the price of freedom

by derpyholic

Rating: teen
Tags: Tragedy, Sad
Length: 2989

a story of derpys life before becoming a mailpony

derpy is found as a filly scrounging through garbage cans for food. she is taken in but her rescuer is not as nice as he seems to be. she will have to suffer through immense pain to gain her freedom, she just has to wait and hope.

Published 1970-01-01 00:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2013-06-18 01:40:01 UTC

Chapter 1

“Get up! What in celestias' name do you think you’re doing?!” a loud voice roared through the kitchen. Derpy cowered in the corner as a large brown stallion stood over her and screamed at her.

“I-I was just resting for a minute.” She whimpered, trying to crawl farther into the corner.

“Resting? You have work to do!” the stallion pulled her up from the floor by her mane and pushed her violently into the counter. “You should be happy to even have someplace to live! And how am I thanked?!” he slapped her across the face and snorted, “you ungrateful pile of filth!” he turned and stormed out of the room, “just get your work done!”

Derpy stood still in fear, her face still stinging from the slap and her eyes tearing up. She turned around slowly and returned to cleaning the kitchen. She had never wanted this. She was abandoned as a filly in the wilderness near where she lived now. She had somehow survived and found her way to ponyville, living out of trash cans and sleeping in alleyways. The only things she had to eat were the occasional edible scraps she found in the trash. That’s how filthy rich had found her. She was scrounging around through his garbage and he had spotted her.

He had taken her in and cleaned her up, given her a place to sleep and something decent to eat. But he wasn’t as nice as he seemed to be at first. He had convinced her that she owed him her life, and had since then been treating her as his personal slave.

She couldn’t run away, he would find her fast enough. She couldn’t tell people what he had done to her because no one would believe her, besides it was her word against his.

The only joy she had ever had in her life was her daughter dinky, but she had been taken away some time ago. The atrocities derpy was put through were unthinkable. Beatings, torture, he had even raped her at one point which is how dinky had came about.

She had been living in fear her entire life, so she did as she was told. She finished cleaning the kitchen and gazed out the window into the evening sky.

The sun was dropping below the horizon, sending orange streaks through the kitchen and onto the walls behind her. She put everything away and walked to her room, a small windowless closet with a single bare bulb hanging from the ceiling and a thin blanket for a bed. She curled up and fell asleep, exhausted.

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Derpy was woken by a loud pounding on her door. She tried to block it out but it just got louder.

“Get up!” filthys' voice boomed, “I need you to go to town and pick some things up for me!”

Derpy crawled out of her “bed” and slowly got to her hooves; cracking every joint she had one at a time as she went.  She opened the door and looked around. Derpy was nowhere to be seen. There was a small note on the floor next to a small burlap coin purse. Not wanting to anger her master any more then he already seemed to be, she grabbed the list and purse and headed out the door into the dim early morning.

She took to the sky and set a course for ponyville. She landed in the street next to the market and checked the list filthy had left for her. It was mostly ingredients, most likely for today’s dinner.

She wandered through the market, gathering what she needed and avoiding conversation. When she had collected everything on the list she headed for home, saddlebags bulging with supplies. It was about noon when she arrived back at the rich house, which meant the family was still out for the day. They wouldn’t be back for at least another few hours.

She found a note on the door instructing her on what to make for dinner. She started immediately and got everything finished and set up just as the rich family walked in the door.

They all sat down to eat and talk about their day. Derpy sat at her own little table in the corner, a small apple crate sitting on the floor. She sat next to it, hunched over a little bowl of soup.

Diamond tiara took a bite of cake and immediately spat it back out, rubbing her hooves on her tongue and gagging.

“What’s wrong dear?” filthy asked

“The cake!” she spat, still rubbing at her tongue with a hoof, “it’s nasty!”

“What?!” he took a cautious nibble of the cake and he too spat it out. “Derpy! Can I speak with you a moment?”

Derpys heart filled with fear. She knew that tone of voice. She got up and followed him into the foyer, not knowing what she had done but knowing it had to be something bad.

“What is this?” filthy asked in a tone lined with malice.

Derpy looked at the cake he was holding, “um, its cake”

“Yes but what’s wrong with it?” before she had a chance to reply he grabbed her head and forced the cake into her mouth.

Her entire mouth burned and she threw up. Filthy continued to glare as she gagged and wiped stomach acid from her chin. “Well? What’s wrong with it?”

She coughed and tried to speak, “its – its salty”

“And why is that?”

She had no idea. She stepped into the kitchen and looked around. She had left all the cakes ingredients out and there was a big bag of salt on the counter with them, there was no sugar in sight.

She turned to find filthy right behind her with murder shining in his eyes. He punched her in the face sending her reeling into the counter.

