Living in Equestria

Sweetie Belle didn't come with us when we left Rarity's boutique, but she did grab a hold of my shirt tail with her muzzle as I was moving to the door. When I turned around, she stood there, looking up at me with big green eyes. I didn't need her to tell me what she wanted, I already knew.

I crouched down and drew her into a tight hug. Much like Scootaloo had earlier, she met me half way eagerly and clasped her hooves around my neck. "I'll see you guys later, kay?" she said in my ear.

"Alright..." I rubbed the small of her back with my hand. When she pulled away, she planted a quick and fleeting kiss on my lips before dropping down on all fours again, her cheeks bright red.

Rarity's story had shaken me deeply, more than I was willing to admit. It wasn't out of fear for myself or any of the other three, but at the incredible pain that she must have endured in her own experience. Between Applejack, Rainbow Dash and now Rarity, I was beginning to think that for all the harmony and happiness present in this world, a dark underside was lurking filled with tragedy and sorrow just out of sight. I wasn't surprised at this realization... after all Scootaloo's own family had been twisted and warped as well.

The two of us completed what we had set out to do with Rarity, asking for her help at the farm for the next couple of days. She of course agreed, returning to her usual and pragmatic self now that we had all calmed down. Sweetie Belle elected to stay behind and help her sister with gathering some things and I also got the feeling that Sweetie Belle wanted to talk with her sister alone for a while. With the events of Rarity's boutique behind us and a wide range of emotions at play, Scootaloo and I set out for Fluttershy's cottage near the southern edge of Ponyville, near the Everfree forest.

Nether of us spoke for a while, both preoccupied with our own thoughts that shared the same thread. The bond was complete, we had all felt it. Even though Apple Bloom wasn't with us, there was no doubt in my mind that she would know what had happened already when we made it back to the farm.

"I can't get Rarity's story outta my head, Mason..." Scootaloo finally said, shaking her purple mane. "That's not gonna happen to us, is it?"

"Well... not if I can help it, I guess. But bad things happen sometimes, Scoots. I just hope when the end comes, it comes for us both at the same time if that's what it's going to be like..."

The air between us was heavy for a moment with the morbid thought before Scootaloo shook it off. "Let's stop talking about it... I don't wanna think about it anymore!"

"Heh.. alright. We gotta figure out some other way of getting to Rainbow Dash anyways. I don't think my wing is gonna let me fly for a while." I gave it an experimental flex. It moved, but painfully.

"Aww that's easy! Come on!" she took off at a fast trot and I jogged behind her. She took me down a narrow path with tightly packed two story brown buildings on either side. A few ponies watched us pass with more recognition on their faces but none called out or got in our way. It was growing hot, the air heavily scented with hay and dirt was becoming uncomfortable here in the tight confines between buildings where no breeze could reach.

Finally Scootaloo stopped in front of a single story red storefront at the end of the road. A large sign hung above the half door depicting a white envelope with two silver wings. Clear enough for me to understand that this was some kind of post office or messenger service. The top half of the door was open, letting us see into the sunlit interior where a silver pegasus with a yellow mane sat behind a wooden desk wearing a blue postman's cap with a black bill. A large red pencil was balanced on her upper lip that was pushed out comically to form a shelf as she passed the time alone in there.

Scootaloo stood on her back legs and leaned into the open door. "Heya Derpy Hooves!" she said brightly.

"Scootaloo!" the mare chirped with an odd thick voice that sounded like her tongue was just a bit too big for her mouth. The pencil rolled off her lip forgotten as her face lit up in a smile.

"Can you find Rainbow Dash for us? We need to get her a message."

I nudged Scootaloo to get her attention. "I thought she did the weather?"

"Only part time... she's mostly just the Mailmare between Ponyville and Clousdale." she informed me.

Derpy got up and came around to meet us at the door. On her first step, one of her rear hooves landed perfectly inside the small, empty wire waste bin next to the desk, wedging firmly inside. We watched with awkward amusement as she vainly tried to shake and kick it off with mild annoyance. She gave up after a moment and clunked her way to the door with rattling steps.

"Sorry..." she gave us a sheepish look and stood on her rear legs at the door on the other side. Now that she was close, I could see something was odd about her. The large tan colored eyes she had didn't seem to work together. The left one looked straight ahead at Scootaloo and I while the other one on the right seemed to be stuck looking up and in. The stories I'd heard from Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash about her began to make sense. I instantly felt bad for the pony knowing she must be a handful for the others who deal with her on a regular basis... and she probably knew it only too well.

As Derpy gathered her pencil and paper to write down the message, the one good eye kept drifting to me.

"You're the human I've been hearing about." she stated bluntly.

"Yeah, I'm Mason. I've heard all about you Derpy... it's...eh.. nice to meet you finally!"

She broke out in a massive, toothy grin. "Everypony knows me!" then her expression changed to a shy, timid one as an almost visible thought crossed her mind. Her head tilted down with a frown, her ears flattened and she looked up at me with big mismatched eyes. "But not many ponies like me. I make a lot of mistakes..." she mumbled sadly.

My heart gave an inaudible "Dawww..." and I felt like should try to make her feel better.

"No... not that I've heard! In fact I hear you're a great Mailmare!" I lied through my teeth as best I could.

Her expression didn't change, in fact...it only got worse. "That's nice of you to say but I know it's not true. I thought I lost a whole bundle of mail yesterday... but it turns out I just forgot I delivered it already."

"Ohhh..." I was completely lost now. Scootaloo gave me a gentle slap with her tail below the door.

"So ...whatcha been up to, Derpy? I heard you worked the Thundercloud stampede!" Scootaloo asked her with a friendly smile, trying to change the subject. It didn't do anything to help the awkward situation.

