For here or to go?

by Lunar Flarion

Rating: everyone
Tags: Pinkie Pie, Slice of Life, Dark, Alternate Universe, Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
Length: 3983

A mare who likes to sell coffee and put a smile on everponies face

Mocha was a simple mare. She woke up, got ready for work, went to work, did the work well, goes home and plays with her puppy, then goes to sleep. Just a daily routine she does every day. Nothing out of the ordinary here, nope, none.

Okay, maybe it will be a little strange...

----

Oh hey! Another one shot, will this become a series?

Published 2018-11-21 23:40:01 UTC
Last updated 2018-11-21 23:40:01 UTC

Mocha!

When you look at Ponyville, you can’t really see any cafes around, at least not ones that are overly expensive for small meals. Though there is one cafe that sells not only good coffee and tea, yet also serves good food! This cafe wasn’t the most well-known since it was rather small compared to the other ones, but one thing was for sure, the owner of the fine establishment was a rather happy mare by the name of Mocha Love, or simply, Mocha. One thing was true about both the establishment and the owner, they had something to do with deer.

This may sound random, but it is very much true. The cafe, named Good Morning Deer, was named after the race of the owner’s father. Mocha, though she looked like a pony, was part deer. She had a light brown coat, dark, coffee brown mane and tail (due to her mother’s side), and had white spots on her backend. Her eyes were green and she always seemed to hold a smile. However, you aren’t here to read about what the mare looks like! You are here to read a story about the mare! So let’s start!

---Somewhere in Ponyville---

The sudden alarm scared Mocha awake. She jumped in place as the loud beeping started, this caused her to bump her head against the wall, which gave a soft creak. She gave a small whimper and rubbed her head. Her sudden awakening had awakened her fluffy little companion, Coco, her brown Labrador puppy. She didn’t even have time before she was being barraged by licks.

“Ah! Coco!” Mocha said as she tried to dodge the puppy’s licks of love. The mare put her hooves up and rolled to dodge the puppy, but it didn’t work, and soon the small dog had gotten ahold of her ear and playfully chewed and tugged on it. Mocha started to laugh, this was one way to start a beautiful morning! Mocha felt Coco release her ear, and she turned and grabbed the puppy in a hug.

“Love! Love!” she exclaimed to the puppy. Her words made the puppy calm down slightly as his licks became slow and far in-between. She gently let go of the small dog and stretched. A few bones popped in her back which made her groan in pleasure. With her back popped, her stretch was completed, and she finally got out of bed and into the bathroom to comb her mess of a brown mane. With the happy little brown canine to follow suit!

The small walk to the bathroom allowed Mocha to wake up a tad bit more. Once she found the bathroom, she opened the door and allowed herself inside, the puppy followed shortly behind her. With a flick of her hoof, the lights came on, allowing Mocha to see her reflection. She giggled at the way she looked, her mane looked like it touched a tesla ball for too long and her tail had seemed to have some knots in it. Even though she giggled, her main objective was clear, fix the mane and tail. So, to start the objective, she had to find a comb, which meant she was now digging through the drawers to find the said comb.

“AH HA!” Mocha exclaimed with a smile as she pulled out a comb,” Gotcha! Now... time to decide... do I want curly or poofy?”

“Ruff!” Coco exclaimed as he wagged his tail.

“Curly?” Mocha replied with a smile.

“Ruff!”

“Curly it is~!” Mocha said with a smile as she began to brush her mane.

With her mane and tail brushed and curled to her liking, Mocha smiled at her reflection at last. She grabbed her toothbrush, brushed her teeth, then went to the kitchen to make breakfast. Her breakfast choice was already clear, hay bacon and eggs with some coffee! For her furry friend, it was the normal as well, dog food...and whatever she didn’t finish. She started up the stove and began to make the breakfast, as the bacon sizzled nicely, she poured the puppy chow into Coco’s food bowl and poured water into the water bowl, then headed back to start on the eggs. After a good time of making breakfast and Mocha’s cup of coffee, she sat down and ate whilst glancing over at the clock. She would have to leave in time to open up her cafe for the nice ponies of this town! So she had to eat a little fast.

The long silence of the house made her feel slightly uncomfortable... reminding her of that place. So she quickly got up and turned on the TV, just as the cartoons on a random channel started to play. The cartoon brought noise, and with both the cartoon and the silence disappearing, Mocha went back to her more cheer filled mood and sat back down and at her breakfast. Coco heard her eating her food and walked over to her, sat down, and started whining to have some. Mocha looked down at the puppy and nudged a piece of hay bacon over onto the floor. The dog happy ate the food as Mocha got off of her seat and cleaned off the plate. She walked back into the living room, having some time to spare, which was rare, but not unwanted. She changed the channel to the news. Another story about the Mane Six doing something heroic, something about another villain being locked away for a thousand years and so on and so forth. These ponies, even her mother agrees, who is a pony herself, have a strange obsession with 1000 years.

