My (Brave) Little Toaster

Fluttershy lay on Applejack’s bed, batting a ball up and down. It hit the ceiling with solid thwocks, coming down to her again each and every time. At least she had a solid grasp that gravity still worked its course.

Rainbow Dash, of course, had been doing the exact same thing in the hospital- substituting the wall for the ceiling- before she’d discovered her now-beloved Daring Do books, though there was no way that Fluttershy could have known that.

A few minutes into her little game, a white head poked itself into the room.

“Are you feeling alright?” Rarity asked, looking at her friend with sympathy.

Fluttershy nodded. “How about the others…? How are they holding up?”

Rarity grimaced. “Well, Pinkie Pie has been talking with that… thing, just about nonstop. Applejack still hasn’t woken up yet- I think she might have hit her head a wee bit harder on the floor than we’d expected. Scootaloo and the others are outside playing; Scoots and Applebloom are pretty much fine with it, but I’m surprised Sweetie didn’t react much like Applejack did…”

“Where… did it come from?”

Rarity came all the way in the room, shaking her head softly. “Your guess is as good as mine, dear.” She closed the door behind her. “I heard from Applejack what happened with Dash at the demonstration. I can’t figure it out for the life of me, how something like this could have happened…”

“I had no idea mechanical appliances could talk…”

“Nor did I,” she admitted. “Apparently Pinkie Pie did, though she’s always been… special like that.”

Just then, something crashed into the closed window by Fluttershy’s head. Rarity jumped a bit, and Fluttershy yelped and dove under the covers, shivering uncontrollably.

When Rarity went to the window to see what had flown into it, she smiled a bit in recognition. She opened the window, allowing the grey pegasus to enter.

“Oh, thank you, Rarity!”

“Not a problem, Miss Doo. What can I help you with?”

Derpy grinned as she always did, and Rarity couldn’t help but smile as well. The mailmare’s enthusiasm and happiness was rarely anything but catchy.

“I have a note for Miss Fluttershy… Dash told me she’d be here.” She started rooting around in her mailbag for the item that she was supposed to deliver.

A pair of wide eyes poked out from a gap between the covers and the mattress. They watched the situation intently. Even though Fluttershy knew who Derpy was, she was still a bit shocked at her sudden arrival.

Finally, Derpy found the letter and pulled it out. She laid it on the bedside table, then looked back at Rarity. “Is Fluttershy not here?”

“Oh she is,” Rarity replied. “She’s just a bit, well…” She pointed to underneath the covers.

Derpy looked where she was pointing. “Oh, did I scare you, Fluttershy?”

A tiny voice came from under the covers: “Well, yes… It was rather sudden and unexpected… That’s okay though…”

“Heh, sorry ‘bout that… Anyways, I just wanted to deliver that letter to you from Rainbow Dash. She said to get it to you as soon as I could.” She looked at Rarity. “Thanks for the sock, by the way!”

Rarity just nodded and smiled tightly. She didn’t really want to be reminded of her creation for Derpy, as it was undoubtedly the oddest creation that she’d ever come up with, and if anyone ever found out about it, aside from the ones who already knew… Well, who knows what they would think?

Derpy smiled once more, then turned to leave. “Bye, Rarity! Bye, Fluttershy! See you later!” She rose up into the air, but hovered in place for a moment.

“Um…?” came Fluttershy’s voice from under the covers. “Is there… anything else we can help you with?”

Derpy landed and turned to face them. “Well, I was curious about something… I was at Rainbow Dash’s demonstration today- you know, the one for Spitfire and the Crusaders… Anyways, whatever happened with Dash at the end? She had something in her hooves, and I couldn’t quite make out what it was…”

“Oh, that? Well, it was… A toaster, actually.”

Derpy looked at her a bit confused, her left eye going a bit askew. “A toaster? But why on earth would Dash need one of those during a demonstration?”

“She wouldn’t, and she didn’t. It sort of just… appeared.”

“Like, out of nowhere?” Derpy asked. Rarity nodded.

“Wow… I’ve never heard of anything like that happening before… Then again, I really don’t get out much, except to do my mailmare duties.”

“Well, as far as anyone can tell, it really doesn’t happen. Not any time that gets recorded, anyways. It just… it makes no sense…”

“Could the Sonic Rainboom have caused it?”

Rarity was about to respond when something stopped her. Derpy actually had a point. No one knew exactly what kind of chemical reaction came about when a Sonic Rainboom occurred. It was entirely possible that something had happened to spawn the talking toaster from out of nowhere.

Thankfully for the fashionista, Fluttershy responded: “Um, I’ve been doing a bit of reading on Sonic Rainbooms, and well… there’s really not all that much information on them, seeing as I think only two ponies have ever managed to do one. So there’s no telling what it could have resulted in.” She raised up and shook the covers off of herself, fully uncovering her yellow coat.

“Hmm…” Derpy mumbled thoughtfully. “Okay, well I guess that’s really all I need to know- oh wait! There’s one other thing!” She turned to Rarity. “Did you get Vinyl’s dress done yet?”

Rarity was grateful for the reminder. “Oh yes, as a matter of fact, I did. If you want to, she and you can come pick it up tomorrow. When is your date at Mare on the Moon?”

“Tomorrow night, so that’ll be perfect!” She let out an excited squeak. “I can’t wait to see her in that dress! She’s gonna look so beautiful!” Without even realizing it, her wings were already extending and beginning to flap, taking her out of the window.

“Oh… I guess that’s my cue to go. Bye now!” She flew away, fastening the clip on her mailbag as she went along her path.

Fluttershy sighed after Derpy had left, and settled back down onto the bed. “Things just are never going to be normal around here, are they…?”

“I’m afraid not, dear. Not with our friends still in our lives.” She turned to leave, but stopped when she noticed something in the room that she hadn’t noticed before. “Say, Fluttershy… Where did Applejack get that electric blanket from?”

“Oh, that? I got that for her from a yard sale. I figured she could use it when the winter months come along, her and Pinkie Pie both.”

Rarity smiled. “That’s so thoughtful of you. Do you want to come down and help with the finishing-up of dinner preparations?” Fluttershy nodded, and hopped down off the bed.

“Just as long as that toaster doesn’t talk to me… It scares me.”