“You idiot!” he roared, kicking her in the side, “why can’t you get the simplest things right!” he continued to kick her in the sides and stomach until her heard bones crack. He stood back and glared down at the broken and battered mare lying on the floor before him. “Clean up this mess and get out of my sight!”

But derpy barely even heard him. Her breathing was shallow and her side was blackened with bruising. She dragged herself to the dining room and cleaned up the cake that had been spat on the floor. She cleaned up her own vomit and hobbled to her room, leaning against the wall for support. She collapsed on her little pile of rags and started to cry. Her sobs wracking her already frail body, the tears soaking her mane and blanket. Eventually she cried herself to sleep, damning her bad eyesight for causing her all this pain. She buried her face into her blanket, praying to be saved.

Chapter 2

“Get up!” Diamond Tiara yelled, kicking Derpy in the side. Derpy gasped for air and bit her lip, trying not to yell and just taking the abuse.

“What is it Diamond Tiara?” she asked, quietly fighting back the remaining pain from her last beating so she could stand.

“I’m hungry!” the spoiled filly snapped, “where’s my breakfast?! And that’s MASTER Diamond Tiara to you!”

“Yes master Diamond Tiara” the slavemare whimpered, not wanting any more pain.

“Then what are you waiting for?!” she snarled, kicking Derpy in the shin, “get cooking!”

Derpy hobbled as fast as she could to the kitchen, tripping over her own hooves and falling on her face.

“You’re no good for anything” Diamond Tiara snorted, spitting in derpys' face as she walked by. The poor mare bit her tongue and fought back her tears.

She crawled into the kitchen and over to the counter. Using a chair, she managed to climb to her hooves. She went about her work, mixing up a breakfast of pancakes for the family and setting aside some left over scraps from last night’s dinner for her own meager breakfast.

A small bowl on the other end of the counter caught her eye. She had not noticed it before and its contents caused her to salivate uncontrollably.

In the bowl sat a collection of ten or twelve muffins, each baked to a perfect dark golden brown and speckled with various nuts and blueberries. She hadn’t had a muffin in so long. The last time she had was when a kind pink pony had caught her behind a bakery rooting through a dumpster. She didn’t yell at her like most ponies did, instead she gave her a muffin and hopped away.

She started to step closer to the bowl but stopped herself. She knew if she took one the filthy would become furious and most likely beat her again (knowing his hair trigger temperament). But the longer she looked, the more tempted she became until she couldn’t take it anymore.

She looked over to the door to check and see if anyone was looking, then snatched up one of the muffins and hid it under her wing. Having finished her work and set up breakfast she walked swiftly to her room, nearly running as her paranoia kicked into high gear.

She closed her door as quietly as possible and sat on her blanket, listening for movement in the massive house. When she felt completely satisfied that she was safe she pulled the muffin out from under her wing.

She admired it for a few minutes, just taking in the perfectly browned top and liberally applied blueberries that peppered its surface. She held it up to her muzzle and inhaled deeply. Its scent was intoxicating.

Slowly, ever so slowly, she took a bite and began to chew. Her eyes closed in bliss as the sweet flavor of the dessert rolled over her tongue and down her throat. She slowly and meticulously at the rest of it, savoring every bite until it was gone.

“Diamond Tiara!” filthy rich called from the kitchen, “did you have a muffin?”

“No daddy!”

Derpy froze, she knew she was caught. Her eyes grew wide as she heard loud hoofsteps coming towards her. She coward in the corner wrapped in her blanket as the door to her room flew open.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Do you think she’ll be alright?”

“I think so, the fractures aren’t too bad and the cuts are minor. But she should rest for a few days at the least.”

“Thank you doctor”

Derpy awoke on the family couch, bandaged and aching from head to hoof. Her left foreleg was in a cast and her other three legs were badly bruised, one or two with little cuts along her skin. Her right wing was strapped to her side and her left eye was swelled up, making her bad vision even worse. She moaned and clenched her teeth, she was sore all over and her head felt like it was going to explode.

Filthy rich was standing over her with a deep scowl imprinted on his face, he had a couple butterfly stitches over his eye but other than that he seemed unaffected from the night before. “I hope you learned your lesson Derpy.”

“Wh – what happened?” she groaned, shifting her weight off of her injured wing with a gasp of pain.

Filthy leaned in even closer, an eerie grin creeping onto his face. “If you ever, if you EVER! Steal from me again…” he leaned in so close Derpy could smell the whiskey that stained his breath, “… then the doctor won’t be the one who’s called, but a hearse!” he stood up and walked away, leaving Derpy to stare out the window.

It was nighttime now, she had blacked out during her beating and had apparently been out all day. She stared out the big bay window next to her, into the night sky. How she wished she could be out there, sleeping on a cloud, free as a bird with nothing to hold her down.

