Chapters The first meeting
The first meeting
Early one morning, a morning that was seemingly like every other morning, Dinky woke up and was immediately shocked by a crisp, clean smell; unlike the normal, sweet smell of cooking muffins.
Worried, Dinky walked into her mother's room.
Soon after she entered, she smiled at what she saw- Derpy Hooves, her beloved mother, lying asleep on her bed, dreaming, with a smile plastered on her face.
'Better to let her sleep, she looks so peaceful!' thought Dinky, 'But what's she dreaming about that is making her smile?' she wondered. 'No matter, I should just go begin making some muffins for when she wakes up.'
***
It was a bright spring day, and Derpy was delivering her packages like normal- with one exception. She was carrying a package heavier than anything else she had delivered before- it felt like it was filled with statues from the royal gardens in Canterlot! But that would be silly, nopony would ever trust the mail service with something that important.... Would they? Even so, nopony would trust HER to carry them.
Lost in her thoughts, she didn't notice the stallion she was about to run into until she was already on the ground, and, looking around, she saw a purple unicorn laying near her.
“Omygosh I'm so sorry!” said Derpy, fully expecting a tongue lashing just like she always recieved from her boss “Please don't be mad!”
Much to her surprise, the stallion simply smiled. “Why would I be mad? If I were carrying such an apparently heavy load, I'd be hard pressed to stay in a straight line, much less avoid people. Speaking of which, would you like some help?” said the stallion, in what Derpy thought sounded more sincere than anything she ever heard from anypony but her own mother.
Finally noticing that she was spacing out again, she shook her head and said “Umm.. No thanks... but would you mind helping me find where I am supposed to deliver this package? I don't recognize the address...”
Staring at the address for a few seconds, the stallion replied “Hmm... I think I know this address, but I'd have to walk there to remember. Follow me.”
Derpy followed him for a few blocks until he stopped, and she knocked on the door. After some time, she mused “Oh, I guess they aren't home...”
The stallion replied, “Here, let me try” and reached over to unlock the door with a key he produced from his pockets. He smiled when he saw Derpy's shocked reaction.
“You can't just go around unlocking people's houses like that!” exclaimed a horrified Derpy, “That's just rude!”
The stallion laughed in reply, before answering “It's my house you silly filly! Anyway, how would you like to come in? If this order is what I think it is, we're in for a real treat.”
Reluctantly, Derpy agreed to come inside- wondering, the whole time, why she trusted this stallion; he sure was nicer to her than most ponies, but is that really a reason to trust him? Shrugging this off, she walked inside after the stallion whom she now knew as Charity (fitting, all things considered) due to the tag on the package.
Once they were inside, Charity immediately went to work on opening the package, quickly but carefully. Derpy caught herself staring at the way he methodically opened the package- her eyes even went straight watching him! He caught her and smiled when she blushed, holding back a laugh.
Eventually, he turned to her and said “I'm finished.”
Opening the box, he satisfied her curiosity as to what took up so much room and weight. He took a box out of the package- it read: muffin making machine.
She stared quizzically as Charity took the box into the kitchen, and after a few moments, he poked his head back in before saying, “Are you coming?”
Derpy quickly followed him into the kitchen and asked “What are you going to do with that?”
“Make muffins, of course!”
"Oh...” replied Derpy, silently cursing herself for her ignorance.
Ignoring the troubled expression on her face, he set up the machine and took out some flour and butter before turning and asking “What type of muffins do you like?”
Derpy was sligtly taken aback from this question, before recovering and saying “Oh... I've never really had too many muffins before... but I guess poppy seed muffins- that was the first muffin I ever tried and the poppy seeds felt like little bubbles popping in my mouth!” giggling as she finished that sentence, before blushing at the smile that Charity was giving her.
“Poppy seeds it is then! They're over in that cupboard-” he said, pointing to a cupboard on the other side of the kitchen “- on the second shelf. Bring them over here while I make the batter”
As she walked over, it was Charity's turn to stare- he had never met a mare so pretty, or so eager to please others. He thought it was absolutely fantastic. Derpy, feeling like she was being watched, looked over at Charity, who blushed and looked away quickly, turning to the machine and pouring in a cup of flour, adding it to the bowl before adding a teaspoon of vanilla and a stick of butter, which had softened due to the warm temperature filling the room from his oven that they had preheated beforehand. After adding the poppy seeds, they poured the batter into a cupcake tray that Derpy had placed cupcake papers in.
After all this was done, they sat down with a glass of apple juice for them both, which happened to be Derpy's favorite. After she was finished, she glanced reluctantly at the clock, saying “I have to finish my deliveries soon, but it was really nice meeting you...”
“Nonsense!” replied Charity; “I'd be a jerk to let you do all that work by yourself! The muffins have to sit some time to cool anyway, so I'll help you deliver the mail.”
Judging by the shocked expression on her face, Derpy had obviously never been treated this nicely before. After a few awkward moments of silence between them, she finally replied “You'd really do that for me?”
“Of course. What are friends for?” said Charity with a tone that made Derpy feel giddy inside.
“F-friends? Oh, yes of course! Yeah! Let's get to it!” said Derpy with a renewed sense of happiness and a huge smile on her face that was as infectuous as the plague, but in a good way, before she and Charity both split up the mail and sped out the door, with a determination unlike anything seen in pony history.
