Chapters

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5

Chapter 1
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A Bubbly Hearth's Warming Eve

Chapter 1

Trudging along through the snow, you stare aimlessly at the ground. The frozen water glistens in the sunlight and makes gruff crunching sounds with each step of your fuzzy insulated boots. In the distance, you hear the happy voices of kids playing. However, as you get closer, their cheers of excitement start to reduce in volume. Looking up from the strange occurrence, two colts and a young filly were looking at you with a displeasing gaze. One of them leans towards the filly, and whispers something in her ear. From the giggling, you knew it has to be some distasteful joke about you. With a huff and a lift of your buff jacket with your shoulders, you moved quickly onward away from the immature ponies.

A couple of months in Equestria, and you have had to deal with some of the equines bad attitude towards you. There were those like Twilight and her friends who accepted your presence with open arms, but even with their friendship, there were still a lot of ponies that avoided you as much as possible or would openly insult you in public. It was not as if you took any of that too heart, but after hearing it repeatedly within a few days. The words got under your skin like a parasite.

What you really did not understand was why they were doing it in the first place. You shared many of the same qualities besides minor differences such as not having fur, a tail, or being born here for that matter. It was confusing but, in a way, you understood their animosity. If one of them had come to earth, you would be positive that a large number of people would feel the same way about their appearance. It still bothered you a bit, but other than that, you actually really liked this world.

Once you feel you are out their sight, you go back to a leisurely pace. You get lost in thought again as you continue down the path back home.

Not that your home was anything special or anything, but after you were offered the place to live in by Twilight and her friends It was with little thought that you agreed to it. Besides, it was not too bad with a nice bed and a stove for heating. It was perfect for one or two to live in not that you had anyone to share it with really. At least it left more room for you.

A sudden cold breeze blowing across your face pulls you out of your thoughts. The winters here were cold but manageable even though you did not have fur. Thanks to Rarity's incredible designing skills, you have some very nice, warm clothes that fit to near perfection. Glancing around to a few of the houses, you notice that they all have Hearth’s Warming Eve decorations and other festive symbols.

You watched as a few kids played with each other in the snow, making snow angels and snow ponies. Then of course, as soon as they see you, the children run to their parents who give you nasty looks making you feel more uncomfortable. Again, you have done something wrong. As if, it was because of you their children are without the fun they deserve.

All of a sudden, a feminine voice from seemingly nowhere shouts, “Look out!” as you turn to the direction to where you hear the voice. You look up just in time to see a flash of grey as something smacks into you. You then collapse in the soft crunchy snow with a loud ‘Thump’.

“Ouch! What was that?” You say, rubbing your now sore forehead. You feel pinned down by something heavy. Opening your eyes, allowing them to adjust to the sunlight, you see a grey mare with bright blond hair and grey fur sitting on your stomach rubbing her head as well.

“Ouch, that really hurt. Are you okay? I’m sorry about that.” She apologizes as she gets off you.

The mare’s reaction to you surprises you quite a bit to say the least. Other than Twilight and her friends, not a single mare, stallion or colt even stayed close to you if they could help it. So why is she not running away or screaming?

“Um, excuse me but, are you alright?” The grey mare repeated, gaining your attention once again.

“Oh Yes, I’m sorry, I dazed out there for a moment.” You say as you pull yourself to your feet. You notice she was about a few inches shorter than you were. You also notice her eyes, a bright beautiful yellow coloration, not to mention one seemed like it was off center a little. It was somewhat cute actually.

“Oh that’s okay, I do that all the time!” she started cheerfully

You look upon her with some confusion. “Shouldn’t you be running away from me by now? Or avoiding me?” You ask gaining a confused look from her this time.

“Why would I run away from you? You do not seem to smell bad. Or seem sick.” The mare says looking up at you, oblivious to your meaning.

You palm your forehead at her remark. “No, I mean that I’m not a pony. See, no fur.” You exclaim by pointing to your own hand.

The mare just giggles at you. “So? Why would I be afraid of you when you haven’t done anything bad to me?”

Slightly taken aback by her words you stare at her confused. You definitely were not expecting her to say that. You were just about to say something back when you heard one of the filly’s from earlier yell. “Hey Miss, you should get away from the weirdo before you lose your fur!” she yelled before running back to her mother who had a worried look as she picked the filly up into her arms.

You cannot help but sigh aloud at the count of another rumor spread about you. A rumor is just a rumor. However, after so many it starts getting under your skin even more so.

Letting out a frustrated sigh you look at the grey mare in front of you. “That is what I meant, if try to talk to me you’ll be treated like the plague, like me. So I’d stay away from me if I were you.”

You continue to walk by her and head towards your home. You could sense the grey mare watching you as went on your way.

After a little while, you manage to make your way back home. Whenever you look at your small house, you remember when everyone was against you moving into town. Even though Twilight and her friends were just as skeptical of you, they were still nice enough to help you and offer a cozy house. You vowed to pay each of them back if it was the last thing you did.

You open the door and walk inside. After taking off your coat and hanging it on the coat rack on the wall, you headed straight for the kitchen. You have been starving for the past hour now so you were dying to eat something. After pondering for a minute, you decided on something tasty but simple. The first thing that pops into your mind is muffins, blueberry muffins to be precise. Simple and delicious, they are one of your favorite treats. You begin gathering the ingredients to make them after preheating the oven. Always fancying yourself a decent cook, you knew how to cook well, though it was on no par with Pinkie.

Roughly, fifteen or so minutes had passed since you poured the muffin mixture into a small tray, popped it into the oven and decided to wait in the living area, relax and let the stress of the day drain away. You make your way to the living area, collapse on a couch and lay there. Images of those cold stares and kids laughing at you flow into your mind shortly, causing a frown to form on your face. You cannot help but wish that they would not jump to conclusions and try to get to know you, but of course, it really is not that easy to win them over when you look so strange to them.

Maybe if you could get help from Twilight and her friends for help it will be easier. Though you figure, they cannot follow you around all day trying to help you make friends. You knew you just had to step up and make them see for themselves, which is harder than it looks.

A knock on your door pulls you out of your train of thought. “Who could be at my door? I don’t remember inviting anyone over.”

Getting up off the couch, you head for the door and slowly open it. You see the same grey mare from earlier stands in your doorway smiling widely at you as she waves.

“Hello!” She exclaims

Still slightly confused about her presence, you can only ask. “What are you doing here?” Your question made the mare giggle a little.

“Well I saw how sad your eyes looked when you left and I just had to follow you. Oh and by the way, my name is Derpy Hooves!” Derpy patiently waits for your response.

“Um thanks, but you didn’t have to do that. Besides, you hardly know me.” You state, sighing to yourself.

“Well too bad because I wanted to come see you anyway!” She huffs

A dumbfounded expression graces your face following her outburst. Why was she so adamant on making sure you were ok? It did not make sense. However, she did come all the way to see you, that itself made you happy enough, so you decided to ignore the reason for now.

“Well since you came all this way; do you want to come in?” You ask moving to the side to allow her entry.

“Yay!” Derpy cheers as she seemingly skips passed you, making you chuckle softly at her antics

“So this is your house? It seems pretty cozy.” Derpy states as she looks around.

“Yeah it is and it’s pretty spacious as well. I mean it isn’t the best house, but I love it.”

You stop talking when you see Derpy smelling the air.

“I smell muffins...” She trails off almost drooling, leaving you in confusion until it dawns on you.

“Oh no, I almost forgot!” rushing to the kitchen, you grab mitts and shut the stove off. Opening the small door and looking inside, you see the muffins were just fine.

“Phew, caught them just in time!” You place them down onto the counter and smell the aroma that comes off the freshly baked muffins. You are about to take one from the pan when you noticed movement out of the corner of your eye.

Looking in the direction of the movement, you see Derpy hovering in midair staring at the pan of muffins, drooling. You cannot help but chuckle aloud at her reaction over the treat you made for yourself. Carefully, you slide them out one by one onto a plate until the tray was empty.

Looking up at Derpy and seeing her eyes glued to the contents on the plate makes you smile. “You can have some if you want, I don’t mind.” You smile at her making Derpy's eyes brighten as she reaches for one and takes a bite out of it.

“Thank you so much, I was starving!” She says with her mouth full.

You could not help but snicker at her antics. You take a sizable bite out of your own blueberry muffin, the richness of the bread is savory and the blueberry’s sweetness danced on your tongue with each bite.

“So, you never told me your name; what is it?” Derpy asked as she took another bite.

You lightly smack your head at the realization you completely forgot about it and upon apologizing, tell her your name.

“That’s your name? It sounds kind of funny!” She says, giggling a little bit.

“And what’s so funny about it?” you say, pouting slightly.

“It’s an unusual name for around here that’s all.” she says your name a couple more times as if trying to get it stuck in her head.

You both finished off the muffins you had made while you made small talk; getting to know each other more. Some time had passed and it was starting to get late. You could tell Derpy was getting a little drowsy.

You look over at the clock and notice the time. “Wow, time sure does fly when you’re having fun huh?” You ask no one in particular.

Derpy looks up at the clock and slightly panics. “Oh no! I stayed longer than I thought!” She stands up looking out the window seeing it was dark.

“I can walk you home if you want. I don’t mind.” You say being courteous.

“Oh, that’s not necessary but thanks for the offer! I’ll be by to say hi again tomorrow probably!” Derpy waves goodbye as she leaves for your door before you can say anything against it. Looking out the window you can see her flying off.

“Well I guess she is the get up and go type of mare. I should probably also head off to sleep.