"Yeah... but I got in trouble." her face fell even more. "I lost control of my cloud and zapped Cheerilee's tree..."

"Oh no!" Scootaloo cried out. I had heard about this from Rainbow Dash already. The morning after it happened, Dash had flown into the side of the barn, drunk off her tail and vented to me about the night's experiences with the clumsy silver pegasus.

"It's OK, Rainbow Dash covered for me... again." she brightened. "She's so nice! She's like my best friend! It seems like every time I screw up she's always there to help me." she was back to smiling already.

"Yep, that's why she's the best pegasus ever!"

"So what did you want me to tell her?" Derpy slid the small notepad in front of her.

"Come to Sweet Apple Acres ASAP. AJ needs your help." she said slowly and clearly.

"Ok..." Derpy concentrated, putting the large stubby pencil in her mouth and rubbing it across the paper in a seemingly random fashion. When I looked at what she'd wrote, there was only a squiggly, unbroken line. She stared at her work for a moment and then dropped the pencil, looking up at Scootaloo. "What does ASAP mean?" her yellow mane cocked to the side in confusion.

"Errumm..." Scootaloo was caught off guard by the question herself. "A... super.. awesome... pegasus?" she answered hopefully.

"Yeah! That makes sense!" Derpy nodded intelligently and they both smiled at each other. I almost said something, but decided to leave well enough alone.

"Umm..." Derpy suddenly looked deep in thought. "There was something I was supposed to ask you..."

"Me?" Scootaloo asked in mild surprise. "What in Equestria could you need from me?"

Derpy thought for a long time, one hoof came up to her chin and I could hear the waist bin stuck on her back hoof rattling and tapping against the floor as she thought. The sounds of the town around us drifted in on the slight, warm breeze as we waited with growing impatience.

"I dunno." she finally said simply and looked at us with a triumphant grin. Her right eye slid down so it looked like she was half staring at her nose.

"Aaalllright then, Derpy. We're gonna get going now." Scootaloo pushed away from the door, dropping down on all fours and walked backwards a step with a humoring smile on her face. The Mailmare didn't move.

"See ya!" Scootaloo turned away and I followed behind, feeling a bit strange about the whole encounter.

"Is she always like that?" I asked Scootaloo when we were out of earshot.

"Yeah... you kinda get used to her. I actually like her, even though she's a weirdo sometimes."

"I get the feeling that she's also not that... umm..." I looked for a way to say it without sounding rude. But the ever increasing ability for Scootaloo and I to know what each other was thinking meant I didn't have to.

She gave a small chuckle. "Yeah, she's pretty ditzy. Apple Bloom says she's as sharp as a boulder!"

"Aww... that's mean!" I chided her.

Scoots was ready for a sarcastic game of one-up with me on it. "Ooohhh... sounds like you wanna bring her into the herd!" her eyes narrowed playfully as she looked sidelong at me with a smirk.

"What!? How did that go from being ditzy to sharing the herd with her?!" I laughed and stopped walking in a joking display of being appalled. As soon as I did, something crashed into me from behind with enough force to make me stumble forward, sucking in a painful breath from the contact with my hurt wing.

"Sorry!" that thick voice said from behind me.

Derpy Hooves had been right behind us.

"Derpy? What... why are you following us? Scootaloo's face twisted in confusion.

"'Cause I remembered what I was supposed ta ask you!" she beamed in pride. "No one is getting the mail at your house anymore. Did you move?" that lazy eye of hers rotated around, seemingly on it's own accord.

"Oh!... yeah.. heh heh... I'm living with the Apples at Sweet Apple Acres now." she rubbed her neck with a hoof and looked awkward for a moment. "I guess I should have told you... my father and mother are in a little trouble."

"Jeeze, Scootaloo... even I knew that...!" Derpy tried her best to look smart and informed. "... and I also knew I'm ditzy" her expression sagged slightly.

Shit, Derpy had heard us talking bout her. "Derpy, I'm sorry... we didn't mean..." I started.

"I wanna join a herd!" she blurted out and gave a hop of excitement. Her head rotated slightly and she gave an open mouthed smile. I couldn't tell who she was looking at, me or Scootaloo.

"Uhhh..." Scootaloo stammered a bit. "Well... I'm sure there's a special somepony out there..."

"You mean... I can't join the one you're in?" she looked crestfallen.

Holy hell, this had gotten weird and I instantly went into wallflower mode. No good had ever come of me getting into this type of conversation since I'd been in this world. The ball was squarely in Scootaloo's court as far as I was concerned.

"It's... uhh.. already full, sorry..." Scootaloo tried her best to look helpless about the situation but the news didn't seem to phase the yellow maned pegasus at all.

"It's OK. I really didn't think you would want me anyways." she shrugged as if this was just a simple fact, like the sun rising every day. "I'll just wait until my tail gets funny smelling again and come find you!"

Scootaloo didn't get a chance to reply, Derpy had said this last part as she spread her wings and leapt from the ground. Before she could form a response to that seemingly random statement, Derpy was already climbing into the sky and heading towards Cloudsdale.

"Buck." she said and looked intently at the ground, her eyes searching inward.

When I processed what Derpy's last words meant, I felt the inner presence that had taken up residency since this whole magic thing began speak to me. It filled me with a warm flush of heat and sudden arousal for Derpy that came from out of nowhere. It wasn't unpleasant in the slightest, I decided. Like the first time I had smoked pot with a stoner kid from school who I got along with occasionally, it was a new and exciting change to my perception of how my brain worked. I also had a good idea what it meant.

"She's...." I began.

Our ability to finish each other's thoughts kicked in again and Scootaloo looked up at me with a curious half smile of both satisfaction but also reluctant bemusement "... in the circle. Yeah."