***
Dinky walked back into her mother's room to see her smiling even wider, nearly from ear to ear, and decided it was still not a good idea to wake her. She walked out of the room and started preparing more food for breakfast. If she had more time, why not do something to repay her kind mother with even more surprises? She sighed as she walked into the kitchen again and pulled out some oranges for orange juice.
'Momma's favorite' she thought, 'besides apple juice, of course,' but whenever she served that, Derpy always seemed to be on the verge of tears, as if the juice was someone she dearly missed with every fiber of her being. Best not to subject her to that kind of thing when she was sleeping so peacefully and dreaming such good things.
***
Back at Charity's house, after delivering the mail in what seemed like a record time even compared Derpy's father, hooves down the fastest mail pony in the past century. They walked in just as the buzzer on the oven started to sound.
“Perfect timing!” commented Charity, smiling at Derpy's rambling about how fast they delivered the mail together.
“Wha? Oh yeah! Muffins!” said Derpy, with an edge of excitement still in her voice.
Together, they walked into the kitchen and pulled out a perfect batch of muffins, eliciting a single word from both parties-
“Muuuuuuffins!”
Sitting down on the couch and chair, respectively, with a plate of steaming hot muffins and fresh glasses of apple juice in front of them, they began to talk, and quickly lost track of time, until Derpy casually glanced out of the window and noticed the light fading- quickly
“Omygosh! I need to get home! I have to wake up really early tomorrow!” She said, before remembering that tomorrow was Sunday- the day she got to stay home. Before Charity started looking to sad, she said “Oh wait, tomorrow is Sunday- I can stay a bit longer I guess...”
Charity quickly perked up at this news, saying; “Well, we're gonna need more muffins then, won't we?”
“Race ya to the kitchen!” exclaimed Derpy.
“You're on!” said Charity, laughing at the sudden outburst. It was a good laugh, not a teasing one like Derpy was used to from ponies she thought were her friends.
They ran into the kitchen and quickly started making more muffins, before talking more and then making more muffins, the cycle repeating all night.
***
Dinky was working on the rest of the breakfast items, before hearing a single word came from her mother's room- “Muuuuuuuffins....”
Dinky walked in, expecting Derpy's eyes to be crossed, and her to be happily smiling at her, before giving Dinky her morning hug. What she saw, however, was completely unexpected; Derpy was still asleep with the same smile on her face.
***
Waking with a start, Derpy found herself still at Charity's home- with a cover over her and Charity working quietly in the kitchen preparing a breakfast of orange juice, pancakes and, of course, muffins.
Smiling, Derpy pretended to still be asleep, listening intently to the tune Charity was humming quietly- it was in ¾ time, with a tempo resembling a waltz played at a formal event such as the gala.
For some strange reason, Derpy couldn't get the thought of dancing with him out of her head, and she nearly blushed before noticing him standing over her, trying to think of a way to wake her without startling her. To save him trouble, she pretended she was waking up, fluttering her eyes until they were fully open. She smiled at the stallion standing above her.
He returned the smile, asking her, “Sleep well?”
“Yes, very” she responded truthfully. She really had slept well, the couch wasn't particularly comfortable, but the thought of being near a stallion who was so nice to her had her sleeping like a baby in no time flat.
“Good. I have some breakfast ready for you, if you'd like to stay” he replied with kindness.
Seeing as she had nowhere to be right now, she answered “I would love to stay.” However, she really wanted to say “I wouldn't want to be anywhere else right now;” even though she really didn't understand why. She felt... comfortable around Charity, for some reason; as if she had known him her entire life instead of just 1 day. She dismissed this as she followed him into the kitchen, being careful to not stare.
Once they were in the kitchen, he directed her to a table that had two places set- as if he had known all along that she would stay. Derpy smiled at this, sitting down to a big plate with some of the best food she had seen in a while; (mailmares don't exactly get payed the most out of any job in Equestria...) she smiled again at her fortune of finding such a nice pony who wanted to be her friend. As they dug in, Charity started some conversation, asking how she liked her job.
She answered these questions truthfully, because she knew she wouldn't be put under scrutiny by him. However, one question desperately bit at her the entire time she was talking to him- how he knew so much about her. Finally asking this, he blushed and responded:
“Well.... I kinda... I see you around town a lot, and you always seem so happy- but I never really see you having much fun or hanging out with friends. I figured they must have just lived in Cloudsdale, but then...”
Derpy gulped, remembering, suddenly, the incident Charity was about to mention.
“But then I saw you being pushed around by that pony while you were on your daily rounds- I heard what he called you and I saw how sad you got. I don't know why, but seeing you sad hit me harder than anything I have seen in my life. I knew I needed to get to know you, so I could make sure you stayed the happy, carefree pony I came to admire. I ordered package after package of random junk, and took daily walks around Ponyville at around the time the mail was delivered, until one day, I at last saw you walking with a package that was similar in size to something I ordered. That day was yesterday. I bumped into YOU, see, because I wanted to be able to talk to you- to help you. I knew I needed to get closer to this happy-go-lucky pony I saw being pushed around because of the fact her eyes are crooked;” he then quickly added “mostly” because as soon as he looked up, he saw that her eyes had gone straight and that she had a surprised look on her face. Eventually, she broke the silence and said:
“You.... you've been trying to talk to me all this time? But why couldn't I recognize the address?”