After cleaning up the kitchen you decide to head to your room were you walk into your bathroom to brush your teeth and clean up. After changing into cloths more comfortable, you head straight for bed. Crawling onto your bed and blowing out the lights, you can’t help but feel an overwhelming happiness fall over you. You had finally made a new friend on your own without the help of anyone. Not to mention she was quite cute as well. However, friendship is a great achievement in your book any day.

You lay there thinking of all you had needed to do today and when you’d get to see her tomorrow as you slip off into a deep sleep.

*~*~*

The next morning was just as nice as yesterday, snow still covered the ground even though it was clear with the sun blazing, a slight cold breeze blew every once in a while reminding you it was still cold out. You had already headed off to work early to try to make it there before any of the locals woke up to see you out and about. Last thing you needed was to start the day off was a bad mood. Working at a small convenience store was not very exciting to say the least. On top of that, you also work in the back reorganizing and stocking. However, considering your boss was even willing to allow you to work there was a miracle in and of itself despite your appearance.

However, since you were with Twilight at the time the owner of the store felt that if Twilight trusted you; she could as well. All of a sudden, you hear someone call your name from behind you. You turned around and scanned the area and see what looked like a mare flying towards you excitedly. Smiling up at her, you realize who it is almost immediately.

“Hey, how’s it going?” you shout, waiting for her to catch up. You notice her clothes were quite a bit different from yesterday and that she had what looked like a large carrier bag hanging next to her side.

“Good morning! I am off on mail deliveries. I am Ponyville’s mail mare. Oh and even better, you are on my daily route now! Therefore, I will be able to come visit you in the mornings. Though, when I showed up today you weren't home.” Derpy stated, looking at you curiously.

“Oh. Well you see, I always leave early so I don’t bother anyone on my way to work. After all, I’m sure you saw some of the stares they gave me yesterday.” You said, a slight frown appearing on your face.

“You shouldn’t let it get to you. I mean, I get funny looks all the time. I just do not let it get to me. They’ll have to accept you for you eventually, sooner or later.” She grins widely at you gaining one from you in response.

“Thanks Derpy, I’m happy to have a friend like you.” Derpy giggles at your words.

“And I’m happy to have you as the first real friend I’ve ever had.” Her words confuse you a little. However, before you can ask she decides that she needs to get back to delivering mail and flew off with a big wave shouting, “I’ll see you after work!” behind her.

“What did she mean by that, I wonder? Well, I guess I’ll find out later.” You thought as you hurried to the store you worked at.

The day droned on for what felt like days to you. However, the store was particularly busy today and the new shipments of food stocks and other items coming in helped make the day disappear quickly. You still felt like time was passing as slowly as it could manage, though. Of course, you knew why; it was because of your desire to see her. Since you have meet her a day ago you have quickly became friends. Therefore, it is not shocking that you wanted to see her again; after all, she was your first real friend that you have made here in Equestria. Of course, Twilight and her friends were friendly towards you but you rarely spent any time with them. Therefore, a friend like Derpy was quite a welcome find.

The day eventually ends as the last few customers of the day leave the store. After replenishing, the supplies in the store as well as tidy up. The only thing left was to clean up the shop and you are set. Just as you find a broom and start to clean, the store owner calls out to you.

“There is no need to clean. I am closing shop little early so you may leave as well once you take the trash out the back way.” The old storekeeper says as she starts locking up.

You call back acknowledging what she said, collect the trash bags together, and head for the rear exit to dispose of it. Shutting the door and walking to the recycling bins, you notice a few foals playing on the hillside throwing snowballs at each other and laughing. You cannot help but smile at them as you lift the lid of the bins and toss the trash inside. The sound of crunching snow catches your attention and turn towards the sound just in time to get a snowball to the side of the face. A sharp pain soon follows making you grab your cheek with a small yelp. Grabbing the wad of snow, you immediately feel a small rock in the snow as well. Wiping off the melting snow and looking up at the kids with an expression of annoyance on your face, you notice there laughter quickly died down, quickly followed by them running away in fright.

A frustrated sigh escapes your lips as you shut the lids. “That really hurt! I wish they would have more common sense to not wad up rocks into the snow like that…” Although you knew the reason, you still could not really get angry with the children.

Finishing up and locking the back door, you head around the building and start heading home. The cold snow and the breeze made the feeling in your cheek disappear. However, the feeling was starting to come back and you could feel some pain. Touching your face, you find the swollen area and a small cut in the middle. Pulling back your hand, you see evidence of blood. Ignoring the pain, you continue to head home. On your way, you notice a few ponies in the street laughing together. As you get closer, you also notice they were pointing at another who seemed to be sitting on the ground. As you got closer, you hear them say stuff like “Watch where you are going, wall-eyes.” In addition to, “Why don’t you watch where you’re going, Derpy.”

“Derpy?” You thought to yourself before quickening your pace to see what had been going on.

Sure enough when you got closer, you can see whom they are teasing. The site makes your blood start to boil.

“Hey, back off!” You shout.

One of the younger stallions turned around saying. “Who’s going to make us?” However, upon turning around and seeing who it was he nudged the others and yelled out “Run away!” before bolting with the other three.

Running up to her and looking at her you can see she was teary eyed, as she slowly looked up at you a smile spread across her face. Looking at her with concern, you offer your hand to help her up which she happily took. You patiently wait as she brushes herself off.

“Are you okay?” You ask in concern.

“Yeah I am, thanks to you.” Derpy smiles widely at you causing a smile to appear on your face as well.

“What happened? Why were they poking fun at you?” You asked curiously.

“I bumped into them while I wasn’t paying attention. It wasn’t their fault though.” She stated, trying to smile.

“Either way, they should not have made fun of you. That’s wrong and they should know better.” You could feel the irritation building. It didn’t help that the kids hitting you with a rock earlier was still on your mind.

Derpy looked at you and was about to say something when she finally noticed the mark on your cheek.

“What happened to your cheek?” She asks.

“Oh, well a few kids got the bright idea to hide a rock in a snowball and threw it at me. But don’t worry about it, nothing a Band-Aid won’t fix.” You say nonchalantly trying to brush it off as nothing.

“I guess we both had our rough days huh?” Derpy looks at you sadly.

“Yeah, I guess so.” You say, trying to avoid the subject.

“Hey, let’s go back to your place to get something for your cheek. I was going to head there anyway and wait on you.” She then tugs on your arm and starts dragging you off to your house before you could protest.

Ten minutes had passed as you and Derpy arrived at your house.

“Okay, where do you keep the first aid kit?” She asked as she shut the door behind her.

“It is in the drawer over there.” You point to an old dresser.

“You sure have a lot of old furniture.” She said as she walked over to the dresser to get the first aid kit.

“Yeah, I didn’t start off with a lot of bits obviously. So I had to get what I could.” Walking to the kitchen, you grab a couple of glasses and place them on the counter.

“Found them!” Derpy yelled and shut the drawer. As she walks back to the kitchen and is about to place the kit on the counter she trips, stumbling into you. Luckily, you catch her and the kit just in time.

“Careful! I’m glad I caught you.” You watch her fall into you

“Sorry, that always happens to me... Because I am slightly cross eyed, I can get tripped up easily.” She trailed off, looking away from you.

“There’s nothing to be embarrassed about. We all have those moments.” You say, trying to brighten her mood.

“Yeah I know, but not as bad as me. I sometimes wish my eyes were like normal mares’ and stallions’, but they are not.”

“What do you mean? There is nothing wrong with your eyes. They’re beautiful just the way they are.” You say, trying to encourage her.

Derpy then looks up at you slightly shocked at your words, a slight blush forming on her cheeks before pulling away and shyly looking away from you.

You begin to second-guess your choice of words; you were only trying to cheer her up after all.

However, before you could speak she interrupts you.

“Thank you, no one has ever complimented my eyes before. It made me feel really happy.” Derpy smiles widely at you while her tail swishes back and forth.

You sigh to yourself, relieved that she is okay.

“Okay! Now time to patch up that injury of yours.” She then tells you to hold still as she opens the kit, gets out a Band-Aid and ointment, and as delicately as she can, rubs the cut with said ointment and places the Band-Aid over the cut.

“There, all fixed up. I’ll go ahead and put the first aid kit back.”

“Thank you; what do you want to drink?” You say opening the fridge.

“Oh um, do you have any Apple Cider?” She asks as she put the kit back and headed back to the kitchen.

“Sure, I’ve got some.” You pour a glass for you both and hand her the glass before picking up your own.

“Oh I know! Can we also bake muffins? I can help you make them!” Derpy looks at you, excitement in her voice.

“Sure, if you really want to. I take it you like muffins a lot?” you ask as you set your glass on the counter then move over to the cupboard to look for ingredients.

”Yep, I really love them. I make them all the time. Though I may not look like it; I’m a fairly good cook.” She proclaims just before taking a big gulp of her cider.

“Sounds like fun. What type do you want to make?” Derpy looks at you for a few seconds then walks over to your fridge and looks inside.

She searched for a few minutes before she spotted something she liked. “Peanut butter muffins are really good.”

“I’ve never made those before, I don’t mind.” Grabbing a muffin pan, you place it on the counter and gather everything you need.

“Okay, I’ll cook them then. You can be my helper so I can teach you!” She says as her wings start twitching with excitement.

After a few minutes of preparations and occasional goofing off, Derpy finishes the mix, pours the mixture into a muffin pan, and pops it into the oven.

Derpy tosses the mitten she is using and leans against the counter.

“Hey, I have a question I’ve been curious about. What was your previous life like?

You look at her unsure of what she meant before it finally clicked.

