"You dumb ditz!" An angry shout sounds as the door in front of the grey Pegasus mare is slammed shut.
Her eyes focused on it as she flinched, her ears lowering a tad. Her eyes watered as she continued to hear the stallion inside of the house shout out profanities on how she couldn't send the right package to the right place and how she was... retarded. It wasn't her fault she lost the package. She freely let out a single tear as she muttered an "I'm sorry..."
As soon after she said those words, she felt a small dribble of water hit her.
And that small dribble turned into rain within a second's notice.
"Now Ditzy, ya have your list of today's route right?" A thicker, grey unicorn stallion said, huffing on a cigar.
The mare in front of him, giving a goofy salute as her blonde mane bounced as she smiled widely. She was ecstatic! This was her first day working for the Ponyville Express and she was already head mail-mare! Er... well, this place was nearly run down and nopony really applied...
But still, she got the job!
It didn't matter to her, she was just happy that she'll be helping everypony with mail-services all across Ponyville... and maybe even spread out to all of Equestria! She gave her new manager, a stallion by the name of Gilded Seal, another nod. "Yes sir! I memo... memor... the places, I know the places." She said sheepishly, some words hard to pronounce for her, as she rubbed the back of her neck.
Gilded Seal raised an eyebrow at her sudden change in words, but shrugged none-the-less. He turned around and faced his desk, several letters, a medium sized box, and one intricately wrapped package. "These will be all that you're delivering today, Ms. Ditzy. Our business isn't really known all that yet, but do not fret, we will become the biggest mail business! Eventually!" He said with enthusiasm, his voice deep yet shrill. He used his magic, casing the specified mail with a greyish-purple aura as he levitated them over to a cart specifically designed for Pegasus air travel. The letters, however, split off from the packages and soon found their way into Ditzy's mail-bag.
He turned back around and levitated his cigar from his mouth to breathe out, a huge loom of smoke making it's way over to Ditzy's face, to which she gave a short yet violent coughing fit. "Well? What're ya waiting for? Get going!" He shouted, not in anger but it urgency. He shoo'd off Ditzy. "Oh!" Seal added, levitating his cigar back out of his mouth again, "before I forget, bring an umbrella. It's going to rain later today!" He finished, using his magic to gently but forcefully push her out the door.
Ditzy just stood there with a grin, the Pegasus' cart rolling up next to her. Suddenly, she hopped in place. "Yeah! Woohoo! Ditzy Doo, Mail-Mare Extraordinaire!" She shouted aloud, other ponie's attention focusing on her at this outburst. The ecstatic pegasus didn't notice as she continued to do her little dance.
"Woah, par'ner? What's got y'all yippy-kai-ey?" A distinct and sudden voice interrupted Ditzy's excited hopping.
Ditzy looked at the new voice, revealing none other than the orange cowpony, Applejack, one of the local Apples. Ditzy smiled widely at her, showing her teeth as her eyes glistened with energy. "I got the job, Applejack! I got the job!" She says, a little loudly for Applejack's comfort.
"Well, uh, tha's great! Um... what job is it?" She asked, her curiosity getting to her. "What kinda place would be willin' ta hire ya, Der-" before she could shut her own mouth, Applejack's eyes widened at what she almost said, her scrunched in a little. Luckily for her, Ditzy didn't seem to notice the last question and what she'd almost called her.
However, Ditzy did notice, but she couldn't really care at the moment. She was excited to show her new boss that she can do this! She won't let anything stop or get in her way! Not even anypony's rude questions or names. "I'm the new Mail-Mare! And I have to go on my first run." She said, her eyes focusing on Applejack as she gave a determined smirk as her eyebrows furrowed. "I will show everypony I can do something right!" She added mentally.
"I have to go, I will see you later Applejack! Bye!" She shouted, despite being not four feet away from the other mare.
Applejack flinched at the close proximity shouting, but nodded at the special mail-mare's goodbye. Ditzy gave her a nod in return and hooked the cart to her back, harnessing it around her. She took off in a short run and started to fly! She had mail to deliver and a list to follow.
She will do the very best she can. Like no one ever could! Goddammit Pokemon...
But not once did she realize that the smaller package of the two fall out of the cart when she took flight.
Not at all did she see or hear whatever was in the wrapped package shatter.