Charity blushed a bit at her saying it so... plainly. He said
“I... I've kinda asked a bunch of my friends to take the packages for a while- I told them they were gifts. Eventually, they asked me why I was sending them all this, and when I came clean they told me I should have them delivered to my house instead. I eventually broke down and agreed, ordering packages to be sent to my house through the mail service. You've delivered a couple of packages to my friends before, but I never had the courage to 'accidentally' bump into you for that whole time. I... I guess I was just scared, but I finally got enough courage when you were delivering the muffin maker to my house. When I bumped into you, it was almost an accident- I was about to move out of the way at the last second, but, well....”
“I closed the gap” said Derpy, with finality.
“You closed the gap,” repeated Charity, nodding.
Derpy didn't know whether to smile, or to run away- either of them seemed appropriate at the time. Suddenly, something popped into her mind that infuriated her. Suddenly, she spouted
"So... This whole time... you just felt sorry for me? That's the only reason you wanted to talk to me?”
“WHAT? No! Not at all! … Well maybe a bit... But that's not the only reason!” it didn't matter- at that, she stood up, suddenly her expression was unfathomable.
She walked out the door quietly, leaving the breakfast behind on the table.
“I did it... because I love you...” said Charity, quietly and after he was sure she was out of earshot.
***
On the way home from Charity's, Derpy was seething- but she didn't show it. She had her dorky smile on her face that she always had.
'Gee, Charity said he liked that about me. He said it made him happy to see that there were ponies who took their troubles in stride... more or less.'
suddenly, she snapped at herself- 'Stop thinking about him! He's just like all the others- seeing you as someone who can't fend for themselves at all! Just keep smiling, and keep walking- we'll be home soon, and then we can cry... or, maybe, yell our head off.'
Even as she thought that, she felt a sharp pain of regret run through her like a knife through butter. 'I shouldn't have just walked out of there like that... What if he really didn't mean it the way it sounded?'
As she said this, a scowl came across her face before she ran into a light yellow pegasis- she recognized her as Fluttershy from Junior Speedsters Flight camp, as she was always getting teased as well as Derpy. Fluttershy saw her scowl and said “Oh... Hi Derpy... I didn't see you there.... umm... if you don't mind me asking.. what's wrong?”
Derpy replied- a little to harshly- “Nothing's the matter! I'm FINE!” it was only after she said this that she noticed how mean she sounded.
Fluttershy squeaked and backed away, saying “Oh... I'm sorry... I'll just... you know, go now...”
Feeling like a total jerk, Derpy quickly said “No, forget it, I'm sorry- I didn't mean to sound so mad.... Anyway, I was just mad at this stallion I met- Charity, I think... and I stormed out because he told me that he wanted to get to know me because he felt sorry for me.... Just like all those OTHER ponies that really just thought I was dumb.”
“Oh, you met Charity? Strange, that doesn't sound like him at all.... He's so kind and caring and... oh, he's a really great friend... are you sure he's who you met?”
Derpy pondered this- he really was very nice to her earlier... he even gave her a blanket when she fell asleep on his sofa... After a short while, Derpy said
“Well... He was really nice. He invited me in and made us muffins, and then he helped me deliver my mail.... He even called me his friend- and... Oh horseapples, I just stormed out on him for NO reason! I need to go back right away! He's probably really sad that his friend ran away from him while she was so mad... listen, thanks for letting me vent, Fluttershy- I have to go apologize!!”
“Oh... uh.. that's nice... I'll see you around Derpy...”
***
Dinky finished squeezing enough orange juice for two, and strained it because they both didn't like a lot of pulp. She went on to making the pancakes- another fixture Derpy really liked. Eating them made her look forlorn, but she still always liked eating them. She heard soft sobbing noises coming from her mother's room, but she believed that it would be better to just keep cooking- if she had woken up, it would be a good idea to have her wake up to a happy Dinky and an excellent breakfast. This rarely happened, but when it did, it happened on Sundays. Dinky never really knew why.
***
Derpy flew into Charity's window, not even bothering to knock.
She saw a note on his coffee table next to a box of muffins. The note read:"Dear Derpy,
I'm really sorry I made you mad at me, and I'm especially sorry that I made you feel like I patronized you. I'm.... out for now, so you can either wait for me or come looking for me.
Your friend always,
Charity."
Derpy teared up and read that second to last line over and over again
'Dear Celestia,' she thought. 'What have I done?'
Without giving the muffins another thought, she sped out the window and started looking for Charity like a madmare.
***
After several hours of searching, Derpy finally gave up and returned to Charity's house with a sad look on her face and her nose crinkled up.
“You look adorable when you're sad” a familiar voice said from behind her.
She spun around to see the source of the voice, seeing the tired looking smile on his face and the tear in his eye. She suddenly felt the urge to hug him, so she did. Seconds turned to minutes, and after nearly an hour, she finally let him go.
“I see that you've forgiven me” he said, with the ghost of tears still hanging on his face.
“Forgive you? For what? If anything, YOU should be the one mad at ME.”
He smiled sympathetically, and said “I can't stay mad at you.” He leaned in for a hug, which Derpy gladly accepted.
They both started to tear up in each others' arms.
After some time, Derpy said “but can you ever forgive me? I acted so horribly- I'm no better than the bullies...”
"Don't say that. You are not, and NEVER will be, as bad as them. I've seen people killed by their antics. You are lucky." She looked into his eyes, and Charity could swear hers were shimmering. It was perfect. She was here, in his arms...
Before she could say another word, Charity tilted her head up and kissed her, out of impulse. She was surprised at first, and was tensed- she slowly eased up as the kiss went on.
Derpy was speechless. She hadn't ever kissed a stallion before, and the sensation was unlike anything she expected. Instead of talking, Charity just stared into her with a gentle smile. He had gotten his point across, for the most part.