“Oh, you mean back on my earth. Well it was not much different from this life. Everyone at some point always messed with me. It never really bothered me though. I had a few friends that occasionally hung around me, but they were not all the close to me. It was somewhat boring but it was comfortable at least. Then I came here and although most see me as an outsider, I still like it here because it is fun and there are many different things going on.”

“Wow, I was expecting something different. So you lived just like we do?” Derpy said, leaning in, curiosity getting the better of her.

“Well not really. We cannot control the weather. In addition, we do not have magic. We can fly, just not like you do.” You explain.

“Oh I see. That must be tough to not have magic and no ability to control weather.” Derpy says as she goes to check on the muffins.

“Yeah, but we got used to it. So, are they done?” You could smell them as soon as she opened the door. A strong aroma hit you instantly, making you start salivating.”

“Yep! They are cooked to perfection.” Derpy then grabs the same mitts, pulls the pan out of the oven, and places it on the counter. You help by grabbing a plate to put them on as she gently takes them out one by one.

You both sit and chat while waiting for them to cool down; taking turns asking questions about each other. A few minutes had passed and your stomach could not wait anymore and grab one of the muffins.

As you bite into it, you are almost overwhelmed with flavor and the texture of the lump of bread in your hand.

Hey, these are amazing! They’re cooked perfectly!” You say though bites.

“Aw, thanks, I’m glad you like them. She then grabs one of her own and starts devouring it.

After an afternoon of muffins, chatting and getting to know one another some more, Derpy decides she has to leave to do a few things. As she is about to leave she stops and turns and calls out to you.

“Also, since it is the weekend in a few days I was wondering if you would you want to help me. I have a lot of stuff to do and I could really use the help.” She begs.

“Yeah, not like I have plans anyway. I’d be happy to.” You say, reassuring her.

She smiles at response. “Okay then, also the rest of my week will be busy for me so I won’t be able to spend as much time with you, but I will try.”

“Sure, you can come by whenever you want; I don’t mind.” You say as she left for the door.

“Okay, thanks again!” She waved goodbye and left.

You spent the rest of the afternoon doing some reading and other things to pass the time. You never really plan ahead of time on most occasions anyway. When it came time for you to hit the hay, you decide to clean up a bit and brush your teeth before heading off to bed thinking of what stuff Derpy might have in mind for the weekend.

The rest of the week passed by like normal, luckily Derpy was still able to come over even if it was only for a little bit. However, you were happy that she still came no matter what.

The weekend eventually came as the early morning light crept over the horizon. Light poured in through the window in your room as you wrap yourself up comfortably in the thick blanket to escape the morning chill. Eventually, the light became too much for you to bear making you pull the blankets over your head trying to shield yourself from the blinding rays. Though you managed to start dozing back off under the warmth, a faint sound in the distance would not allow that. You could hear the noise getting louder. After a couple minutes, it finally hits your sleepy brain what the noise is, someone is knocking on the door. You grudgingly pull the covers away from your body and crawl out of bed.

Slowly, you make your way to the front door and slowly open the door. “Hello?” You say in a drowsy voice.

Derpy appears on the other side of the door looking at you in shock; her wings twitched from your sudden appearance. She pauses, her eyes not focusing on yours; they seemed to trail slowly downward.

She quickly looks away. “Oh um, Hey, I know it’s a little early to come by but I wanted to get done with everything as early as possible. Sorry to show up out of nowhere like this.” Derpy stuttered as a light blush appears on her cheeks.

At first, you could not understand why Derpy was acting that way. However, I cold breeze make you realize why she did not want to look directly at you.

You had forgotten that you always slept with nothing but underwear on as it was the most comfortable for you.

“Crap!” You instantly hid behind the door.

“Sorry, I wasn’t thinking! I just got up.” You stutter out, peeked around the door.

“Oh no, it’s okay, these things happen. Derpy nervously tries to diffuse the awkward state of the situation.

“Anyway wait in the living room while I take care of a few things. I shouldn’t be too long. Sorry that you had to see me like that.” You hang your head slightly.

“No its okay I promise! Anyway I don’t mind waiting, take all the time you need.”

“Alright, give me a second before coming in.” You take off running through the house to make it to your room where you then proceed to gather clean clothing and hop in the shower to wash up.

Ten minutes passes by the time you finished showering. You quickly threw on your clothing and shoes and headed back into the living room.

You notice Derpy sitting in your reading chair humming a tune, having her eyes closed and letting the sun’s rays warm her from the window next to her.

You cannot help but smile at the scene before your eyes. She was completely calm and relaxed even though you had a rather embarrassing encounter with her. You really enjoy her carefree attitude and positive outlook on life. It makes being around her that much more enjoyable, not to mention her being fun to have around helps as well.

“Hey, you ready to go?” She opens her eyes and sees you standing near the front of the living room.

“Oh sure, but aren’t you going to eat anything first?” She asked

“Nah, If I get hungry I can always get something in town. By the way, what are we doing today anyway?” You ask, curiosity getting the better of you.

“Oh right, well It wasn’t anything interesting. It is just that this time what I need to do would be too hard for one mare to handle. You see, I need to do some shopping for a get together my dad is planning, but I cannot carry everything on my own.” She hops off the chair and walks over to you.

“So you want my help by carrying everything. Sound like it will be a blast.” You say in a monotone voice; acting depressed.

“No I didn’t mean it like that!” She looks up at you with a hint of sadness in her eyes and a hurt expression.

“Hey I was just kidding, I don’t mind following you around at all.” Derpy gives you a look of annoyance before sticking her tongue at you while heading for the door.

“Hey, I was joking, I swear!” You follow her, throwing on your coat and quickly bundling it up before closing the door behind you.

Chapter 2
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A Bubbly Hearth's Warming Eve

Chapter 2

“So, what all do we need?” You ask, trying to stir up some small talk.

“Well we need drinks, cake and cookie mix, sugar, as well as some other things.

Ah I see, well that does not sound too bad. I was expecting to do some heavy lifting.” You say, relieved.

“Oh I almost forgot I have presents to buy as well!” Derpy says excitedly.

“Well I guess that figures. I should learn not to open my big mouth. I wonder who she is getting presents for though.” You curiously thought to yourself letting your gaze drift over to her.

You could not help but think of how cute she looked when she smiled. Her mane seems soft and its bright sunny color adds to her brilliance. A smile creeps across your face as you thought about how much her bubbly personality seems to rub off onto you. She is fun to be around all the time. You could almost say it was past admiration that you feel for her. However, it seemed wrong to jump that far ahead. Besides, that love at first sight thing seems cheesy to you anyway.

Lost in thought, you did not realize Derpy had caught you staring at her.

“What’s wrong? Is there something on my face? Why are you smiling like that?” She asks as she pokes you, gaining you attention.

“Oh uh, It’s nothing; don’t worry about it. You smile awkwardly and look away.

She looks over at you curiously for a moment before shrugging it off.

You both arrive at the market place soon enough. It was a buzz with open market stalls and mares and stallions of all sizes buying and selling goods.

“There is a sale going on today and I wanted to take advantage of it while I could.” She says as she walks up to the first stall to grab some fruit.

Shopping and hanging out together took up a lot of the day. You have both hands full of bagged goods by the end of it. After an hour or so of carrying everything your arms were beat, it was all you could do to hold them up.

“Hey, my arms are killing me; mind if we rest somewhere?” You ask after readjusting your arms.

“Sure, I am getting hungry anyway. Let’s go to the restaurant over there and get some food. We’ll also be able to sit out on those tables and relax!” Derpy points over at the building on the other side and starts walking towards it.

You both sit at the nearest table and set everything down next to it giving your arms instant relief. You both wait patiently for a moment until a waiter walks out of the building and greeted the both of you in a cheerful voice.

“Hello, what can I get for you two this afternoon?” The waiter said getting out a quill and paper.

“I want a sandwich with everything on it and a chocolate muffin for dessert! Also, I would like some apple cider to drink please.” Derpy looks up at the waiter who nodded his head as he wrote it down.

The waiter glances over at you for a moment. “Ah yes, the human; I presume the usual?”

You nod you head confirming that the waiter was correct.

“Right, I shall have your food ready momentarily.” The waiter bowed his head and left for the building.

“I didn’t know you were a regular here.” Derpy said, slightly surprised.

“Oh yeah, I ate here a few times. Luckily they never turn down a paying customer.” You laugh slightly at your own comment.

You both continue talking until the waiter comes back with two plates and drinks.

“Here you are young lady and sir. Please enjoy your meal and call if you need anything.” The waiter then left you both to your own devices.

Derpy looks over at your plate and notices a plain lettuce and tomato sandwich with salted potato wedges cooked to perfection.

She looks at you and smiles mischievously. “Hey what’s that?” She points behind in the opposite direction causing you to turn and look to where she is pointing.

Derpy proceeds to grab a couple of the potato wedges and devours them just as you turned back around.

“Hey, don’t eat my food!” You shield your plate.

She swallows and spoke up. “But it’s so tasty! It’s your fault for ordering good food.” She laughed when you stuck your tongue out at her.

“Oh really? Then it is fair game if I do this!” You take a small piece of the muffin in your fingers before tearing a small piece off and popping it in your mouth.

Derpy proceeds to copy your earlier move and shields her plate from you.

“Hey that’s not fair! You know muffins are my favorite!” She childishly sticks her tongue out in your direction.

You laugh at her antics and start eating your lunch along with Derpy as she scarfs the chocolate chip muffin. Her tomboyish eating habits surprise at first, but it came as a pleasant one as it matches her personality well.

