It was a cold December morning in Ponyville and everypony was getting ready for Hearth's Warming Eve. The festive spirit was brighter than ever.

In one of the many houses that was nearby the town hall, a gray pegasus with blonde hair was awakened by her alarm clock alarm.
Yawning and stretching her wings, Derpy was soon awake. It was precisely 8 o'clock in the morning and the sun was shining in the sky through a window. She noticed that her husband, Doctor Hooves, was still asleep. She moved her head to his ear and, as a joke, whispered to him in a quiet voice.

"Wake up sleepy head!"

"Gah!"

Startled, he fell out of bed, landing on the floor in a pile of bed sheets. Immediately recovering from the joke that his wife just put forth, he poked his head out from under a sheet to see Derpy laughing hysterically at him from the bed.

"Derpy! You gave me such a fright ," he exclaimed as he got up from the floor. "Good morning to you." He shook off the sheet and made his way to the bathroom to get freshened up for the day. Derpy smiled, knowing that her joke had worked.

"Doc, today's the first day of my vacation right?" Derpy asked from the bedroom.

"Oh of course it is my dear," replied the Doctor. "I can recall that you were given a full week off from mailmare duty. But where exactly will you going?"

"I'll be vacationing in Dodge Junction," Derpy replied as she trotted out of the bedroom and stood outside the doorway, waiting for her husband to finish his morning routine.

"Excellent," replied the Doctor. "I'll go make some breakfast while you get ready for your trip."

"Thank you," Derpy acknowledged. "Please be sure to have a plate of muffins ready for me. You know how much I love them."

"Of course you do, honey. Muffins and the mail will always be your best interests," The Doctor replied enthusiastically.

After Doctor Hooves finished getting ready for the day, he stepped out of the bathroom and made his way to the kitchen. Derpy giggled as she entered the bathroom to get freshened up for her vacation.

A couple of minutes later, Doctor, Derpy, and Dinky were all sitting at the kitchen table eating breakfast. The Doctor was eating hay cereal from a bowl using a spoon, reading the Sunday edition of the Ponyville Express and enjoying a mug of hot apple cider. Derpy, with a plateful of chocolate chip muffins, was happily eating her second muffin. Dinky, who had just gotten back from a slumber party the night before, was happily finishing her bowl of muffin bits cereal, afterwards finding the prize inside of the cereal box.

"Sweet Celestia!" The Doctor exclaimed, pounding a hoof onto the table and throwing the newspaper onto the table. "Derpy, I think you should read this immediately." He slid the front page of the newspaper towards Derpy. She picked up the newspaper and began to read the headline.

"Mayor Mare gives the green light for the ownership of the Friendship Express."

Derpy was surprised. She has been a regular customer on the train service, which was the most efficient way to travel around Equestria, competing with flying and teleportation. Derpy read the article.

"Ever since the Friendship Express began service in Equestria, ponies everywhere have boarded this train to get to their destinations on time. Nowadays, money is now the only solution that can keep this train in service. The Equestrian Transit Authority, known as the ETA, have happily acquired the train and will keep it updated, spotless, and clean for the ponies who commute around Equestria. Basically, a fee of 10 bits will give a pony the chance to travel to any part of Equestria. Let us give this authority full responsibility of the Friendship Express for years to come."

"Do you think that is a bit conspicuous?" asked The Doctor. "I make 200 bits a week. And you Derpy only make 175."

Derpy pondered the question for a moment.

"Well, 10 bits does seep like a cheap fare. But I'll be alright. I don't care if the seats are dirty," she exclaimed. "I"ll still enjoy my train ride to Dodge Junction no matter what the circumstances are."

"Mommy?" asked Ditzy who had just finished her breakfast. "How long is your vacation?" Ditzy didn't know how long her mother would be on vacation since she was still at the slumber party when her dad had asked her mother earlier.

"A full week, but don't worry, I promise I'll be back." She smiled and kissed Ditzy's forehead. "You can have as much slumber parties as you want while I'm away on vacation." Due to the fact that her winter vacation had already begun, Ditzy beamed with excitement.

"Wow! Thanks mom! Have a great trip. Oh, and dad, thanks for making my breakfast!"

"You're welcome," The Doctor replied.

Once Derpy had finished her breakfast and the Doctor finished reading the paper, Ditzy ran to her room to begin planning her slumber party for that afternoon. Derpy checked the clock. It was 50 minutes past 9.

"Well I better get over to the train station. Take care of Ditzy and make sure the house is spotless when I return okay?"

"Of course! See you in a week!" He shouted as he waved goodbye to Derpy as she flew off towards the train station.

On her way to the train station, Derpy felt better than ever. It was a beautiful sunny day and weather team did a wonderful job making sure that the clouds were correctly in place. She smiled and waved at the ponies below her, going about their business that morning. Soon, she arrived at the train station, landing carefully onto the platform. Derpy trotted over to the ticket booth.

"A one way ticket to Dodge Junction please," Derpy asked politely.

The ticket pony gave Derpy her ticket.

"That'll be 10 bits ma'am."

Derpy placed her saddlebags onto the platform and found 10 bits in a small bag. She placed the bag onto the counter. "Here you go sir and thank you." She collected the ticket and placed it into her saddlebags.

"Have a safe journey," replied the ticket pony.

Derpy carried her saddlebags and waited for the train to arrive. 10 minutes later, the train pulled into the station and came to a complete stop. Boarding the train, Derpy found a comfortable seat and relaxed, falling asleep and waiting for the train to arrive at her destination.

...4 hours later...

At 2 o'clock that afternoon, the train pulled into Dodge Junction and came to a complete stop. Derpy yawned and woke up from her nap, stretching and ruffling her wings as she got up from her seat. She was just about to depart the train when a conductor stopped her.

"Hey! This is my stop!"

The conductor told her to get back into her seat. "Excuse me ma'am, but word from the boss has told me that all passengers need to pay a fee of one bit in order to leave the train. You need to have your own money to pay for that extra bit."

Derpy was shocked, flabbergasted, and furious. She noticed other ponies in the coach, handing their extra bit to the conductor and disembarking from the train.

"What should I do now?" she asked, worried.

"I am sorry to say this," the conductor began. "There's nothing I can do to help you. Passengers who don't pay their extra fare can't depart this train. Either that or blame the ETA because I need to make a living too you know."

Derpy gasped. This new policy was ridiculous! And to make things worse, she had forgotten to bring extra money with her.

"Let me off!" she screamed, trying to get to the door. But it was too late. The conductor had shut the doors and the train began to leave the platform. Stunned, Derpy sat on her seat and looked out of the window, seeing her vacation spot behind her. Her ears drooped as she slumped into her seat, tears forming into her eyes.

"What...will become of me?" she sobbed.

And just like that, Derpy was trapped, trapped on the best modes of transportation in Equestria: The Friendship Express, owned by the Equestrian Transit Authority.

Author's Note

Please try to give me positive comments. I previously posted a story and soon took it down due to me being self inserted in it. If there are any edits you have, please let me know what needs to be changed. Enjoy!