Eventually, Charity decided how he was going to word “Derpy, the reason I bumped into you..... It wasn't just because I felt sorry for you. I did it because I... I was just so angry at how you were being treated. It... I.... I did it because..... I love you, Derpy Hooves. Nothing can, and nothing will ever change that.”
She remained silent for a long time- so long that he began to tear up, thinking she had rejected him- before she finally said:
“I..... I love you too, Charity.... I don't really know how, but it seems like I always have... nopony had ever even tried to be that nice to me before... Unless they felt sorry for me. I was just bracing myself for something... something I hoped never came. I thought it had, so I tried so hard to just run away. Fluttershy saw how mad I was, and She told me it didn't sound like you at all... and I know she wouldn't lie to me, Charity... so I.... I just felt so terrible....”
He wiped her tears off with his hoof, and kissed her again. After she stopped crying, he pulled away and said "Derpy, you are a very sensitive pony. You know when others are hurt, and you try to help them- a very admirable trait, if I say so myself."
She sniffled. Even though she had been so terrible to him, he still tried to make her feel better.
After the events of the last few hours, they were both very tired and the adrenaline was starting to wear off. She yawned. Here was as good a place as any for her to stay, and it sure was comfortable.
They fell asleep in each others arms.
To be continued.
Chapter 2: Bliss
Dinky heard her mother still sobbing, and her heart got the best of her- once more she walked into her mother's room, but this time she saw Derpy sobbing in her sleep, but smiling at the same time. This made no sense to her- in the space of just 20 minutes, her mom had gone from very, very happy, to very, very sad, and back again. The dream Derpy was having was obviously emotionally complicated, if nothing else. For the 3rd time today, Dinky smiled and returned to making breakfast. 'The pancakes are almost done, so Momma'd better wake up soon!'
***
Derpy woke up- mainly from the shifting pony still held in her arms, but also due to the fact that she wakes up early to go to her early job. Charity had only just woken up, so he was just as tired as she was. Derpy was about to call in sick, but Charity, already fixing breakfast, would have none of it- in order to keep her safe and prevent her from being tired, he would follow her on her route and help her carry the heavier packages. This was a pleasant surprise to Derpy, who graciously accepted- but really, he wasn't asking.
After a quick breakfast, and an even quicker shower, Derpy was ready to go.
Charity, having taken a shower the night before, was also ready just in the nick of time. As they walked to the Ponyville Post office; however, Derpy was approached by another stallion, who was one of her great tormentors from the Junior Speedsters Flight academy. Thankfully, after only a few insults and jeers, Charity stepped in and the other stallion backed off. Today took a bit longer- neither wanted to leave the others' side to deliver to two different parts of the route, and they were talking about what happened over the past few days.
“When did you fall for me?” Derpy asked, hoping she had said the right thing.
After a few moments, Charity replied “.... I suppose it was when I saw you the day after you were insulted on your route... I saw you, smiley and happy as always, delivering your mail like nothing ever happened. I needed someone like you, someone who could bounce back. I knew that you were the most remarkable pony I had ever seen, and it killed me that others couldn't see how special you are. You're unique, Derpy. Always willing to give a second chance, always working your hardest.”
Derpy smiled at the fact that even the most simple things she did were admired by her new-found lover. After several minutes of chatting (no way you could shut the two of them up NOW,) Charity finally asked;
“umm... Derpy? I have to ask you the same question... When did you... fall for me?”
Pondering the question much the same way Charity did, she finally answered “it was the night I came back. I was so sorry for what I had said, that I just knew you would never take me back as a friend. I saw you forgive me and apologize for yourself- even though you did nothing wrong. You wanted me to be happy, with all your heart. And that's what love is. Real love. It's when you can love someone and want them to be happy, even at your own expense. I knew then, you were someone special. I will never let go of that.”
Tears of joy spread across Charity's eyes, and he kissed Derpy, right in the town square. Some people, who were friends of either Charity or Derpy, came over and started staring. Some people made the cliché “get a room” remark, and still others just walked on by. None of them mattered. All that mattered was that Derpy was in Charity's arms, and Charity in Derpy's. He broke away at long last, Derpy struggling not to pull him back with renewed fervor, they went on with delivering the mail, before being stopped again by Rainbow Dash.
“Hi you guys!” said the tomboyish voice of the Cyan colored pony
“Hi Rainbow” they said, both of them at once.
“What're you, twins?” all three of them chuckled.
“So, what's up?” asked Charity after all of them stopped chuckling at the (admittedly) bad joke.
“I just saw your stunt in the town square,” remarked Rainbow, adding “are you two an item now?”
Derpy and Charity both looked at each other and nodded slightly, Derpy finally saying “Yes, yes we are.”
“Well, I'm really happy for you guys. Can I talk to Charity for a minute?” answered Rainbow, glaring at him, as if sizing him up. He returned the glare, accepting her challenge
“ummm... I-” said Derpy, before being interrupted by Charity's
“Sure.”
It was her turn to smile. She was happy that Charity trusted rainbow, and visa-versa.