You engage in more small talk and laughter as you continue eating, occasionally playing with your food and making her laugh.

“I have to admit, even though it has only been a couple of weeks, I have really enjoyed your company. You make my days so much brighter when you are around. I guess what I am trying to say is, thank you for being my friend.” Derpy smiles sweetly at you, patiently awaiting your reply.

“Hey, I’ve said before that I am the one that needs to be thankful, not you. Before you came crashing into me I was starting to get depressed about all the negativity around me every day. Therefore, if anything Derpy, I should thank you for becoming my friend. You will always be precious to me.” A gentle and genuine smile appears on your face.

Derpy, slightly taken aback by your endearing words, found her breath hitched in her throat. However, right before she could form any words she saw something flash in her peripherals. She just managed to turn her head and say your name as a rubber ball bounced against your head and rolled a few feet away.

“As you looked around you noticed a little filly standing a few yards away from you. She had noticed that her ball hit you and it made her scared to come near you. You stand up and grab the ball lying on the ground. Slowly, you made your way to her with the ball in hand. The little filly looked at you curiously.

As you knelt down next to her at her level you ask, “You lose your ball?” handing it back to her with a smile.

“Thanks mister!” The little filly smiled back.

Derpy, still sitting at the table smiled as she watched the scene. “He is so kind hearted and sweet. I wonder if he ever had a special somepony...” She quickly snapped herself out of those thoughts.

“What was with that? He is only a friend you silly filly. Nothing more than a good friend, right?” Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard an “Eep!” come over by where you are.

The little filly had turned to run off after thanking you but then she bumped into someone and got knocked down.

“Hey watch where you’re running squirt!” A stallion said. He had a wood brown coat with a jacket and pants on. He is a little taller then you are, but not by much.

“Hey, don’t say that. It was a simple mistake. You could at least help her up.” You say as you walk up to the little filly and help her up.

“What does it matter to a freak like you? Go crawl under a rock or whatever.” He scoffs.

You look him dead on in the eyes. “Big talk coming from a stallion that bullies little fillies. Shouldn’t you have something less annoying to do?” You say in defense.

“What’d you say to me loser?” He walks up to you threateningly.

Just then, Derpy trots in from behind you and tugs on your arm. “It’s not worth it. Come on, it’s okay.”

“Oh this is rich, the freak and the wall eyes together like a couple. Isn’t that a cute sight?” He laughs as Derpy looks down at the ground, her eyes showing the sadness that you hate seeing.

Your anger peaked at the end of his sentence. “Shut your worthless face! You don’t even know her so how can you say that in the first place!?” You say, anger seething out in every word as you grab the stallion’s jacket.

“Hey you punk, get off me!” The stallion rips away from you and proceeds to throw a punch at you.

However, you easily dodge to the left, grabbing his arm and bringing his center of gravity to his torso as you pull him downward and making him flip over himself landing on his back.

The stallion getting the breath knocked out of him began to cough and breathe erratically.

“Now leave us alone and watch the way you speak about my friend.” You stay turning to leave, Derpy turning to follow you.

However, the stallion crawls to his hooves, and brushes off the snow clinging to his clothing and fur. He shouts, causing you to turn around just as he swings again to blind side you. It appears as though it was about to hit you when a hand came from behind your shoulder and caught the incoming fist. Both you and the stallion were so surprised you both simultaneously look over your shoulder to see the waiter that originally served you and Derpy has intervened.

“Excuse me, but fighting is prohibited on the property. Therefore, if you do not wish for me to call the guards you will vacate the premises immediately.” The waiter says to the stallion in front of you.

"Tsk, I won't forget this and you will pay for it!" He runs off leaving you, Derpy and the waiter standing there.

“Thanks, sorry to cause you trouble.” You simply say

“I saw the whole thing, don’t worry. He was clearly out of line and you were merely defending yourself and your marefriend here.” He said as he started to walk back.

“Yeah I guess you have a-Wait a minute she isn’t my marefriend!” You blurt out, blushing brightly.

“Oh? If you say so, though you seem very close to her compared any of the other mares you talk to; but that’s just my observation.” The waiter states as he shrugs

You glance over at Derpy who was looking away from you. It was obvious she was embarrassed at the accusation as well.

After you and Derpy finish your lunch you headed inside and paid for both of your meals; though Derpy complained that you did not have to do so. After bidding the waiter a good day, you head back out and grab most the bags.

You both then proceed to start heading back to her house.

“Where did you learn to fight like that?” She asks curiously.

“In my old life I got into a lot of fights and learnt how to defend myself.” You explain.

Derpy seems lost in thought through the rest of the trip. After about several minutes you eventually make it to her house. It is a decent sized, Two-story house with wood brown coloration on the outside. As you and Derpy walk inside, a wave of heat contacts you. It is quite warm inside the house. Most likely, someone has been keeping the fire going all day. She leads you to her kitchen and tells you to put the stuff on the table. You do as she asks and place them gently on the table. She then asks to help put them away. It only takes a few questions of what goes where before you finished putting them all away.

“Well this was an eventful day. What do you have planned for the rest of the day? You ask nonchalantly.

“Oh, well I was going to hang around the house for a little while before starting with the preparations. It will probably be too late to do much afterwards.” Derpy states

“Alright then, I wasn’t planning much myself. I’ll probably head home and relax.”

“That’s good; maybe not try to pick fights with everyone.” Derpy teases.

“I didn’t start it, he did.” You whine.

“I know he did. I was only teasing.” She sticks her tongue at you and giggles.

You simply roll your eyes and chuckle at her. You both suddenly hear movement coming from another room.

“Derpy, you home?” said the voice; it was deep male voice.

“Yeah Dad, I’m in the kitchen with my friend!” Derpy yelled

The hoofsteps got louder as he approaches the kitchen. He was a couple of inches taller then you and had dark brown fur with plain shirt and pants on. He immediately smiled when he saw Derpy. However, when he turned to see you his smile disappeared quickly.

“Derpy, I told you not to bring boys over; even worse you bring the human? What will everyone think of you?” The father said.

“Dad! You should not say that! He is a good friend!” Derpy yelled out of shock.

“Sweet Heart, I am only trying to look out for you. If you hang around this human you will start getting teased again.” Derpy’s father said in a low voice.

“I don’t care about that. He is a good friend of mine!” She raises her voice in anger.

Just before the father could say anything, you spoke up “Derpy, it’s okay. He is only worried about you and being a good father.” You say trying to calm her down, her dad looking at you in silence.

“But!-” Derpy tries to interject but you simply shake your head and smile at her.

“It is fine, don’t worry about it!” You smile widely.

The father sighs to himself before speaking. “If you understand then please leave. I wish to speak with my daughter.” He said looking at you sternly.

“Sure, I am sorry to cause you any problems.” With that, you turn and head towards the door.

Before you open the door, you hear Derpy yell out something followed by quick hoofsteps heading upstairs.

You sigh to yourself before closing the door behind you and head for your house.

After a little while, you eventually made it to your house. Unlocking the door, you open then shut the door behind you. The coat you had on now rested on the floor next to the coat rack. The day started great, but of course, it ended on a sour note. Why did that have to happen? You decide it best not to think that way as you headed off to your room to relax and find something to take your mind off it.

Hours pass by as you lie on your bed while reading a couple of books and eat dinner. It was too bad you could not be with Derpy right now. At least then, you would have something to do. Another couple of hours past as you put away the book you were reading. You figure it was late enough to go to bed early without messing with your schedule much. You head into the kitchen and wash the plate you used to eat dinner.

All of a sudden, you hear a knock on your door.

“What the? It is a little late for anyone to come over. You wonder if it is Derpy. Maybe she came over after the party.” You thought to yourself as you headed for the door.

You open the door to see Derpy on the other side looking down. At first, you smiled until she looked up at you. Her eyes, reddened from tears and her cheek seemed swollen slightly. You immediately become concerned.

“Hey are you alright?” You ask, moving out of her way so she could walk inside.

Derpy immediately hugs you and buries her face into your chest. After shutting the door, you hug her tightly back making sure to be gentle with her wings, unsure of what to do or say.

She stays like that for a minute before slowly pulling away from you.

“Thanks, I needed that.” She says, wiping a tear from her eye.

“What happened?” You ask again.

“Can we sit somewhere first?” You nod and walk over to a small two-person chair and waited for her to situate herself.

She takes a deep breath and starts explaining everything that happened.

“So let me get this straight, your dad got drunk at the party and ended up arguing over me again after everyone left. Then he ended up getting angry at you and he hit you?” You say, a shocked expression appearing on your face.

“Yeah, I know he didn’t mean it and he tried to apologize but I was so upset that I just ran out the door and flew here.” She took another deep breath after explaining.

“But still he shouldn’t have done that!” Frustration shows in your face as you go over what she said in your head.

“I know, I’m just-” Derpy stops mid-sentence to wipe tears from her eyes.

“I’m sorry, I was just frustrated. I didn’t mean to raise my voice.” You wrap an arm around her shoulders and pull her close, letting her rest her head on your chest.

“No it’s okay; I understand why you would get upset… Thank you for being so great to me.” She then scoots closer to you to get comfortable.

“It’s no big deal; I know you would do the same.” You smile at her as she smiles back and nuzzles slightly into your chest.

You proceed to stroke her shoulder lightly with your thumb. You start to realize how soft her fur is against your skin. Not to mention how close she is right now. You can feel her breath lightly blow against your shirt as she rested on you. Not that you complained at all though. The velvety feel to her fur makes you continue running your thumb through it, lost in thought.

She starts giggling softly and squirming under your arm. “Stop that, it tickles!” she said through her laughter.

