Last Stop on the Mail Route

It's early Sunday, and I'm supposed to meet Derpy outside her place in a few hours.

Shit, man. I was kind of nervous.

This wasn't a date, really, so I shouldn't be. I liked Derpy. I liked her kid. We were gonna get lunch at a nice little restaurant. It's not like we were making a day of it and going to Canterlot or something...

Though we could go to the park after.

But Dinky talking about Derpy getting out her old dress... shit, was I wearing too much? Not enough? Too casual? I had the trousers, the dress shoes, the dress shirt... right, roll the sleeves.

I keep turning around in my bathroom, trying to get a better look of myself in the mirror. Checking my hair, checking my shave. You'd think shaving with my fucked-up face was difficult, but my cheek was ripped, not burnt -- lucky me, in a sense. Means if I wanted to, I could keep a moustache or a beard without it looking too patchy.

Dina is listening to me work myself into a worry from the warm confines of my bed, having gotten more used to the odd living arrangement. She blinks a few times as I step back into view, pausing in the doorway.
"Should I get cologne?" I tense, realizing I don't have any. What cologne would she like? Wait, Twilight had told me about how smell was a pretty big thing for Ponies. That was a whole new minefield I wasn't ready for.

"...For 'Not a Date', you sure worry about making a good impression on your Mare." Dina muses, stifling a yawn as she rests her head in her clawed hands, tail hanging and flicking off the edge of the bed. She'd been listening to me stress myself out for the last fifteen minutes. "Where are you going again?"

I tsk, trying to figure how many buttons I should keep open. I've got nice collarbones, sure, but I don't want to come off too strong. Two buttons has a nice V, but comes off a little slutty. No way I'm going all the way up. One button? Yeah, one button.

Dina coughs loudly, getting my attention.
"Wuh?" I mumble.
"Where are you taking her?" She repeats, chuckling at my shift in demeanor.

"Oh, uh -- There's this nice Cafe I've passed by a few times." I offer.

"Is it that 'Cafe Hay' place I pass by to get to the Clinic?" Dina asks.

"No, not that one. No way I'm sitting on a chair made of hay with this outfit. I'm not some... Cowboy trying to get with Applejack or something." I snort.

"That's the orange Pony that was here, right?" Dina questions, tapping her beak with a claw. She's starting to stretch, likely to get up for the day.

"Yeah. AppleJack, blue one is Rainbow Dash, purple one is Twilight. Thanks for keeping an eye on the Fillies while they were here, by the way." I explain.

"Sure, you had your claws full. Which Cafe is it, then?" She hums, slipping off the bed, tossing my blankets back onto it as she begins to make it.

"Uh... honestly, I have no idea what the name is. Everyone just seems to refer to it as the Cafe with the purple milkshake sign. Even Derpy knew exactly which one I was talking about. They've got actual tables, though, so that'll be nice." I huff. Ponyville was deceptively big, but since competition wasn't really a thing, most stores having a fairly hefty monopoly, names weren't always a given. The bookstore. The bowling alley. So on.

"How's Grant doing?" I turn, finally content with my outfit. For a few minutes, until i worried about it again.

"Better. He's in recovery, should be good to leave in a day or two. Won't be able to fly for about a few weeks, so we'll probably have to take the long way back to Griffonia." She muses, claws clacking on the wooden floor as she slowly trudges into the bathroom beside me. "You done in here?"

"Shit, yeah. All yours". I mutter, stepping out. Well, about as done as I could be without stressing for another hour. A quick nod, and the door shuts behind me.

I blow a raspberry, glancing around my quiet house, the muffled sound of the shower tapering on quietly.

Time for a coffee.

Haven't felt this way since I was in shit... what, Highschool? Got tingles in my stomach, and I don't think it's the coffee.

Dina'd left to go for her daily check-in on Grant, wishing me luck with my date-not-a-date. Apparently Griffon mating rituals aren't as simple as Ponies. From her explanation, it sounded like the birds back home, with funny dances and offerings.

I've got a few good bits on me, now. After swinging by the bank, turns out what Spike meant was Gems are pretty interchangeable with bits. Not worth quite as much as I was hoping, but most gems went for some small variance of bits, and were accepted as a currency by the Equestrian banks. Though, not every store would just accept gems. So, bits it was. They fit better in my pocket anyway.

Left most of them at home, tucked under the floorboards with my rifle. Had enough to last me a couple months, but it didn't really launch me as far as I was hoping. Honestly, I'm just glad it didn't pan out any worse than it did; still going to need to lock down some kind of actual job if I wanted to pay back that loan. Tia had been pretty generous about getting it back, but I wasn't cool with letting a debt like that simmer. I'd think about that later, though. Still have to see how my 'little' stunt in the mountains impacted my availability on the job market.

The stares from the locals were about the usual amount, but they seemed a little more... polarized. While I don't think what I was doing up in the Mountains was fully circling beyond Twilights group and the Crusaders just yet, it was hardly a secret that there was a Griffon coming to and from my house daily. Well, whatever. Bite me.

Trying to remain the gentleman, I'd purchased a small bouquet of flowers for Derpy. I had... no idea what she liked. The topic had never come up with Dinky, so I had no insider information this time. Flying blind. I originally leaned on the idea of roses, but that might come off as too romantic. And that was like, one of two flowers I knew about.

Ended up settling for Daisies. Fingers crossed.

We agreed that rather than meeting at the Cafe, we'd meet at her place first so we can walk over together. Dinky was adamant we spend as much time together as possible. Cheeky thing, but it was good to know I had a wingman.