Pulling Charity to the side, and out of earshot of Derpy, Dash whispered harshly “You'd better watch yourself, pal- Derpy's my friend, and I've seen her pushed around by more ponies than you can shake a stick at. I swear, if you hurt her-”
“I won't. And if you two were so chummy, why don't you ever help Derpy when she's being pushed around? Every day, I watched Derpy getting insulted verbally and nearly be physically assaulted by ponies who can't accept differences between themselves and other ponies,” interrupted Charity, with an annoyed edge in his voice. He continued: “And I'll have you know, I love Derpy Hooves with every fiber of my being- I can't live without her. I won't let a FLEA like you stand in the way of me and her, and if you try anything I swear to Celestia it'll be the last thing you ever do. Mark my words.”
Slightly taken aback by his sudden outburst, Rainbow smiled. “Consider them marked. That's the kind of thing I want to hear” she said, enjoying the confused look that she was getting from him. “I've seen ponies pretend to love her to the point where she thought she would marry them- only for them to let her down hard to try and see her break. And eventually, even stones break if hit to hard, to much.”
While slightly annoyed by the comparison of Derpy Hooves, the love of his life, to a stone, he let it slide, simply nodding and saying “I've seen her ability to bounce back- I know she can take some thing better than others. That doesn't matter though, this is real. I won't let her go. Ever.” with renewed zeal, he simply stated “now if you'll excuse me, I have mail to deliver with Derpy.”
Rainbow let him pass, even though she knew she didn't have to. She knew he was telling the truth. Still, she was slightly tentative. She had seen ponies lie, even to her. If he did let her down, and let her down hard, she would be there- waiting to comfort Derpy. She watched as the couple continued on their merry way, chatting and delivering mail. She smiled, and flew away to keep practicing some flight moves.
***
After they finished Derpy's route for the day, they retired (this time) to Derpy's house, as Derpy hadn't been there for over 2 days. When they did, they found it locked, just as Derpy left it. However, when they went inside, they saw that the lights were off and the shades drawn, and there were strange silhouettes lining the walls.
Suddenly, the lights flicked on and a crowd of ponies yelled out-
“SURPRISE!”
Derpy blinked for a few moments before looking at Charity, who simply smiled.
“HI I'm Pinkie Pie and I threw this party JUST FOR YOU! I heard that you were a new couple, and I was more excited than... well... omygosh I've never been so excited except for... well EVER! But really, what could top Ponyville's latest COUPLE?” Pinkie Pie exclaimed with a smile. “But enough chit-chat! LEET'S PARTY!!!” a white unicorn started the music, and “Ponyville's latest couple” headed over to the drink table.
On their way there, Derpy said “So... she heard about us from... who exactly?”
Stammering slightly, with a nervous smile on his face Charity replied “uh.... Fluttershy... I told her, while you were asleep on my couch, that you and I had finally met and hit it off... It almost got ruined when you stormed out like that, so Fluttershy helped me get you back. Also, I didn't really know if I would be able to tell you until you came back and... well... it carried on from there.”
Derpy smiled at his apologetic attitude and grabbed two cups for them both, and, after a long wait for a purple pony who was filling multiple cups (Who could blame her? It's Berry Punch, after all!) for seemingly no one but herself, they finally got a cup of punch for each of them, and then walked over to the sweet-filled table.
“Oh, and what did Rainbow want?” asked Derpy. “It was... Strange... when she pulled you aside like that... she's never done THAT before.”
“Oh, she just wanted to make sure I wasn't trying to hurt you” he said flatly. He couldn't lie to this mare.
Derpy looked rather taken aback, but she eventually said, with an apparent hint of sadness in her voice “oh.... yeah.... y-you aren't... are you?”
He couldn't stand to see her like this- he hugged her tightly and kissed her passionately.
“I'm alive, aren't I? You're damn lucky you have a friend like Rainbow.” He stared her straight in the eyes and smiled.
Derpy melted in his arms and nuzzled against his shoulder, drawing many “Awww”s from the crowd.
Like before, this didn't matter to either of them. They were together, and while they were together, nothing ever went wrong they couldn't fix. There wasn't any bad in the world, only them. Them and their love. The thunderous applause from everypony in the room- which was just about every pony in Ponyville- broke their trance, and they turned and blushed, before they broke apart and smiled nervously.
After the applause died down, and the music resumed playing, Charity turned to Derpy and asked her, “do you want to dance?”
“Okay” Derpy replied, softly.
Overhearing this, and due to her Pinkie sense, Pinkie Pie immediately walked over to the DJ and whispered for her to play some slow music. Derpy and Charity, hearing this, stared at each other. Derpy whispered “this was the song you were humming when I stayed over for the first night....”
Listening closely, Charity finally said “Yes... it is.... you have an ear for music, do you know that?”
Derpy blushed, and Charity bowed, asking “May I have this dance, madame?” causing another massive blush to escape from Derpy.
She curtsied, replying “Absolutely”
With that, Charity took her into his forehooves, staring straight into her eyes, and beginning to waltz. The world stopped.
Everypony moved out of the way to watch this couple, entwined in each other, dance across the floor to the music- now playing for a second time- and staring at each other with a passion that made even the most stalwart, macho stallion break down into tears. Pinkie Pie had to step out due to the torrent of happy tears falling out of her eyes. The spotlight was fixed on the two, and they danced for hours, staring at each other, never breaking their gaze. Everypony was so transfixed they didn't even notice the cyan pony walking in the front door, fully prepared to fire off more questions to Charity. She never got the chance. What she saw in front of her answered them all.
***
Derpy was still sleeping contently, dreaming of her past. Dinky was growing impatient, but the smile on her mothers face and her humming the waltz made her not wake her. What were a few more minutes? Cooled muffins were still muffins, Derpy always said.