“Uh sorry, I didn’t mean to!” You blush, removing your hand away.

She giggles more. “It’s okay, it cheered me up.” She nuzzles into you more.

“So uh, anything you want to talk about?” You stutter, earning you another giggle from Derpy.

Derpy thought to herself for a few minutes before looking up at you. “Well, there was a few interesting things that happened. Do you want to hear about it?” She asks you.

“Sure, we can talk about anything you want.” You smile down at her.

Derpy begins explaining what happened before in incident with her father. How one mare got a little to tipsy and tripped over the table leg and knocked the punch bowl off onto someone else. You begin to laugh as she tells the story and you both continue telling each other stories about funny events that has happened to each of you in the past.

Roughly, an hour had passed since Derpy came over and it was around ten at night. She had talked herself to sleep on your arm. Her light snoring was proof of that. You decide it was best not to wake her, so being as careful as possible, you stand up and slowly pick her up bridal style; making sure she did not wake up. Her head had found its way under your chin. She began to start drooling on you slightly which made you chuckle softly.

Carrying her, you weave and dodge objects, careful not to bump her and wake her. You get to your room, carefully lay her on your bed, cover her up, and tuck her in.

“Good night Derpy.” You say softly. You go to turn around and walk away when all of a sudden you feel something grab hold of your hand.

Turning around, you see she was focused on your hand; then slowly travel up to your eyes.

Derpy is blushing slightly, her eyes avert away from yours as she opens her mouth to say something only to close it again.

“What’s wrong?” A confused expression appears on your face.

“Well, I don’t want to be alone because I will start thinking about what happened. Could you please stay here with me?” Derpy’s blush got brighter as she looks directly into your eyes.

You can tell by her eyes she was being serious but that did not make it any easier for you. Her eyes begged you to stay by her side. You sigh to yourself knowing there was no way you could say no to her even if you wanted to.

“Sure, I’ll stay with you all night if you want.” You turn to blow out the candle that was lighting up the room. Now the only light in the room was from the window that let in moon light. As you head around to the other side of the bed, you start to take off your shirt but stop yourself immediately. Out of habit, you started undressing in front of Derpy.

“If you’re worried about getting comfortable don’t worry. It’s not like I can really see you.” Derpy says nonchalantly.

Slowly, you slide your shirt and pants off then toss them aside. Luckily, your boxers were just like shorts on you so you felt a little more comfortable about it. Hopping into bed, you cover yourself up and use an extra pillow you had to rest your head on.

Derpy turns to face and smile at you; the moonlight reflecting off her eyes make you think just how beautiful her eyes really were. You quickly shake your head of the thought.

“Um, good night Derpy, wake me if you need anything.” You stutter as you close your eyes.

She giggles at your actions. “Thank you; you don’t know how happy I am that you are here with me right now.” She says your name sweetly making your heart skip a beat.

“Don’t worry about it. I would do anything for you.” You see her eyes widen at your words as you silently curse yourself for letting something like that slip.

You panic a little and lift yourself from the pillow. “I didn’t mean it like that I was trying to say…” You trail off trying to think of something to say to her.

“It’s okay, I know what you mean.” Derpy blushes more as your words still dance in her mind.

“Uh anyway, if you need me feel free to wake me, okay?” You see her nod in response and decide to close your eyes and try to fall asleep.

Chapter 3
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A Bubbly Hearth's Warming Eve

Chapter 3

Bright sunrays flowed through the window, bathing your entire room in light. Slowly, you wake, letting your senses come around. You still have your eyes closed, not wanting to get out of bed so soon.

You feel warmer than you usually did when you wake up, even with the blanket currently wrapping itself around you. You soon realize however, you were hugging something soft and warm. Slowly you open your eyes, trying to focus. The image that comes into focus makes you nearly jump out of bed. You are not sure if your brain is playing tricks or not. Derpy’s mane slightly tickles your nose as you move your head around.

Somehow, you managed to intertwine yourself with Derpy at some point.

One arm hugs her stomach just below her chest while the other rests on her stomach. You could feel the warmth radiating from her body. Her shirt rose up just past her stomach. One of your hands was resting near her belly button. Subconsciously, you run your fingers through her soft fur feeling its velvet like softness caress your hand earning a soft moan from Derpy as she slept next to you.

You have to force yourself from continuing. Another thing you notice is how you could feel her tail wrapped around your waist as well as her legs also intertwined with yours. You have to admit to yourself that you loved how her fur felt against your legs as well.

“Wait, fur? Does that mean…” You mind trails off as her legs shift in between yours conforming your suspicions.

“Why is she not wearing the pajamas she wore over!?” You panic, unsure of what to do with the situation you are in. Derpy cuddling up next to you confuses you quite a bit but not as much as, to why she stripped half her clothing off. You can feel your face getting redder and redder as you think of different reasons and the fact that she is now just in her panties and shirt doesn't help. She begins to move around again, you can start to guess why you are in this situation now considering how much she likes to toss and turn. All of a sudden, she scoots closer to you, bringing your already close proximity even closer still. Her body seemed to fit perfectly into yours. However, your arm also moves with her. You can feel two soft mounds press against your arm. Almost immediately, you realize what they were.

“Derpy isn’t wearing a bra either?” You blush deepens at the thought. The softness of them almost drives you crazy. All this sensation from her touch has started getting you a little stiff in between your legs. You try your best to control it, but it is in vain. You have never had any kind of close encounters with the opposite sex before so being a little sensitive to it was inevitable.

You try to hide your stiffening member as much as possible. However, Derpy presses her butt into your hips adding to the sensation. The only thing you can hope for at this point is that she does not wake up. It would be very awkward to explain why a certain part of you was pressing against her. Trying your best to scoot away, you find that you are already as far as you could go. You are about to give up when she pulls away from you.

“ Oh no, did she notice?” You though as she started to turn around. However, your worries eased up as you notice she was still asleep. Although now she was literally, face to face with you. You feel her breath gently brush against your face as she rests her head on your pillow. Scanning her face, you can see her peaceful expression as she sleeps next to you. This makes you smile as you stare at her. She is smiling slightly as well which made a warm feeling come over you. Your eyes venture down to her parted lips.

For a moment, you thought of what it would be like to kiss her. You blush like mad when you realize what you are thinking. You are so close to her you cannot even think straight. However, could you do it? Your heart starts to beat faster as you ran the thought through your head. For some reason you really want to. You lean in closer, your chest tightening. Her lips were mere inches away from yours, the urge to kiss her even more present as you look at her sleeping form.

“Your eyes slowly close as you inch closer. Now mere centimeters away, you felt her breath brush against your lips. All of a sudden, you hear a soft groan escape her lips followed by your name. Upon hearing your name, snaps you out of the trance.

“What was I just about to do?” you thought to yourself.

“I was going to really kiss her… Why am I reacting like this now? Or maybe I’m just realizing my feelings.” You sigh to yourself and risking waking her, you knew you needed to get up and out of bed. You figure a shower would help you ease your mind. Carefully you managed to get out of bed without waking her. Although you still feel the need to hide your stiffening spire as you rush to grab some cloths and head into the shower.

You let all your thoughts drain away under the warm water as it rushes down your body. It felt great to have such a relaxing shower after that incident. As you wash your hair, you hear the bathroom door swing open and Derpy yell out. “I have to pee I have to pee!” followed by a sigh of relief almost immediately afterwards.

You pause for a moment before speaking. “Uh Derpy, you know I’m in here, right?”

“Yeah, but I reeeeally had to go and I knew you were in the shower and wouldn’t try to peek.” She slowly sat up.

“Okay fine just don’t flush-“ However, before you could finish your sentence you hear the sound of a toilet flushing and only seconds later a blast of incredibly hot water hits you causing you to scream out loud.

In a sheepish tone, you hear Derpy say. “Oops, my bad.”

~*~*~

After about twenty minutes of embarrassing moments and apologies later, you manage to finish showering and get dressed.

“I’m really really sorry, I did it without thinking. Derpy frantically pleads.

“I get it, its fine.” Your face reddened at the thought.

“Anyone would have jumped out of the shower if that happened. Derpy states reassuringly.

“Okay!”

“I didn’t see all that much either.” Her face reddens

“Okay I get it!”

“But what I did see... Is that average for your kind?”

You spew water back into your glass. “Derpy!”

“Okay okay, I was just trying to lighten the mood.” Derpy awkwardly rubs her arm and looks away.

“I know, I just didn’t expect… that to happen.” You sigh heavily.

“It is okay, I can handle seeing someone naked.” She smiles at you.

“It’s just that, you are the first girl to see me naked at all. I just didn’t know how to act.” You chuckle nervously trying to lighten the mood further.

“Anyway, I should head home. Would you mind walking me please?” Derpy asks attempting to change the subject.

“I’m sure your father will get upset seeing me anywhere near you and I don’t want anything to happen to you.” You say, concerned.

“I’m sure it will be fine. Besides, it won’t be as awkward if you’re there with me.” Derpy states

“Alright, if you need me to go I have no problem with it.” After tossing your glass in the sink and grabbing your coat, you head out with Derpy.

Birds chirping in the background and snow crunching at your feet were all you heard as you both were heading down the street. Looking over at Derpy, you notice she seems to be deep in thought as she stares ahead. You did the same despite being curious about it but you thought it best not to bug her just in case.