BEEP BEEP!

The clock beeped loudly, telling Mocha that she needed to get to work and open up the cafe. She turned off the TV, nuzzled her dog goodbye, and locked the door as she left. She shivered a bit as a cold breeze hit her side. She turned around, unlocked her door, went in, and came back out with a scarf since it seemed Mr. Frost came early this year! With a pep in her step, she trotted to the cafe. Her mind focused on the path ahead.

The early morning, winter sky was a slight gray told her that it was overcast, sadly, she didn’t make it to that part of the news that told today’s forecast, but it didn’t matter all that much, she always kept a spare umbrella at the cafe just in case there is a storm. There was a soft jingle that came from the keys she was holding. The echo could carry since most ponies weren’t outside yet due to the earliness of the morning. The only noise was that of the gentle wind and some early birds in the distance. She listened to their songs as she continued to walk down the street that led to her little cafe, the Good Morning Deer. She reached the building in no time and went around the back to head inside. The click of the door unlocking and the slight creak later, Mocha was inside now closing the door behind her and locking it again. She was now in the back of the establishment, to her right, hanging on the wall was her uniform she had sewn together herself and a cap her mother gave her as a present for opening up the cafe in the first place. With a big grin, she trotted happily over to the front and unlocked the door and went back behind the counter.

The menu was simple, at least to her it was. It was three large pieces of wood nailed to the wall with the items of choice carved into them. The counter was made out of an old oak and was carved, much like most of the items in the cafe. The tables, seats, and so on. The things that weren’t wood were the glass containers that held a candle, the cash register, the coffee brewers, the stove, toaster, and oven in the back that helped either make or reheat food, the fridge and most of the lights in the cafe itself. Really, the candles were just for decoration, something she did when she was passing the time for the first few months she worked here.

“It might be some time before somepony comes here-” Mocha said out loud, only for fate to prove her otherwise instantly.

Ding~

The little bell that hung over the two doors chimed loudly, alerting Mocha of a costumers presence. Mocha looked over at the door’s direction, the smile still on her face. There, walking in, was the Element of Laughter herself, and one of Mocha’s friends, Pinkie Pie! She looked rather frazzled, her mane and tail were messy and she wore a weary smile on her muzzle. Pinkie walked up to the counter, and Mocha smiled at the mare, for a moment, the two said nothing, then... POMF! The pink mare’s mane puffed back up, now all nice and clean, along with her tail. It looked like she was never tired in the first place like the messy mane and tail never existed. Mocha snorted a little bit at the mare’s action.

“Hello!” Pinkie said with her usual jolly voice,” How are you doing, Mocha?”

“I’m doing alright, Pinkie!” Mocha replied with a similar amount of joy,” You want the usual?”

Pinkie looked at the menu for a second, the shook her head,” Nah, I would like to try the special! I would like a medium Morning Sunrise!”

Mocha nodded and walked over to the brewing machine. She scrapped up a certain amount of coffee beans and placed them into the machine and placed a medium cup under it. Finally, she turned it on and waited for the coffee to pour out. Within a minute or so, the machine poured out the fresh coffee into the cup. She took it out and gently set it next to the creamers, she poured Prench Vanilla into the cup and two sugar cubes as well. She grabbed a stir and stirred the drink until the creamer mixed with the brew and the cube melted into the coffee. With the beverage completed, Mocha put it on a tray and gave it to Pinkie.

“That will be five bits please,” Mocha chirped.

Pinkie nodded and put five bits down on the counter and walked over to a nearby table. She didn’t seem to be in a hurry or anything as she sat down and drank her coffee. There was another small ding as another pony walked in, it was a stallion who seemed to be beyond tired, and looked to have dragged himself here. He slowly walked up to the counter, and with a gruff voice, he asked,” Can I get a large coffee? Extra sugar and no cream?”

“Sure thing sure!” Mocha replied happily and soon began her day, as well as everpony else. The Stallion didn’t wait at the counter as Pinkie had done, instead, he had found himself a seat at a nearby table booth. With the drink finished, she once again put it on the tray and walked out to the stallion, who seemed to be on the verge of sleep. She grabbed his coffee and set it down on the table, then lightly tapped him on the shoulder. The stallion jolted awake but smiled as he grabbed the cup and drank it. He put down the coffee thanked the mare, telling her that he had to work the night shift for his family. Mocha nodded and wished the stallion a good day as she went back behind the counter.