***
While Pinkie was still cleaning the party, Derpy decided to follow Charity back to his house. There, they lay on the sofa in his living room, entwined with each other for some time before Charity decided to get up. Derpy was at first a bit annoyed, but then she saw him get on one hind leg and a look of realization flashed across her face before she squeed and smiled. He pulled out a small box, opened it and asked one question:
“Derpy Hooves, I know we haven't been together very long, but it doesn't take very long to know that you are the love of my life. Derpy, you bring me more happiness than I thought possible... and I guess what I'm trying to say is.... Derpy Hooves, will you marry me?”
Derpy simply lunged at him and kissed him. Hard. He smiled, and mentally he was bouncing against the walls.
***
On their wedding day, they both wrote their own vows- but both got cold feet and only read them after the wedding, in the privacy of their (new) home. They had both moved their houses on to one lot and connected them into one big house out in the country. Charity was the first one to read the vows he wrote.
After both had read, they were in each others arms, crying and kissing. They went up to their new master bedroom- with a new, king sized bed- and lay down, cuddling in their wedding clothes.
Derpy looked absolutely stunning- they had gone to the local dress shop, where the pony there (named “Rarity” or something like that) went completely nuts over all the romantic details and the fact they had chosen her to make the dress AND suit for their occasion. She ended up doing it for less than half of the original cost. Derpy's dress has pearls and topaz (“It simply makes your eyes look so fantastic!”) in it for her special day. For Charity, however, she had stuck with the “Southern Gentleman” look. (“a man in gems? Not for a wedding!”) Before things... ahem... escalated, they undressed and hung their clothes up carefully. Pinkie had outdone herself for the after-party, and it was dark by the time they left for their house.
They lay in the bed, kissing and cuddling- not a care in the world but for their own love. If Derpy hadn't taken all her personal days for a year for the honeymoon, (which Charity owed her for...) she would definitely need to call in sick tomorrow.
***
The next day, they woke up extremely late for them- nearly noon. They took their afternoon walk immediately after brunch, which Derpy and Charity had prepared in minutes. They were in heaven.
While they were out on their walk, Derpy and Charity were approached by dozens of well wishers and friends. There was ONE, however, who was completely out of the blue- the same stallion Charity told off a couple weeks ago- who came up to them and said
“Derpy and Charity, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G.”
Charity responded with a hoof to the mouth. He turned to Derpy and quickly apologized for his outbreak, to which Derpy responded with a kiss and a hug. “It's ok. Some ponies need to get a good smack once in a while.”
All of a sudden, Rainbow Dash landed and said “Hey guys! Oh, and nice moves Charity!” she said, pumping her hooves as if boxing.
Charity blushed and responded by saying “I won't let anyone make fun of my wife in front of me. Even if I have to do something like... like what I just did.”
Derpy, hearing the despair in her husband's voice, walked over and nuzzled him. “Don't worry. I know it was a one time thing.” Even though they both were pacifists, there were some things neither of them could let slide.
Rainbow pulled Charity aside again, but this time she didn't have an edge on her voice. She simply said “Thank you.”
“For what?” asked Charity.
“For loving her.” Rainbow flew away without looking back.
Charity smiled and returned to Derpy, who asked “what was that about?”
“She... she wanted to thank me,” he responded.
“For what?”
“For actually loving you”
She giggled “really?”
“Yes.”
Charity put his foreleg around Derpy's shoulder and they continued walking.
***
“Yes.” was the simple word that made both Derpy's and Charity's hearts skyrocket.
“So.. we.... we're gonna have a foal?” asked Charity
“Yes,” answered Nurse Redheart. She smiled at them as she said that, and Charity looked Derpy in the eyes before hugging her and kissing her. Nurse Redheart walked away to visit other patients, and came back to the couple smiling in each others' arms.
“You're free to go, if you want,” the Nurse told them.
Charity turned to Derpy and said “Let's go make some muffins.”
They always made muffins when something happened, good or bad. Derpy loved muffins, as did Charity. They made everything seem better- it was muffins that brought them together, and it is muffins that makes them happier than anything. As they walked home, Pinkie Pie bounced up to them and said “HEY! How is Derpy? Is she having a little baby Hooves?” she said excitedly. Sometimes, that Pinkie sense of hers was insanely accurate- they hadn't even told her that they were getting a test for that.
“Uh... yeah” Derpy replied, smiling.
Pinkie gasped loudly, and then said “OOOH! You know what a good name is? DINKY! It's like Derpy and Pinkie mixed together!”
That actually WAS a good name, thought Charity. He may have to consider that.
Pinkie gasped again, saying “HEY! Do you know what this calls for? A PARTY!”
She bounced off, presumably to set up the baby shower. Both Derpy and Charity hoped they would actually be told WHEN the party was this time.
They continued walking until they reached their doorstep. Suddenly, Charity had a brainwave. He stood on both hind legs, grabbed Derpy in his forehooves and carried her inside, kissing her. He laid her down on the couch, sitting next to her. Even after 5 months, they still felt like they met yesterday, and they still loved each other more than anything in the world. Whenever they fought, they ended up in each others arms after making apology muffins and a bout of crying. Whenever something good happened, like a promotion or just a great day, they made muffins and ended up in each others arms, kissing, and eventually sleeping. The stallion who tormented her throughout flight academy finally took a hint, and left her alone. Life was good.
***
It was 3 months later, and Derpy was showing- but she was loving every minute of it. She was pampered beyond belief by her beloved husband and her friends when they were around, and loved having a little baby foal in her belly.