A bright light shot across the black velvet sky, leaving a glowing streak behind it. Derpy closed her eyes and repeated her wish, quietly whispering the words.

“I wish I were free.”

She didn’t bother to open her eyes again, she was exhausted. She stared at the back of her eyelids as she once again drifted into unconsciousness, her dreams carrying her away.

Chapter 3

Derpy was woken by the sound of banging on the front door. It was still dark out because she had once again slept through the entire day without even knowing it. The banging was accompanied by the occasional drunken yell.

“Hey!” filthys' slurred voice rand out from the front porch, “somepony lemme in!” he continued to pound on the door. “I said lemme in! Derpy! You stupid useless retard! LEMME IN!”

There was a crash in the foyer as the front door came off its hinges and slid across the tile flooring. The drunken form of filthy appeared in the doorway next to Derpy, reeking of alcohol.

“You retard!” he yelled, spraying his booze tainted spittle all over Derpy and the couch, “why didn’t you lemme in?!” he stumbled over to her side and stared down at her. His eyes were bloodshot and dilated to a near impossible size. “I really hate you!” his saliva spattered onto her face, “I don’t even know why I keep you around!”

He brought a hoof down on her stomach, knocking the wind out of her and bringing tears to her eyes.

“I’m gonna enjoy this!” he slurred, standing over her and spreading her back legs apart, leaving her helplessly open to him. She tried to push him off but he punched her solidly in the jaw.

“Mr. Rich! No! Stop! Please stop! “Derpy begged weakly as he began his ungodly act.

“Shut up!” he roared, punching her in the head and ribs until he felt her bones break. He continued to ride her and pummel her face until she wasn’t even recognizable. Her teeth were mostly gone and she was coughing up blood. More blood flowed out of her nostrils and down her broken muzzle. Both of her eyes were swollen shut and caked over with blood.

The violation finally came to an end as the bay window next to them exploded. Two royal guards crashed through and grabbed filthy, tossing him off of Derpy and into the wall.

The last thing Derpy saw before blacking out was a kind alicorn face looming over her, crescent moon pendant glowing softly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was over. The suffering was over. Derpy had finally been rescued. Later she was told that the doctor who had treated her on multiple occasions had become increasingly suspicious of her continuing injuries. He had called a close friend to investigate, and later found that filthy rich had been embezzling money from the crown for the past five years. He sent a letter to the princess immediately regarding the situation.

Considering her sister was already near ponyville paying a visit to a neighboring town celestia sent her a note telling her to get to ponyville immediately, giving her permission to use force if necessary. When Luna had arrived at the rich estate she heard a commotion from inside and peeked in a bay window next to the porch. She was horrified by what she saw. She sent the guards in to detain the crazed and drunken felon and entered after them, rushing over to the battered shell of a mare lying limp on the couch. She started to work as fast as she could to reverse the damage and was able to correct most of it. But there was nothing she could do for the mares’ eyes. They would stay crossed forever.

She brought her to canterlot to keep an eye on her as she recovered. She healed quickly and was soon up and about exploring her new surroundings with immense curiosity.

“Derpy? Are you awake?” Luna soft voice interrupted the blonde mare’s dreams.

“I am now princess. “She smiled, rubbing her eyes.

“Your recovery has gone very well over the past week” she stated, sitting on the bed next to Derpy, “I think you’re about ready to leave.”

Derpy sat silently as the words slowly began to sink in. she looked up at Luna uncertainly, “you mean… I’m free?”

“Well of course that’s what I mean.” Luna smiled. “You are free to go whenever you like.” Luna jumped in surprise as she found the young Pegasus wrapped around her in a tight hug.

“Thank you” Derpy whispered, a single happy tear rolling down her cheek.

Luna returned the hug, “You’re welcome.”

Derpy sat back and thought for a moment, “but princess, now that I’m free, I have nowhere to go. I don’t have any family to go to.”

The princes smiled for a moment. Slowly a smile grew on her face.

“I think I have the perfect job for you.”

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Twilight was waiting next to her mailbox. She was eagerly awaiting a new spell book she had sent for, but the mailpony was running late. As usual.

She smiled as she saw the silhouette of a Pegasus on the horizon coming towards her. As the pony drew nearer twilight could make out a grey coat and golden mane rippling in the breeze. Her mail had arrived.

“Package for Mrs. Twilight sparkle!” the cross-eyed mailpony announced as she made somewhat of a crash landing next to the mailbox.

“Thank you Derpy” twilight chuckled, signing for the package and talking it from the bubbly mare.

“See ya later twilight!” Derpy called back as she took to the sky again. Twilight shook her head and smiled as she stepped into the library to read her new book.

Derpy soared through the sky, zigzagging through clouds, her smile brighter than the sun above her. She had found a purpose. She was happy.

She was free.