Ditzy, handling... well, holding the list of ponies in her mouth, was actually thankful her eyes went wall-eyed. She could see both the list AND where she was going! That was fantastic! She soared through the skies, the cart behind her (missing the pretty package unbeknowst to her), and her mane flapping wildly backwards. She was... happy.
She had a chance to prove herself to everypony.
And she was going to take it.
"Filfy Wich, famiry twee doctwin." She said to herself, reading the first name on the list with what she was supposed to deliver. She mentally nodded to herself and changed her direction a tad, leading herself to none other than the richest pony in town, Filthy Rich.
Arriving shortly after reading the name, she landed... not so gracefully on the backs of her haunches in front of the door, her cart bouncing noisily. Shaking her head, Ditzy cleared the feeling of sudden wooziness and knocked on the door. "Mister Filthy! Mail call!" She shouted while knocking.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Nothing.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
Nothing.
Knock. Kn-"Yessssssagh!" A suited pony shouted in pain, Ditzy had accidentally knocked on his muzzle.
Pulling her hoof away, she immediately began apologizing. "Oh, I am so terribly sorry! Nopony answered, so I just kept on knocking and knocking, but then you opened the door and I was still knocking! I'm so sorry!" She said, repeating the events that had literally just occurred.
The butler pony in front of her stared with an annoyed expression, now hovering a hoof just over his pained muzzle, for several moments before sighing. "Yes, of course Ms. Derpy, let me fetch Mister Rich... he'll be with you in a moment." He said, unaware that he had accidentally used the wrong name for Ditzy.
That was the name ponies only called her whenever she did something wrong...
No! She shook her head, clearing her mind of negative thoughts.
She stood there patiently, waiting for Filthy Rich to come down and take his letter... His letter! That's right! She thought to herself, using her mouth to pull it from her mailbag. Not knowing she was leaving bite-marks in both the letter and the doctrine itself.
After several minutes of waiting, the sound of hoof-steps is heard and Filthy Rich is at the door, looking expectantly at Ditzy.
"Yes, Ms. Doo?" He said, motioning to the letter in her mouth.
"Oh yahw! Das wite, hew yew go Filfy!" She said spitting at him, her mouth full of envelope.
Filthy Rich's left eye twitched a little and he sighed. "Please... Call me Rich." He said, straining out the word please. He picks up a handkerchief from his pocket and dabs away the splotches of spit that had found their way on his face. He puts the handkerchief away and holds out his hoof.
Ditzy nods and spits the envelope out into his awaiting hoof, causing another eye-twitch from the grown stallion. "Take care Filthy!" She says, disregarding what he had requested as she turned around and took flight once more.
Once out of earshot, Filthy Rich had this to say. "Ugh... that mare is a nuisance. Butlersworth! Could you grab me a new handkerchief?"
A sigh.
"Yes Mister Rich."
Ditzy was now looking at the next name on her list, this one was a name she didn't hear very often in Ponyville.
"Cake Mix." She said to herself, trying to remember as to where he lived.
Just like Filthy Rich, Cake Mix is an Earth Pony, strong willed and strong bodied... well, at least he is supposed to be. In all actuality, he had a very marish face along with similar build features as well. His hide was just a few shades darker than that of Mayor Mare's, the pony who had allowed her to look for a job, and his mane is an odd fashion, as he allowed it to grow around his ears.
In reality, this stallion was but an enigma to her. The two have never really spoken, let alone got to know each other.
Maybe he doesn't want to talk to me because he already thinks I'm stupid... She thought to herself as she flew in the direction of the Everfree Forest. Maybe... maybe he'll yell at me and call me names... Slowly but surely, her flight slowed down to a very casual pace, afraid of this stranger's reaction to her.
"But you need to do this! It's your job! It doesn't matter if he makes fun of you or not! I have to deliver this mail... to prove... to prove I am somepony!" Her eyes took on a look of determination yet again as she increased her speed.
She'd get there in no time.
And just like that, she was already standing in front of a singular house with none other in sight. The sign on the door reading Mix Residence, proving this to be the address. Ditzy took a deep breath in and closed her eyes, allowing them to focus under their lids.
Opening them, they stood still, focused straightly at the door as she raised a hoof to knock.