Charity was having an equally fantastic time, keeping Derpy happy was his favorite thing in the world. He loved making muffins and then sitting down with a plate, snuggling up against Derpy and feeling their child. They still went on walks- it was good for Derpy to stay active as much as possible, and every so often Rainbow Dash would give them a demonstration of her new moves.
Rainbow was a surprisingly good flier, and constantly left them smiling in awe of what she could accomplish.
Speaking of Rainbow, while she was happy about her friends enjoying the show, was especially happy about Derpy finally finding someone. She deserved it. After their walk one day, they headed home to find the lights off and the curtains drawn. This time, they took the hint and braced themselves for what was about to happen. They walked in, and the crowd yelled
“Surprise!”
A familiar pink pony was already at their side, and she had already directed Derpy at the pile of gifts people had brought for her.
Derpy, being Derpy, opened the smallest first- it was a pacifier, made by hand from one of their new friends, Rarity. It had small red rubys in the shape of a heart inlaid around the pacifier's outside handle. She thanked her friend and hugged her tightly, opening the next biggest until she reached the end. All of them were heartfelt and in the end, there were smiles and tears of joy all around. Suddenly, everypony was chanting for Derpy and Charity to dance- their song was playing, and the floor had been cleared for the guests of honor. They couldn't resist, and soon were dancing across the floor, again hypnotizing the crowd with their passion, still burning as hotly as it did those many months ago.
To be continued.
6 months later
Derpy was ecstatic- the foal was expected any day now, and Charity was still tending to her as lovingly as ever. Every morning, she awoke to the smell of fresh muffins, and every night she fell asleep held tenderly by her beloved husband.
Today, however, she felt even happier than usual. Perhaps hanging around Pinkie Pie made some of her Pinkie sense rub off on her, because sure enough, less than 12 hours later, Derpy was being rushed to the hospital with the aid of her friend Rainbow Dash, and Charity running along beside them.
They burst through the doors at the clinic, where a gurney was already waiting for Derpy. She was whisked away to the operating room, with Charity never leaving her side, and before she knew it she was hooked up to various vital monitors. Even in labor, she had her trademarked smile and wall eyed stare.
***
Several tense hours later, the new filly, a light purple unicorn with a blonde mane, was brought to the couple.
“What should we name her?” asked Charity
“Ummm.... I kinda like Dinky..” Derpy replied after a short pause
“The name Pinkie came up with when we told her?”
Derpy squeaked and said (with a hint of embarrassment in her voice) “... Yes...”
Silence reigned, until Charity spoke up;
“To be completely honest, I was considering that as well...”
They both laughed, and agreed that the new filly would be named Dinky Hooves, after her mother and their friend Pinkie.
They signed the birth certificate, put Derpy in a wheelchair and brought her home with Dinky in her arms.
“I'm really tired... We should go to bed,” she suggested.
“Yeah, that sounds like a- a good idea” his reply punctuated by a deep yawn.
Dinky had already fallen asleep in their arms, and they carried her into the nursery where her crib was. They put her down softly, covered her up, and put her teddy up against her. The sight made both Derpy and Charity smile brightly, before hugging and walking to their bed.
“Goodnight, my little muffin” Derpy whispered to Dinky before following Charity.
***
It was several weeks later, and Derpy was slowly regaining her figure with the help of her job (which she returned to after the baby was born) and the long walks Charity, the baby and her took every day, much to the delight of their several friends and acquaintances around town, who loved seeing the new filly in her stroller. It wouldn't be long now before Derpy was back in full swing in her job and Charity could stay home and take care of Dinky.
The two of them had already enrolled Dinky to go to school under Miss Cheerilee when she turned 4, due to Charity's wanting everything to be in place for Dinky's childhood. Derpy found his concern adorable.
***
3 months later
Out on their walk, just like any other day, Derpy was crossing the street when she suddenly felt herself getting hit in the side- hard. She fell, and the stroller containing Dinky nearly flew out of her hands. After a few moments of terror, she turned to see a carriage stopped a few feet ahead of the unmoving body of a pony. Charity.
A sudden look of terror ripped across Derpy's face, and she ran over to him, careful to keep the stroller in tow.
Several ponies were already running in the direction of the clinic, and still others were crowding around, as if they were a living barrier around Charity.
Many tense seconds passed, each one feeling like minutes to Derpy, before a second carriage that contained medical personelle and supplies pulled up near the scene. The wall of ponies dissipated slightly to allow the paramedics through, and they quickly stabilized Charity. His eyes opened groggily, and he looked at the (mostly) uninjured Derpy with a relieved expression. He had done what he needed to.
The ambulance rushed him to the hospital, where they had him hooked to oxygen, painkillers and a heart rate monitor to name a few. His bones were reset, and he had a bandage around his midsection where the majority of the compound fractures occurred. Pinkie Pie was helping to keep track of Dinky while Derpy was at Charity's side- she wouldn't leave, no matter what. He was able to talk, slightly, and every so often he would whisper
“It's okay, it'll be alright, Derpy” to try and quell Derpy's sobs. What his whispering did was make her sadder, knowing that if she had watched and not blindly walked out he would be safe and they would be home. She told him this, to which he replied
“Never blame yourself. I did what I did because I love you. Nothing will change that, especially not this injury. I'll be back in full swing soon- I just need a little time for R&R, that's all.”
That comforted Derpy a bit, knowing he would never give up fighting.
He eventually told her “Go. Get some food for yourself. I don't want you to get hurt just because I am.”
