A Derpy Apocalypse: Dead Mare Walking

As Derpy walked away from the tent Vinyl and Dash were in, she looked for an empty one. She looked and looked and spotted one for the taking. Now, Derpy was assuming it to be somepony else's, so she got ready for when somepony else came in. She sat down in the tent and laid back. She was still saddened by the fact that Gunny was gone, and that he wasn't coming back. She pulled out her journal, the one she found in Gunny's pocket. The first page was something Gunny had written for Derpy, and never got to show her while he was alive. It read:

" To: Derpy Hooves/Ditsy Doo

From: John "Gunny" {Unknown Last Name}

Dear Derpy,

"I've always wondered what being in love with somepony felt like. Sometimes I would look at a mare and find them attractive, but I wouldn't say anything to them. Sometimes I would have lustful thoughts, and that would ruin every feeling of love I had for a particular mare.

But you, you came to me, and that made me feel like something I never felt like before...Wanted... I never deserved you, you were too beautiful for me, and you never deserved me, I was never enough for you. Until the day I die, I will never have given you enough. I will always love you. I wish I could have married you, I really do. What I felt from you is something I would have never felt from anypony else.

If I die at early age, you don't need to be sad over me, if you find another stallion, then go ahe---"

From this point, the page was torn. A tear stain laid in the center of the letter, dried up and old. It was from when Ditsy first read the letter. When she had finished reading it again, she buried her face in the book and wept. She was devastated by the death of Gunny, there was no other stallion that would fit him. For months, Derpy was trying to figure out what the last words were, she stared and stared at the page, and couldn't figure out.

Derpy got a pen out of a pen-holder in the book, and started writing.

"Today, I found a raider camp. I saw one of the bullies from the orphanage, she wasn't an orphan, but she visited a lot. She had lots of friends there, unfortunately though, I wasn't one of them. She bullied me every day, until Dinky got me out. Since then I'd barely seen her. But now, I gave her a bloody nose to show how I felt. She didn't expect it, but I'm pretty sure she knew I was mad. I borrowed a tent, hopefully the person who owns it, won't hate me for it."

Derpy closed her journal. She looked up and saw Time Turner peeking in.

"What do you want?" Derpy asked angrily.

"I'm sorry ma'am, I just heard crying...and I..." Time Turner said. He stopped and looked down. "I just wanted to help..." He started to walk out.

"Wait!" Derpy said. Turner looked back at Derpy.

"What?" He said in his Canterlot accent.

"I'm sorry, I'm just...I'm really sad about something that happened." Derpy said. "You can have your tent back."

"No no," Time Turner said. "it's fine, you can stay as long as you want."

"Really?" Derpy questioned.

"If it makes you feel better ma'am." Turner responded.

"Please...call me Derpy." Derpy said again. "I had a...a really close friend a few months ago, and he said that to me and..." A tear came to Derpy's eye. She whipped it away and continued to speak. "he's...dead now..." Derpy's eyes started to water more, as more and more tears fell from them. Turner went up to give her a hug.

"Well, I'm not trying to get you to replace him with me," he said. "but if you need anything, just ask me."

"Why are you being so nice to me?" Derpy asked him. He looked at her.

"Because there is something in you that I don't usually see in anypony nowadays." He said. "A care and compassion for others." he looked down at a watch on his foreleg. "Oh I have to go do something, um...if you'll excuse me, I'm sorry."

"It's okay." Derpy said with a smile. Turner smiled back, and with that, he left.

~~~

Later that day, Derpy went up to Vinyl to ask about a tent to sleep in. Vinyl directed her to a couple of tents that were empty. Derpy chose the one closest to Turner's tent. Derpy thanked Vinyl for the tent and went in.

When Derpy sat down in the tent. She thought about what had just happened between her and the stallion, whom she did not currently know the name of. He didn't introduce himself, but he thought it would be nice to give Derpy a hug. Derpy wondered why. Maybe it was just in his nature, or maybe it was just a good time, she didn't know. She wasn't sure about having a crush on him, given that Gunny had died and everything, she was still mourning his loss. She wanted to think that the paper was going to say that Gunny was allowing Derpy to find another stallion upon his death, but at the same time she was forced to assume that it could be the exact opposite.

She read the letter in the first page over and over again. Once she had read it about thirteen times, her eyes watering, she put the book down and got ready to sleep. She heard hoofsteps approaching her tent.

"Hey um...can I talk to you?" said a familiar voice. It was Rainbow Dash.

"What do you want, cazzo?" Derpy asked.

"I just uh...I wanted to..." Rainbow Dash replied, having trouble talking. "I wanted to...apologize for what I have done, I didn't take time to notice what you were on the inside, and I'm sorry."

"I'm sure you are," Derpy said. "maybe you could write me a letter about it in the blood from your nose."

"Okay..." Rainbow Dash said. Derpy heard slow hoofsteps walking away from the camp.

"That wasn't so nice..." Derpy said to herself. She sat there for a moment, then shrugged. "Hmm, oh well."