But, she didn't need to, for just as her hoof was about to come in contact with the door, it opened. Revealing none other than Cake Mix, the stallion she was focused intently on delivering mail to.
Cake, standing still and going cross-eyed at the hoof an inch from his muzzle, coughed in surprise. He backs a foot away and looks at the mare behind the hoof, looking at her golden eyes. "Um..." He started, confused as to what she was doing here. "I don't remember anything, I swear! It was the cider, man! The cider!" He starts up suddenly, throwing both of his fore-hooves up before him in defense. "What ever I did, I can pay you back!" He closes his eyes tightly, possibly expecting to be mugged or whatever went through his head.
Ditzy blinked, this was nothing at all what she had thought he would have said to her upon their meeting. Slowly, however, a small giggle made its way out of her mouth and she used her hoof to cover it. "No, silly! I'm here to bring your mail!" She said, unaware currently that her eyes were unfocusing and beginning to go wall-eyed.
Cake slowly opened one eye, to see if she was being serious. Seeing that she was, he slowly opened the other one as he lowered both of his hooves. "O-oh okay... Phew... I thought I did something again, darn it Rainbow... why did you even introduce me to that stuff..." He muttered the last part to himself. Only when he looked back to her, did he notice her eyes. Deciding not to say anything however, he simply waited for her to show him the mail as he leaned against his door frame.
Ditzy, catching the hint, unstrapped herself from the cart and grabbed the box that sat by itself, and trotted back over to him.
"Granite! I think your new tank arrived!" He turned his head behind him as he shouted to somepony called Granite. He turned back and stuck out a hoof and watched as she placed it there, without much incident mind you. He pulled it close to his chest and nodded, sticking out his other hoof. "Well, before you go. I'm Cake, nice ta meet ya..." He trailed off, as he did not get her name.
Ditzy definitely did not ever think this was going to occur. In all honesty, she had thought she'd have given him his thing and she'd leave. No questions asked, but yet again, this colt had surprised her. "Oh! I'm Ditzy!" She somewhat yelled, even though they were right next to each other.
Cake only blinked at the change in volume, but he mentally shrugged. "Well, nice to meet you Ditzy, I'm assuming I'll be seeing you around as the Mail-Mare?" He said somewhat rhetorically.
Ditzy only responded with a nod as she once again strapped herself to the cart, she gave a friendly wave to him, to which he returned before he turned away himself and shut the door. Ditzy smiled, at least he was friendly unlike the other citizens.
She took off once more into the air and was gone from house near the forest.
After several more trips, each ending with a joke at Ditzy or some kind of insult
"You can do this, Ditzy... just one more to go..." She said to herself, trying to reassure herself that she can and WILL succeed. Only one pony had been nice to her and that was their first meeting, but everypony else, they knew her and were cruel to her for being different.
She wanted to believe she could go on, but she just couldn't take any more that abuse. She sighed to herself as thinking on it wasn't the answer, so she just looked at the last name on the list.
"Mean Bean" She said to herself, mental alarms went off in her head as she did.
Somepony with the word Mean in their name... that's totally going to end well.
She arrived at the front gates to a rather small home, yet the yard was large, but dead. The grass was a dull-brown, along with the plants that seemed to lack water. Absentmindedly, Ditzy gulped. She had a really bad feeling about this. She unstrapped herself once again and made her way to the back of the cart, there was supposed to be one last package. The wrapped one, it wasn't there!
But where was it?!
"No... nonononono!" She muttered quickly, frantically looking for the intricate packaging.
It wasn't there and she knew it... and a perk or downside of being the mail-mare is... I have to tell the receiver that I'd lost it... She thought to herself as she gulped somewhat.
Steeling herself, Ditzy walked the small path that led to the door and gave a weak three knocks.
Knock... knock... knock...
"What in the 9 rings of Tartarus do you want! I told all of you stupid salesponies to stop coming to my house!" A rather loud and nasally voice sounded from behind the door.
It opened, revealing a huge, flush green stallion. He looked Ditzy up and down and snarled. "What do you want?! You'd better have something good for me, if you know what's good for you!" He yells angrily at her.
Ditzy, her eyes entirely unfocused was beginning to sweat. This stalli-no, this monstrosity of a pony was 2, nearly 3 times her size and here he was staring her down with the meanest set of yellow eyes she had ever seen.