And here it is. Derpy's place.

Its close to the middle of Ponyville, more on the south side towards the train station. It's a cute place, bigger than mine. Two story, though doesn't look huge on the floorspace. It's also pretty clearly Derpy's, because everything looks like its been touched up from a bump, knock, crash or trip. The fence isn't quite straight, there's some tiles not quite angled right on the roof... a fixer-uppers dream.

I realize I've been just standing in front of her door, staring at her house and holding flowers. Right. Gotta knock.

Moment my fist is near the door, I hear a rampant scuttling of little hooves inside. Dinky probably spotted me from a window --

The door flies open, revealing a recently-brushed Dinky staring up at me.
"I saw you from the window! Hi Mister Muss!"

Yep.

"Hey Dinkster, ready to go?" I ask, glancing up at the weather. A habit, I keep forgetting that Pegasi knock clouds around and provide a schedule for the week. There goes one now, wrangling a rogue cloud. Looks like the day is staying sunny.

"Nope! Come in!" She says, trotting out of the way. I shrug, ducking my head and stepping inside.

The inside of the house is about as cozy as the outside; clean, but clearly lived in. A lot of warmer color tones. Though, a little light on decorations. Mostly just the essentials. Couch, table, shelves; I can see the kitchen further inside, stairs that lead up... and a few patched holes in the walls, evident by the discoloration of paint. She might be clumsy, but she sure tried her best to fix up every bump she had. Honestly, I was willing to bet Derpy was probably pretty handy at this point.

I think I'm starting to realize where all the decorations went. Paintings, Vases and such don't sound particularly sturdy.

Dinky shuts the door, happily prancing over, practically radiating excitement as she hops up on the couch.
"Mom is fussing over herself still. You wanna wait with me?" She asks, before looking down at what she'd been up to prior to my arrival. She's got some paper spread out with a box of crayons.

Setting the flowers on the table, I ease into the couch. It's pony sized, so I don't lean all the way back; otherwise I'd probably flip overtop of it. Thankfully Ponies liked high ceilings, so I didn't have to duck all the time. Just doorways.

"Sure, Dinkster. What you up to?" I ask, leaning on my knees. She shows me her collection of drawings, a few... I notice are likely loosely based on whatever story Scoots told her. Well, if Dinky knew, her mom probably knew. And if Derpy knew, and she hadn't cancelled the date...

Oh, that one is me and Derpy hugging. This kids bold.

Oh, that ones us hanging out at my house. Holy shit, she drew Dina looking funny. I've got to show her that later.

"...Dinky, sweetie, have you seen my..." I hear from the stairs. Both Dinky and I turn, looking over the back of the couch.

Derpy is halfway down the steps, before she notices me sitting inside. She freezes stock still, eyes wide. Which, gives me a long moment to look at her. My eyes couldn't leave her.

Shit, man. She was gorgeous.

She's got this almost satin-like, sleek, dark-grey dress that's a fair few shades darker than her fur, complimenting her natural color scheme. It's slit at the end, so while it covers her torso and stomach, it opens to drape down only one side of her flank. It really accentuates it, actually; for a Pegasus, she's surprisingly bottom heavy. The back has this open back-slit that leaves a gap for her wings to fit through, and reveals part of her shoulders. On her hooves, she's wearing these... 'horse' shoes, I guess -- kind of similar to what Celestia wears, but not as tall, but rounded, and in black. Definitely not metal, either. Some kind of pony shoes?

Oh, man. She's got eyeliner on and everything, matching the hoofwear. Her hair isn't styled very different, but I can see the volume and shine she worked into it, giving it a lot more bounce and presence than usual. Who knows how long she spent on herself. Kind of glad to know I wasn't the only one stressing this morning.

"Derpy, youre..." I trail off, unable to find the words.

"Pretty, right?!" Dinky prompts, beaming.

"...I was gonna say beautiful." I mutter.

Apparently, louder than I thought, judging by the rampant blush that streaks across Derpy's face. She glances down, throwing me a half-lidded stare from behind the edges of her mane.

Dinky pops up from behind the couch, holding the little pack of Daisies I'd gotten with her hooves, high above her head.
"Mom! Look what Mister Muss got you!" The filly squeaks, ousting the gift.

"For me?"
Derpy hooves tap down the steps as she nears the couch, Dinky holding them out towards her mother.

Derpy leans, giving them a generous smell, smiling.

Then she takes a bite out of them.

... Right. Horse.

Derpy giggles, covering her chewing with a hoof.
"Sorry -- I shouldn't ruin my appetite before we go, but, I don't get flowers often." She says, giving me an adorable smile.

Neither of us really speak, for a moment. I'm just stuck staring at her, and she's staring at me.

Dinky rips us from our mutual gaze as she bounds from the couch, looking up to me.
"Did you get ME anything?!" She squeaks.

"...One toy of your choice from any store we pass." I quickly blurt.

Dinky looks like I just promised her a thousand puppies, her eyes somehow getting bigger as a long, winding gasp builds in her throat.

Derpy giggles, giving me an appreciative look. Probably just scored points with the Mom -- but at what cost. Dinky is like a ballistic missile that lost its tracking, bounding around the room.

Derpy manages to find what she was looking for, tucked in her closet -- a little worn purse she softly slings over herself, putting a few items inside.

She glances up at me, noticing me staring -- and there's that smile again, looking at me like I made her day.

Shit, man. I was falling hard.