After a few minutes, you allow your gaze to drift over to Derpy again. Her eyes seem not to focus on anything as you continue down the pathway. Her long blond hair gently blows in the wind as her eyes sparkle in the sunlight. You start to notice her eyes becoming slightly off center again as well. It was cute to see and you could not understand some of the others not seeing they are just one of the things that make her special, not to mention the beautiful shade of yellow makes it even more enticing to look into them. You really believe she is a beautiful mare and you are lucky she wants to be your friend. Her cheery nature, her goofy antics, her smile, her hair, her eyes all of it is perfect in your eyes. She is beautiful and has a great personality. You began to think about this morning, and everything that happened.

The feel of her fur felt amazing against your skin. Her hair was very fluffy and had a nice smell to it. Cuddled up to her felt amazing and you really did not want that feeling to go away at all. Then came the last part; you truly wanted to kiss her. Her soft looking lips enticed you and the look on her face made your heart dance as she lay sleeping on your pillow mere inches from your face. The more you thought about it the more you felt butterflies in the pit of your stomach. You felt yourself becoming nervous as you repeatedly thought about kissing her.

“Why am I feeling these feelings now?” You thought to yourself as you think about all the events since you first met Derpy.

“No, I felt this way from the beginning. It just wasn’t as strong as it is now.” You conclude, finally acknowledging everything.

Of course, acknowledging it does not help you much. You have no clue how Derpy will take it if you tell her. You continuously fight with yourself back and forth not sure of how you should handle the situation. You did not want it to get to the point where you accidentally blurt it out from bottling your feelings up. However, you were still afraid of her reaction and possibly losing her as a friend.

Through your internal fight, you failed to realize Derpy had been calling your name until she pokes you. You snap out of it and look over at her.

“Are you okay? You look like you are really worried about something.” Derpy stares worriedly at you.

“Oh, sorry I was just thinking about some things, no need to worry.” You smile trying to lessen her concern.

“But your eyes seem sad and I could hear you mumble something about losing something.” Derpy stops walking.

You think for a few moments trying to come up with an excuse.

“I was just thinking about if I lost one of my slippers last night. I hear tonight is going to get colder than usual.”

“Derpy looks into your eyes. “ You know you’re a bad liar right?”

Your heart skips a beat. “Uh, what do you mean?” You say with a nervous smile.

“Never mind, I trust you enough that you will tell me when it’s something really important. Just remember that I will always be here for you, okay?” She smiles sweetly.

You could feel the “butterfly in the pit of your stomach” feeling coming back; you quickly realize that will be one thing you will have a hard time hiding.

A light blush appears on your face. “Thanks, I promise I’ll tell you soon.” A small smile forms on your face as well.

“I know you will. So stop being so mopey.” Without warning, Derpy leans into you looks up at you.

Your blush intensifies as you stare into her eyes again.

“What’s the matter, are you sure you’re not sick or something? Your face has been turning red a lot, especially since our walk.”

“Yes I’m fine, don’t worry about it!” You start walking faster.

“Hey slow down, what’s wrong?” She asks chasing after you.

Nothing I said!” You walk a little faster.

“Hey you’re going to hit that-“She was cut off by a loud ‘SMACK’ following by you stumbling backwards from a street light, grunting in pain.

After Derpy runs up to check on you to make sure you were okay, she notices the red marking on your forehead and starts laughing.

“I’m sorry, but it looks funny!” She stated through laughter.

You simply rub your forehead waiting for her to calm down.

“You sure you’re okay?” She asks again.

“Yeah I’m fine; my pride hurts more than my head does.” You smile back at Her.

“That’s good.” She simply says as you both continue down the pathway.

Both of you make it to her house not long after that. She takes a deep sigh before walking up to the door and motioning to open it.

“Huh? It’s locked?” Derpy proceeds to knock.

A few moments later, the door slowly opened to find a shocked stallion standing in the doorway.

“Derpy!” Her father rushes to hug her, thrilled to see her.

“I am so sorry about what happened. I do not deserve forgiveness for it and can understand if you do not want to be near me. However, I’m just beyond relieved to see you are alright.” Her father hugged her tighter.

“It’s alright Dad, I forgave you immediately, and I was just emotional from the fight before.” Derpy hugs her father back.

The father looks at you for a moment. You look away expecting another insult.

“Thank you for looking after my daughter.” A shocked expression appears on your face. You did not expect it at all.

“I am happy to help.” You say back.

“So, I thought about everything. I was a bit harsh to say those things towards your friend. I will not object to you being around him.” Derpy’s eyes lit up at her father’s words.

“If that’s the case then you can also help with the play!” She exclaimed happily.

“A play? What play?” You looked at her confused.

“Oh right I almost forgot! Every year there is a special play that we normally hold at are neighboring town, Canterlot. However, this year we are having it here and everyone wants to make sure it goes well. However, the way things are going; they will not have everything set up in time. Therefore, they need all the help they can get. It will be a great way to show you are a great individual and not a bad guy.” Derpy explains hopeful to your answer.

You thought about it for a moment then look over at her father who simply smiles and nods. “Alright, I will try to.” Derpy smiles at your answer.

“Okay, they start everything early around eight in the morning. So be ready!” Derpy turns and heads inside after waving goodbye, followed by her father.

“Well I guess I will have to entertain myself for a while. I could always head into town and get my paycheck for the week.” You decide, as you head towards town.

~*~*~

An hour or so passed since you decided to do some minor shopping before heading home to relax. To your surprise, the stores were hardly full. A few ponies here and there but that is it. You buy what you need in no time at all and leave to head home. Your mind starts to drift back to the grey mare once again. You smile at the events that led up to today, saying you are happy is an understatement. However, the problem of your rapidly growing feelings towards her still festers in the back of your mind.

Some commotion brought you back to reality. Following the noise with your eyes, you notice the building you are walking by has a bunch of tables, chairs and what look like props for a play all over the place. Upon closer expectation, you also see a bunch of ponies inside setting up everything.

“Huh, I guess that’s the place Derpy was talking about. I wonder if it really will help in giving me a better reputation.” You thought to yourself as you walk past.

However, you immediately stop in your tracks after a thought crossed your mind. Seeing the building that is holding the play gave you an idea. Hearths Warming Eve is a holiday after all. You could get her a gift to show her how much she means to you.

Smiling to yourself and running back to the market district, you immediately start searching for a place that sold jewelry. One place stood out in particular; it seemed a bit fancy but you figure it would be a great place to browse. As you enter, the store clerk greets you with a friendly smile. Looking around, you notice the overall price range was a bit over the amount you can hope to pay. You then move to the clearance section in hopes of finding something. Your eyes immediately come across a small heart locket for sell. It is just in the price range and it would be something you think she would appreciate as well. After calling the store clerk over and having him take it from its case, he places it in s special box for you. He compliments you in taste and that he was sure your special marefriend would enjoy it. Of course, you say it was for a friend but he simply chuckles and wishes you a pleasant day.

After making it back to your house and walking inside. You immediately put away everything you bought, hang up your coat and took off your shoes. After making yourself lunch you head to you to the living room and grab a book off the shelf.

You look at the books title and read it aloud. “Dating Advice for beginners”

You proceed to open and read the book. However, the more you read, the more it just seems like a waste of time. Tossing the book on the coffee table, you decide to just eat, go read something else and think of a solution yourself.

“It’s not like I need help anyway. I will do it on my own.” You say to yourself.

Before you knew it, the day wastes away and night takes over. You figure it would be wise to go to bed early tonight to make sure you not tired for tomorrow. After heading to the bathroom and slipping into something comfortable, you crawl into bed and lay there for a few minutes before slowly falling into sleeps grasp.

The next morning, thanks to the extra hours of sleep, you manage to wake up earlier then you need to. After getting dressed, you head for the kitchen to make yourself a good breakfast. Eggs, toast and juice was always your preferred breakfast on any day when you were in no hurry. After you ate, you wash the dishes you ate on and decide to head over to Derpy’s house for once. You bundle up and lock the door behind you before heading to her house.

Snow is still thick on the ground as you head towards Derpy’s home. The snow crunching under your shoes let you know that winter was not close to over. You have taken a path many times; however, it is still peaceful and calm. As you make your way up to Derpy’s house, you hope her father did not answer. He still makes it awkward being near Derpy when he is around.

Knocking on the door, you wait patiently for someone to answer. After a moment, you hear hoof steps coming from the other side.

The door opens and you see Derpy standing in the doorway.

Slightly surprised by your arrival, she says. “What are you doing here so early?” She asks

“I had a few extra hours of sleep and thought I’d save you the trouble of coming over to my place.” You say with a smile.

“Oh, you didn’t have to do that, I like coming over to your house, but thank you. You can come in and wait while I get ready. It shouldn’t take too long.” She says as she invites you inside.

“You can wait in the living room. I’ll be right back.” She says as she ran back up stairs.

Doing as your told, you sit in the closest seat you come across and relax. About ten minutes pass and no sighs of Derpy at all. You thought about maybe roaming a bit to check out her house but quickly dismissed the idea as you saw her father walk into the room. Waving awkwardly, her father looks at you with an expressionless face.

“I was curious who was here.” Derpy’s father says.

“If you are still uncomfortable with me here I can leave, I’d rather no start trouble.” You say to Derpy’s father.

He sighs to himself. “Don’t worry about it. I was over reacting a bit when I saw you. I trust my daughter enough to pick whom she befriends and if she likes you then you cannot be that bad. Plus she talks about you so much I feel as though I know you enough, myself.” He said sitting in a chair opposite to you.

“I didn’t realize she talked about me so much.” You thought to yourself. It brought a smile to your face for some reason.

“She also told me how you protected her from those bullies the other day as well, thank you for that. Everyone teased Derpy a lot when she was young and she still gets into those types of situations even now. So to have a friend like you to help her means a lot to me.” Her father finished with a sip of coffee.