"Si-sir... I..." Was all she could get out before she was interrupted.
Mean Bean looked behind her and noticed the mail-mare cart, reserved only to mail-mares and mail-stallions. "You're the new mailer, well it's about damn time! I expected my package hours ago!" He growled, showing his slightly yellowing teeth.
"B-but sir, I..." She tried again, only for the same to happen.
"But sir, I... just shut the hay up already and give me my package!" He yells out at her, looking her in the eyes.
Ditzy could feel her eyes start to water, but she wouldn't back down. Not yet.
"Sir! I regret to inform you, but your package was lost or misplaced within or near the workplace. I apologize for any incon-"
SMACK!
Mean Bean had hit her square in the jaw, causing a quickly forming bruise to appear and for her to back away a good several feet. "W-what did I do wrong?" She stuttered out, looking at him in utter shock.
"It's what you didn't right! All of you damned Mail-mares are the exact same! Oh, I regret to inform you or I'm sorry, but we misplaced... Misplaced my ass! Get the hay outta here, I don't want to see your muzzle setting hoof near my home again!" He shouted and ranted at her, but that wasn't what brought her to tears.
It's what he said afterwards.
"You dumb ditz!" He shouts from behind the door as he slams it shut in front of her.
Her eyes focused on the door as she flinched, her ears lowering a tad. Her eyes watered as she continued to hear the stallion inside of the house shout out proffanities on how she couldn't send the right package to the right place and how she was... retarded. It wasn't her fault she lost the package. She freely let out a single tear as she muttered an "I'm sorry..."
As soon after she said those words, she felt a small dribble of water hit her.
And that small dribble turned into rain within a second's notice.
She turned around, her mane now sopping wet and sticking to her face like glue, she cried silently. Letting her tears mix with the rainwater. She began walking back to her cart.
Why do I always mess everything up? She thought to herself. Why am I so retarded? Why... WHY ME?! She shouts angrily, internally, still looking down ward. She did not expect to bump into something furry waiting for her at the cart.
"Oh! There you are Di... Ditzy? Are you alright?" A voice sounded in front of her, startling her enough to back up a little.
Cake Mix.
It was just Cake Mix. She sighed and nodded, hoping that her tears blended in well with the rain. "Y-yeah, I'm fine. I just finished with my last recipient." She lied, giving him a rather weak smile.
Cake tilted his head somewhat, spotting somthing was wrong obviously. "Oh come on, man. You don't expect me to believe that, do ya?" He said, somewhat kidding but still with a serious tone.
Ditzy looked down again, not able to handle not only being caught lying, but being seen crying. I just couldn't do it... I'm so weak... She thought to herself.
Suddenly, she was caught by surprise as she felt two of Cake's forelegs wrap around her in a hug. "Hey, ya don't have to tell me if you don't want to. We just met, ya know, it's entirely understandable. You would probably be more comfortable telling a friend." He said, lying his head gently on hers.
"I don't have a friend to tell..." She mumbled into his sopping wet barrel, mostly due to her crying not really the rain.
Cake, however, couldn't quite hear her over the pitter patter of the constant rain. "What was that, could you say it again?"
Quickly thinking of something else to say other than repeat herself, she asks a basic question that could deeply impact how she was feeling at the moment. "Are we friends?" The mare said, doubting a yes as she leaned her head into the crook of his neck.
Cake looked at her in light amusement, a small smile making its way onto his face. "Uh, yeah. Sure, we could be." He says sincerely.
"Best friends?" Ditzy asked, thinking she's trying her luck, as she pulled away from him to look him in the eyes... well, to the best of her ability as her eyes slowly drifted apart.
Chuckling, Cake nodded, his blue eyes closing as he gave a smile. "Yes! Of course, silly filly." He said.
Finally, the mare, still holding on to him, smiled and pulled him in for another hug, tighter than the last. "Woohoo!" She semi-yelled into his ears as she closed her eyes.
And not once did he flinch, even with how close she was to him.
Ditzy's eyes opened a tad in wonder. "Cake? Why did you follow me all the way out here anyway?" She asked, both of her eyes focusing on him as she pulled away yet again.
Cake snickered lightly, more to himself than her. "Oh, nothing really." He said with a playful shrug.
"Just that you gave me the wrong package."