Ding~

This time, a group of ponies came in a mother, what looked to be her colt, and another that was her filly. The mare looked more awake than her two foals, she nudged them to the counter. The mother gave the tiny mare a smile and told her their order. That is when the filly pipped up and asked if she had any muffins. Mocha smiled as she told the filly the many flavors. The small group made their orders, two blueberry muffins, one coffee, and two hot chocolates. Mocha happily made the order, once it was delivered, the two foals said ‘thank you’ in little and tired voices as they chowed down on their muffins. Mocha smiled, the day had only begun, and business seemed to be coming in quick as more ponies started to come in.

As the sun hung low in the sky, Mocha waved off the remaining customers as they left her cafe. As the place emptied, she hung the closed sign on the door and went back to the counter to count the bits she had earned that day. Her smile barely left her cheeks that day, and the number of bits she got would be a big help. She giggled at the amount she got, even though she didn’t have the highest prices, she got some big tips from some of the customers today. With the cafe closed, the bits counted, and a happy mare, Mocha took off her uniform and laid it over her back so that she could wash it when she got home. She turned off the lights, locked the door, and exited the building via the back door, locking that one as well. The walk home wasn’t too eventful, a few ponies waved at her and she waved back.

Boing, boing, boing~

The familiar hopping sound of a certain Pinkie echoed behind Mocha, she rolled her eyes and giggled as Pinkie bounced beside her. The mare looked a lot happier than she did this morning, a lot pinkier if that is to be believed, as well. As soon as the mare found a similar pace to that of Mocha, she started up a conversation.

“Hi again!” She said with a smile.

“Hey, Pinkie,” Mocha said with a tired smile.

“I would like to apologize for not being so talkative this morning,” Pinkie said, and Mocha knew what was coming next, a long rant. With a deep breath, Pinkie started,” You see, the friendship mission, even though it happened yesterday, still took a lot out of me! So I had to take two days off to recoup-recoop... rest up! The first one was spent just laying around being a pink bump on a log, even though I did work a little that day, but I fell asleep at the counter like a silly filly! Then, I had this strange nightmare-”

Mocha’s eyes shot open at the mention of ‘nightmare’. Quickly, she shook her head and rid the thought from her mind, with a calm sigh, and a smaller smile, she looked up at the energized pink mare, who seemed to notice the break in her happy demeanor.

“Is everything alright?” Pinkie asked the mare.

Mocha’s house was now in sight, allowing her smile to form back to a more normal smile, to her at least. Mocha turned her head and looked at Pinkie, with a cheery voice, Mocha said,” I’m fine! Don’t worry about me!”

Pinkie nodded and continued with what she had started,” Anyways~ This strange nightmare! I was sooooo scared that I woke up in a doozie! So then I just walked around my bedroom for like, an HOUR! Trying to think of what it means!”

“Did you find out?” Mocha asked as she stumbled a bit because of a random pothole.

“Yup!” Pinkie chimed, but then held a hoof to her chin,” Hey, Author! Doooo I know what the nightmare was about?”

Pinkie, not now...

“Okie Dokie!” Pinkie nodded,” I guess I kinda do and don’t! I just fell asleep standing up... Then I woke up and went to your cafe!”

Pinkie squeed as Mocha gave a small giggle. The mare’s antics did get a light chuckle out of her as they closed in on the house. Mocha took out her keys and wished Pinkie a good day, Pinkie returned in kind and gave her friend a hug, then left. Mocha waved as the mare left, then turned and unlocked the door. As she entered, her little puppy started barking, and the sound of his nails on some tile told her where he was coming from. Like a lightning bolt, the brown lab turned the corner and slammed into her leg. Coco jumped up, seeming to have recovered from the impact. He jumped up and tried to lick the mare’s face, but he was just a tab bit short to reach her. Mocha smiled and petted and nuzzled Coco.

Mocha remembered that she had some clothes to wash. With one more nuzzle, Mocha walked to the washroom. She shoved her clothing into the washing machine, poured the fabric softener in, shut the door then turned it one wash. Now with that out of the way, she had some time to relax for a little bit. So what better way to relax than to play with Coco for a bit?

...

The room was set, Mocha, hunched over, her eyes firmly on the puppy. On the other side, stood the puppy, who was panting happily and looking at his owner. Mocha, knowing his tactics, started to go to the right side of the puppy. Coco noticed this action and followed the mare with his eyes, his panting ceased quickly as he watched on. The air was filled with suspense as Mocha narrowed in on her target. Coco now knew the situation he was in and turned his whole body to look at her. He let off a soft ‘ruff’ as his tail started to wag. Mocha saw her chance, she slowly, but surely, raised her hoof. Coco responded as he got lower, his tail wagged harder and harder as the hoof slowly climbed the invisible ladder. Coco gave another small woof as his head laid on the carpet. Then... the moment came.

“Boop~!” Mocha said as she booped her dog’s nose. The dog stared at her hoof for a second, then jumped up and started barking his little barks at it as well as jumping all around the front of the hoof. A few times, he nipped at it. Mocha quickly stood up and grabbed the dog’s attention. He stopped his attack and stared at his owner.