Slightly taken aback by his words, you could only play his words in your head. You only though Derpy getting picked on were only occasional happenings. The thought of why she was always visiting you a lot never really crossed your mind until now as well.

“At any rate, thank you for being there for my daughter, it has been some time since she had a good friend.” She said after the silence.

“I will always be there for her no matter what.” You simply state to her father

Receiving a satisfactory answer from you, he smiles and stands up. “Alright, that’s all I need to say, Derpy should be down soon.” He says as he left you there.

You sit there, thinking about everything he told you for a little while longer before you hear quick hoof steps coming down the stairs.

Derpy walks into the living room and smiles sheepishly at you. “Sorry, that took longer than expected.”

“Don’t worry about it. Are you ready to go?” You ask as you stand up.

“Yep, I am set whenever you are.” You start heading towards the door with Derpy following close behind. However, before you can leave, you hear a voice come from the kitchen area.

“Oh and about our little talk, that wasn’t an invite to date my daughter!” He shouted, causing yours and Derpy’s face to redden.

“Dad, don’t say stuff like that!” Derpy shouts as her wings shoot up, one almost hitting you.

You both leave her house. You try cooling down by not think about what her father blurted out. Must take one-step at a time either way.

Glancing over at Derpy, you can see she is also feeling awkward considering she is walking a few feet away from you. Derpy glances over at you and shortly catches your eyes before quickly turning her head away again, making you do the same. A few minutes of awkward silence follow suit and soon almost become too much to bear.

However, before you can say something, Derpy speaks up. “So, what were you and my dad talking about earlier?”

“Oh, it was nothing special really. He just wanted to chat.” You say in hopes to satisfy her curiosity.

“I don’t buy it, otherwise he wouldn’t have said anything about dating me, now tell me.” Derpy looks at you with a determined stare.

You sigh to yourself and give up. “I can never hide things from you for long can I? You see, he wanted to thank me for becoming your friend and apologize for before as well. He told me about how when you were young you had a bully problem and hoped I would stay good friends with you.” You glance over at Derpy who is smiling to herself, most likely from the knowledge of her father’s concern you figure.

“Oh okay then, that makes sense. My dad always worries about me. Still, he didn’t have to say, that.” She says as a small blush reappears on her cheeks.

You can guess what she means by that, making you blush as well. You feel what little confidence you have is slipping away.

The both of you finally arrive at the building after some awkward silence and glances at one another. As you and Derpy walk in the front door an older mare walks up to you both and greets you.

“Hello there, is this young man the one you were telling me about that was coming with you?” She asks.

“Yeah, it is. We are ready to help whenever needed.” Derpy says.

“Alright why don’t you help with carrying props onto the stage and Derpy here will help decorate.” She says, in which you both nod and follow the older mare as she shows you where to start.

Although it took some time, a few stallions actually approach to you and offer help when they notice you struggling. “Hey uh, is it true that you are that you’re not dangerous?”

You look at the stallion that asked that and shrug. “That’s something I think you have to see for yourself.”

The stallion looks at the others and shrugs. He offers his help again in which you gladly accept.

Derpy’s idea seemed to be working quite well, better than expected. Of course, you knew it would still take quite a bit longer to convince everyone else.

A few hours passed and lunchtime rolled around signaling everyone for lunch break. You ended up finding Derpy in the crowd who was also heading to lunch. You both talked about what all you had to do. Of course, Derpy had better stories to tell like always. Of course, when you told her about how the stallions from earlier helped you, she was excited by the news. Lunch quickly ended and you both headed back and began working again.

As the day winds down, you only have a few more boxes to carry over to the stage before you are done for the day. As you place the last box up on stage, you hear hoofsteps coming from behind you. You quickly turn around to see the Stallion from the other day that tried to pick a fight with you. In addition to a couple of others, you have not seen before.

“Well well well, what do we have here?” He said in a mocking tone.

“It’s the freak. Where’s wall eyes, isn’t she always around you?” The stallion asks.

“ Her name is Derpy, what do you want?” You ask him coldly.

“I just saw you here and was wondering why they let you in here. But hey, having you to do all the manual labor seems fitting.” He laughs as his other friends joined in.

“And I’m sure you have nothing better in your life then to try to provoke me am I right? After all, simple mindedness seems to be your strong suit.” You say mockingly back.

“What did you say to me, freak!?” He says, angrily glaring at you.

“You think you’re tough? Then fight me again. You got lucky last time and I promise you it will not happen again.” He states in a threatening voice.

“I have no reason to fight you again, now then if you would be so kind as to move, I would greatly appreciate it.” You say politely.

“I can just beat you into the ground now and call it good.” He says, walking closer to you.

However, the older mare that is in charge of the play appears and gives him a stern look, stopping his advance. “I will not have you starting a fight on this stage, if you are finished, please leave.” She says to the hostile stallion.

The stallion grunts in anger before walking passed you. However, as he does so he whispers into your ear. “I will get my revenge, just wait.” He said just before walking off, followed closely by his friends.

“Are you alright?” She asks.

“Yeah, don’t worry about it.” You say with a smile.

“Alright, well once you’re done you may leave as well. We really cut it close but the stage will be finished before the opening with time to spare. Oh, and don’t forget, the play will start at seven tonight!” She says before walking away.

It did not take long for you to finish everything. After setting up some of the props on stage, you take a few steps back and sigh with content at a job well done. As you stretched, you wonder what Derpy is up to right now and if she is close to finishing all she needs to do.

You figure you will hang around and look or her for a bit. Therefore, you walk around behind the stage, passing a few stallion and mares along the way. Shockingly enough, most of them are not shying away from you or avoiding you at all. It was strange to you to say the least. They greet you somewhat normally, though most seem like they are trying to be nice then anything.

Eventually you came across the dressing rooms for the play. You notice a few racks with various dresses and costumes hanging on them. They look like medieval clothing to you, from peasant cloths to royalty. You start hearing commotion coming from one of the rooms in front of you.

All of a sudden the door opens up and you see a couple of mares as well as Derpy herself come out of the room. Derpy was talking normally to the other to as she walks out. You notice she is wearing a very elegant dress, light blue in color with white frills lining the dress with different designs around the stomach and arm areas. She looks stunning in the dress as well. You cannot seem to be able to look away from her. Derpy looks ahead and notices you looking at her.

“Hey, what are you doing back here?” She asks.

You shake your head slightly and refocus. “Oh, I was finished with everything and was given permission to leave so I wanted to see what you were up to before I did.”

“Oh well I am done, I was just helping with some extra stuff.” She looks away for a moment.

“She helped a lot actually, we needed a model and it worked out pretty well.” One of the others states.

“Besides, doesn’t she look stunning in this dress?” The other one asks.

“Uh, yeah I suppose she looks very stunning.” You say, rubbing the back of your head.

Derpy looks away, slightly blushing. The two mares smirked at both of your reactions.

“You suppose? What do you mean you suppose? One of the mares asks.

“You should be straight forward with your answer.” The other mare said.

“Guys, leave it alone, its fine.” Derpy blushes more.

“Fine, she looks very stunning in the dress.” You say, a small blush appearing on your face as well making the two mares giggle as Derpy’s blush intensifies.

“Anyway, let me go change and we will head out.” Derpy says, stuttering a little.

A few minutes later, she comes back out of the dressing room in her normal clothing.

“Okay, I’m ready.” She says to you as she starts to leave.

“Maybe I shouldn’t have said that.” You thought to yourself as you follow her out the door.

A silent trip later, you both make it to her house first.

“Um, I was wondering.” Derpy suddenly said as she stopped in front of her house.

“Yeah?” You are curious to what she was going to ask.

“Well, I know you have never been to a Hearths Warming Eve play before and I don’t want you to be confused about what’s going on. So if you want to, will you want to go with me? Just to go and watch the play of course.” Derpy asks as she stands there awkwardly.

You felt your heart skip a beat. You were not sure what to say to that. You quickly try to calm down.

“Sure, of course I don’t mind Derpy, we are friends after all.” You try to sound as calm and collect as possible.

She smiles upon hearing your answer. “Okay then, make sure you’re ready before seven. See you soon!” she says excitedly.

You wave goodbye and head home, your mind swimming in emotion and thoughts. You make it home, rush to your room, and collapse on the bed.

“Was she really asking me on a date?” You thought to yourself.

“No it couldn’t be. This is Derpy after all. I must be over thinking it.” Sighing to yourself you look over and see a rectangular black box sitting on your dresser.

You pick the box up and look at it. “Either way, I have to tell her tonight. I can’t let these thoughts eat away at me.” You confirm to yourself.

You decide it best to relax for the rest of the day before it is time to leave. All of the work you did all day wore you out more than you realize however. You begin to pass out not long after laying on your bed and close your eyes. You lay there fading in and out of consciousness, images of Derpy flash in your mind at random. Her smiles, her frowns, all of it. You snap awake again and look around for a moment.

Looking at the time, you notice roughly an hour had gone by. Slowly, you crawl out of bed and sit up. “I guess I better get ready and go.” You say as you stand up and stretch

Chapter 4
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A Bubbly Hearth's Warming Eve

Chapter 4

After taking a quick shower to wash off the sweat of the day, you find clean clothes and get dressed. You did not put on anything fancy, but they are not rags either. As you walk past your dresser, you notice the little rectangular container with the necklace you bought for Derpy sitting on top. You reach out and grab it, immediately putting it on your coat pocket before heading towards the door and head to Her house.

