cranky had never thought much of himself, and certainly not that he'd ever be worthy of a jenny like Matilda. Throughout his long search for her, he'd needed to bury those fears as deep as he could. That repression of his feelings was the only thing that kept him going, because it blinded him to the absurd unreality of his task.

They had met only briefly, so many years ago. He cried on the day he lost her, and although his depression deepened over the years, he never cried again. He wanted to die, but the experience didn't feel sad to him—just numb and hollow. All his remaining emotional energy had been channelled into his quest... and into his newfound passion for writing.

Soon after he found Matilda, Cranky realised just how foalish his love for her had been. His mental picture of her was, naturally, idealistic and incomplete. It wasn't at all realistic to expect she would love him back, or that she'd still be single, or even that she'd remember who the hay he was! Nonetheless, she still fancied him, and their love grew.

After Matilda moved in, his bliss turned to paranoia. He still couldn't justify why they were in love. It was so unlikely they'd be compatible! Despite the long odds, they quickly became accustomed to each other's idiosyncrasies. They would quarrel, but respectfully. The virtue of friendship always bound them together. It was simply a miracle. There was no other word for it.

Cranky and Matilda were truly in love, whether or not it made any sense. It must have been destiny, he decided. Donkeys didn't know much about magic or fate, but both of them accepted that this was meant to be. He couldn't understand why, but the 'why' didn't matter. Everything was perfect now, and the two of them would be together for the rest of their lives. The wedding had finally sealed things for Cranky, once and for all. The fear and the sadness no longer resided within him, and not even a wisp of doubt remained.

Married. He couldn't keep the silly smile off of his face. But as he looked down at the paper, the words still wouldn't come. He searched deep within, finding nothing. The wellspring within him was dryer than a burning barn.

Then it dawned on him. At that moment, he knew the words had left him forever.

Cranky Doodle Donkey had nothing left to say.

He shut the book and sighed as an unfamiliar sensation of wetness began to tickle his cheeks. But the smile hadn't left his muzzle, and his heart still brimmed with love.

Such a trivial price to pay for happiness, thought Cranky.