“Stay back, Derpy” said a familiar voice, which belonged to Nurse Redheart. “They need to have all the space they can get.”
Derpy was on the brink of tears, and ran out of the room and home.
She burst in the doors and went to Dinky. She picked her daughter up, crying, and hugged her. She stayed very much the same way until she noticed Pinkie watching her, with tears in her eyes.
“it's bad, isn't it?” Pinkie asked, with a sadness that Derpy didn't know was possible from the party mare.
“Yes” Derpy answered curtly.
After a while, Pinkie walked over and pulled her friend into an embrace- holding her tightly in an attempt to make her feel better.
Derpy's sobbing eventually turned to a short sniffling, and she finally said
“let's take Dinky to the hospital, I'm sure Charity would love to see her. It might cheer both of us up.”
Pinkie nodded, and went to get Dinky's stroller.
***
At the clinic, things had calmed down slightly due to the fact that Charity's condition had normalized. As Derpy walked into the room, she pulled Dinky out of the stroller and carried her on her back, in the baby holder.
He smiled, and looked up at the mare with his daughter on her back. He tried to lean forward, only to be stopped by Derpy, who then leaned down and kissed him.
“Don't strain yourself, you need all your energy to get fixed,” she said.
He smiled.
Just then, Pinkie walked in, carrying a box. She said “The Cakes made some get well soon muffins. They're poppy seed.”
Sure enough, when they opened the box, there were 6, perfect, poppy seed muffins inside. Their favorite. Both of them took 3, and began to eat them, handing Dinky pieces every so often. Dinky fell asleep still in her mother's arms, pressed against her. Both parents smiled.
“I think I'll be fine, you should find a place to rest for the night,” Charity said, breaking the silence.
***
She woke with a start, as the Nurse tapped on her shoulder, tears in her eyes and a sad expression on her face.
Derpy was shocked, and looked over at the body of her husband. He still had a smile on his face. He looked so content that she knew it just couldn't be true. She walked over, letting Dinky stay asleep, and looked at his face. She nuzzled against him. Nothing. She kissed him. Still nothing. Tears welling up, she closed her eyes, looking away.
She stayed there, crying, hugging, hoping that he would come back. She heard footsteps behind her, and turned to see Rainbow Dash standing next to her. Derpy burst out into deep sobs and tears, clinging tightly to her friend.
'Why did you have to leave her?' Rainbow thought, directing it towards Charity with all her will. 'Why did you have to go and hurt her like this?!? You promised...'
Rainbow really wanted to cry. She knew him just as well as anypony- aside from Derpy, of course. She needed to stay strong.
***
Dinky heard the deep sobs coming from her mother's room, and walked in. She went to her mother's bedside and hugged her, waking her from her deep slumber.
Derpy's eyes fluttered open, and she saw her daughter standing in front of her. She smiled through her tears, and hugged her as tightly as she felt safe. “My little muffin....” she said, barely more than a whisper. More tears.
Finally, Dinky asked what needed to be asked; “what were you dreaming about, momma?”
Derpy moved away, saying “your daddy. I was dreaming about your daddy.”
It was Dinky's turn to cry. She didn't know much about her father, just that he was a kind stallion who lived up to his name- Charity.
Seeing her daughter in tears, Derpy leaned forward and hugged her, kissing her on the forehead softly.
“Was it a good dream?”
Pondering this for a moment, Derpy responded “Yes. It was a very good dream.” Her smile returned to her face, and tears of joy rolled down her face at the memories of the many happy times she had with her husband.
They were hardly married for a year.
Looking again at her beloved daughter, she said “Let's go get some breakfast”
Dinky brightened at this statement, saying “Oooh! I made you breakfast! All your favorites- poppy seed muffins, pancakes, orange juice and oh I just know you'll love it!”
Dinky sped out of the room to prepare the table for the two of them. Derpy glanced at the picture on her... their bedside table. She still slept on her side of the bed, leaving half of it empty, as if waiting for her dearly beloved to come back and to wake up in his arms again. She looked at the picture for a long time- it was a picture of her and Charity holding Dinky when she was first born. They were so happy. Smiling again, she said “Muuuuffins!” excitedly and flew out her bedroom door. One more tear fell as she remembered Charity's last act.
It was an act of love, a love stronger than his own survival instinct. In the end, he DID live up to his name. Charity. In his will, which he had made when they got married (always prepared), he left everything to her- even some secret funds to be used in emergency. He left no debts, all of them payed off with what he had at the time of the accident. She learned that his last few hours were spent negotiating his affairs while Derpy slept. He gave everything for her and Dinky, and she loved him for that. She wished she could hold him, so he could tell her it'd be alright. She sat down at the breakfast table, before getting up again to grab a third plate. Dinky knew why- it was her mother and father's would be 10th wedding anniversary. Dinky smiled at her mother, a tear coming from her eye. Derpy walked over and hugged her, tears streaming from both of their eyes. They were good tears.
A knock at the door broke their reverie, and Derpy went to answer the door. It was Rainbow. She was carrying a small present and told Derpy “Happy anniversary.”
Derpy broke down into her arms, and Dinky walked over and embraced her mother as well. Derpy felt safe in the arms of her (second) best friend Rainbow and her daughter Dinky, who she loved with all her heart.
'I'll never forget' she thought, sending her silent promise up to her husband- wherever he was. She knew that wherever he was, he was looking at her, happy that she was okay, happy that she was with friends. She would never forget.
The end.