“Rrrrrrrrrrr,” Coco said as his tail stopped.

Mocha backed up a bit, out of the corner of her eye, she saw one of his toys, his rubber piggy. To bad that Coco noticed this and looked over at the toy as well. Coco inched closer to the toy and so did Mocha, the other waited to see who would move even the tiniest amount. Mocha was the first to break and caught Coco off guard. Her quick movement gave her an advantage as she raced towards the piggy, yet she forgot one thing, Coco was faster, he had only a second to react and he reacted well as he bolted right past her. He grabbed the piggy in his mouth as Mocha reached for it. She tripped and fell on her side as Coco circled around her and put the piggy on his owner’s side, and happily chewed on it. Mocha giggled as she rolled over onto her belly. The puppy lost grip of the toy and jumped onto her stomach to retrieve the toy.

“Ow!” Mocha squeaked as Coco grabbed his toy and hopped around her head.

Coco happily chewed on the toy, reveling in his victory. With a few head pats and a nuzzle, Mocha got up. She had some leftovers in the fridge, so dinner was already there, just in need of some heat. She stretched and prepared to walk to the kitchen when she heard a ringing... the phone. Curious, she trotted over and took the phone off of the wall it clung to.

“Hello?” Mocha asked.

“Hey, sis!” Yet another familiar voice came through. It was rather calm, yet you can hear the power within it.

Mocha gasped,” Caffeine? Is that you?”

“As true as the sky is blue!” Caffeine’s voice was with her tomboyish nature shining through,“How have you been?”

“I’ve been good,” Mocha admitted,” The village is doing alright over here, been hunting as well!”

“Got any good catches?” Mocha asked, in the distance, a soft squee echoed from a certain toy pig.

“Yup, bear and some mountain lions that were attacking the village,” Caffeine said with pride.

“That’s good!” Mocha said,” Oh! How are mom and dad?”

“Doing what they do best,” Caffeine said with a chuckle,” Mom is out adventuring while dad finds a worthy replacement to fill his absence. You know how mom always finds a way to get him on an adventure!”

“I hope he finds one soon!” Mocha replied, and giggled a little at the little joke her sister had made.

“Same, he really needs to get out of the village more often,” Caffeine agreed,” It does worry mom that he stays there longer than needed.”

...

“How are the nightmares?” Caffeine asked out of nowhere, her voice more serious and worried.

“They’ve been getting better ever since I got Coco,” Mocha said coldly, knowing what this is going to entail.

“Good,” Caffeine replied,” I still think you should go to a doctor or something for it.”

“I told you, I don’t want to take medicine,” Mocha groaned.

“I...I know,” Caffeine replied,” I just worry about your health... Don’t make me remind you about the time you didn’t wake up.”

“Don’t...” Mocha said sadly,” I-is there anything else you want to tell me?”

“Of course!” Caffeine’s tone was now a bit cheerful,” Remember, I’m coming over this weekend!”

“Oh! Right!” Mocha said with a smile,” I should get ready~!”

“Well, I have to go,” Caffeine said, a low growl came from the other side of her phone,” Love ya, and see you soon.”

“Love you too,” Mocha said,” Bye!”

“Oh!” Caffeine said quickly, ”Don’t forget to eat! I know how you are when it comes to forgetting!”

Mocha had completely forgotten about her food. With s slight gasp, Mocha said,” Right! Thank you, sis!”

“Anytime,” Caffeine said, then hung up.

As the conversation ended, Mocha hung the phone back up and went to the kitchen to grab her meal. She was glad Caffeine had reminded her or else she would’ve gone to bed and woken up hungry. She trotted into the kitchen and opened the fridge. She pulled out the foam container and opened it. She pulled out the food, set it on a paper plate, and put it in the microwave for a good few seconds. After the soft beep, Mocha pulled out her meal, set it down n the table, then poured some of the dog food into Coco’s bowl. She also poured some water in since it was getting low. She ate her leftovers and threw away the paper plate and went on to get ready for bed.

Once in the bathroom, she took a shower then brushed her teeth as she was drying off. Once all that was said and done, she went to her room, put the little steps up to her bed to allow Coco up on it. She turned off the lights and saw Coco cuddled on her pillow, she giggled as she jumped onto the bed. Coco jumped up and licked her nose happily as she got under the covers. He moved off of her pillow and laid next to her as she completely laid down. With a soft smile and her eyes closing, she felt relaxed.

“Okay nightmare,” Mocha said with her smile,” Let’s see what you have in store for me.”

With that settled, she breathed a sigh of calmness and fell asleep, her mind taking her to a faraway land. Though the land was one most wouldn’t want to explore... not in there life would they like to either.