It does not take you to long to reach her home. Just as you reach the steps of her house, the door opens and you see Derpy standing on the other side. She sees you and smiles as she shuts the door behind her.

“I see you have perfect timing.” She states as she starts down the stairs.

As she walks down the stairs, she fails to watch her step and tumbles forward. You rush to grab her before she hit the ground. As she lands in your arms, your foot catches a rock sticking out of the snow causing you to fall backwards with Derpy in your arms. You hit the snow-covered ground with an audible crunch from the snow around you.

As you lay on your back, feeling the weight of the grey mare on top of you, you take a second to catch your breath. A fuzzy feeling tickles your nose as it scrunches the skin, but not hard enough to hurt. You open your eyes to meet her eyes staring into yours. Her snout presses against your nose with her lips centimeters away from yours, her warm breath gently caressing over them. Her cheeks redden a little, her eyes seem to unfocus. You think you catch her glimpse her look at your lips just before she pulls away completely from you.

“Sorry, my klutziness is acting up again.” She says, trying to laugh it off.

“It’s fine, I’m just glad I was able to catch you.” You smile while chuckling, trying not to ruin the mood.

She slowly gets off you and dusts off the excess snow on her clothes before helping you up. You do the same before heading to the play. You both make it with plenty of time to spare. You both sit in the middle, right next to each other waiting for the play to start. Some idle chitchat helps pass time for a bit, talking about various things like what the play is about and what to expect. She tells you about how Equestria used to be at war with the three different species of ponies. In addition, she explains how three ponies from each race saved them all, though she did not go into much detail.

The play soon gets underway and starts as Derpy said, with the tale of how the three warring nations caused their own strife and turmoil. As the play went on you can tell she is watching intently as she sat in her seat. You watch on, getting into the show as well. Something soft touching your shoulder pulls you out of your trance however. Looking over, you see Derpy resting her head on your shoulder. You cannot help but become flustered at her actions, though you are certain she is unaware of her actions.

Your thoughts drift back to a little earlier when you both were laying in the snow. Thinking about it again, you realize how close you were to kissing her again. You wonder what would of happened if you had kissed her, how would she of reacted? Would she pull away in confusion? Alternatively, would she have kissed you back? A bunch of questions passed through your head all at once. It was obvious that she held you close in her heart but was it a close friendship or something more. You really want to figure it out and if it were not for the fact that she was enjoying the play, you would be tempted to ask then. That would be slightly embarrassing for her if you ask in a public setting most likely though.

“ I’ll defiantly ask her afterwards, defiantly.” You thought to yourself as you resume watching the play.

The play ended with the three races learning to work together in harmony. Everyone starts to clap, including you. It really was some play, and the fact that real events created this play amazes you. As you both get up from your seats, Derpy nudges your arm.

“I have to use the restroom so wait outside, okay?” She says, in which you agree to.

You stand by the entrance of the building and wait. Seconds turned to minutes as the last of the ponies left the building and still no sign of her. You start to become rather curious and start to walk back inside. However, just before you do, a snowball hits the back of your head.

You turn, expecting to see Derpy but instead see a Stallion looking at you with a cocky grin on his face.

“Hey, if you’re waiting for your marefriend, you’re wasting your time.” He says as he walks into the alleyway next to the building.

Worried, you follow him and after you catch up to him, he stops and turns towards you. “What did you mean by I am wasting my time?” You ask in a serious tone.

“Hey, he told you he would get revenge on you one way or another.” The Stallion said as he laughs.

You look at him in surprise. “What happened to her?”

“Let’s just say, my friend persuaded her to accompany him somewhere.”

“So you guys kidnapped her!? Where did they take her?” Anger laces your words.

“Who knows, I’d like to see you try to get the info from me.” He says in a threatening tone.

A sense of urgency hits you as you think of a way to persuade him. “Why would you do something so petty for the sake of getting back at me? I did nothing to you!” You say, raising your voice.

“You did when you humiliated my friend. Besides, a human or whatever you are shouldn’t try to fit in around here.” He cracked his knuckles and walks towards you.

“We don’t have to fight you know. Just tell me where they are and we can leave it at that, please.” You plead to no avail.

~*~*~

“Let go of me!” Derpy struggles to break free of the Stallion that is carrying her.

“Shut up already. We are just going to have some fun with you while we wait for that human.” The Stallion says.

“Whenever you’re found out you’re going to regret it because he will come and save me!” She says while struggling some more.

“That’s the plan; I will make him pay for making me look like a moron.” He says, gritting his teeth.

“You are a moron if you think you can just do what you want!” Derpy yells.

“He said shut up wall eyes!” one of the other Stallions raises his voice, earning a small squeak from Derpy.

They arrive at their destination soon enough. “So, is this really his home? Pretty lame style if you ask me. Of course, trash deserves trash.” The Stallion laughs as he triys the door.

“It’s locked.” The third Stallion states.

One of the ones not carrying Derpy walks in front of the door and gives it a strong kick, breaking it open. They all walk in soon after.

“Wow, crappy interior as well, almost feel sorry for him.” They all start laughing, except for Derpy who is still struggling, trying to untie her hands with her teeth.

The stallion tosses Derpy onto a small couch and walks over to the small bookshelf to examine it.

“Quite a selection he has.” He said as he shoves the small bookcase over, books scattering across the floor.

“Stop it!” Derpy yells.

“What? Mad because we are wreaking the freaks house?” He laughs

“Don’t you dare call him that; you have no idea what he’s like at all!” Derpy furiously shouts.

The Stallion laughs and walks over to her and leans in at eye level. “I can call him whatever I want. And besides, what are you going to do about it?” He asks grabbing her chin, leaning in further to taunt her.

“This!” Without warning, Derpy kicks upward, hitting him in the groin with her hoofs causing the stallion to yelp in pain and collapse on the floor next to her. The other two stallions ran over to help him up.

In a bit of rage and in pain, the Stallion gets up, grabs Derpy by her shirt, and lifts her up.

“You’re going to regret that, wall eyes.” He seethes as he throws her to the side, ripping her shirt down the middle just past her breasts.

Derpy starts to tear up slightly as she covers herself up.

“Strip her.” The Stallion says in a deep voice, still slightly in pain. The other two Stallion walk closer to Derpy, who can only look in horror.

~*~*~

You bolt down the streets as fast as you can. The cold air rushing past your cheeks gave a chilly bite to them. However, it did not even register as your only thoughts are making it to your house before anything bad happens to her. As you ran towards your house, you start to think of what that Stallion said to you.

“If you beat me, I’ll tell you.” The stallion lunged at you.

Dodging him and kicking him in the back caused him to stumble forward and fall. You took this chance to try to subdue him but he managed to jump up and take a swing at you. Unfortunately, you were not fast enough to duck and he hits you in the cheek making you cringe in pain. Stumbling backwards, you barely duck under another punch and spin around him and get him in a choke hold.

“Tell me where they are now!” You demanded.

“Okay okay, let me go, you win. I will tell you everything!” He pleaded, as you slowly loosened your grip.

“Got’cha!” He elbowed you in the ribs and pulls away as you gasped for breath.

“I don’t want to get serious, please tell me where they are.” You say as one final plea.

“Serious? I would like to see what you do when you’re serious.” He lunged again, ready to take another swing.

Blocking his swing with your arm, you moved in closer and delivered a knee to his diaphragm, which caused him to collapse on the ground in pain and gasping for air. You immediately grabbed him by the shirt and forced him to look at you.

“One more chance, tell me!” You said through gritted teeth.

“They’re at your house. They didn’t take her to long ago.” He said through gasps

“You let him go and took off towards your house as fast as you could.”

“Please just let me make it in time to protect her!” You yell in your head, picking up the pace.

~*~*~

You can see your house just ahead. Looking closely, you also notice the door is open. Skidding to a halt just outside your door and breathing heavily you swing the broken door open.

All eyes are on you as you stood in the doorway panting. You see that they are in the middle of taking Derpy’s cloths off, they seem to have managed to get her pants almost off and tore her shirt.

“Well, look who’s here; I’ve been waiting on you for so long I ended having a little fun with your girl.” The leader stated, trying to get a rise out of you.

However, you completely ignore him and look straight at Derpy who is smiling at you, tearing up.

“Are you okay? Did they do anything to you?” You ask in a calm voice.

She knew what you were meaning and shook her head. “No, they didn’t get that far.” She said with a shaky voice.

“Thank Celestia I made it in time.” You say under your breath.

One of the other stallions walks up to you and places a hand on your shoulder. “Hey, who said you can ignore us like that?”

Without hesitating, you grab his hand and twist it just before the breaking point making him cry out in pain as he grabs his arm. Afterwards you let go and punch him in the gut hard enough to make him collapse and fall over.

The other one charges you in which you simply side step and after tripping him, pushing him into the wall head first, knocking him unconscious.

“I was going to give you a chance to just leave but after what you did to Derpy, you’re going to pay for that.” You say through gritted teeth.

The leader simply stands and laughs at you. “You sure are getting cocky aren’t you?”

“Shut up, trash has no right to talk.” You say as you turn to face him.

The Stallion growled in anger and ran at you.

This time you do not move or waver, letting the punch connect as you take a step back to keep yourself from stumbling. He smiles cockily at you until he notices your expression has not changed as you stare at him.

“That was simply to prove a point to show you how weak you are. Now then, I will show you a real punch.” Your fist slams into his snout, sending him backwards into the wall. He slowly stands up, grunts and places a hand on his snout. Looking at the same hand, he notices he is bleeding a lot. He then looks at you and charges you yet again.

You deliver a straight kick into his stomach, launching him backwards, slamming his head into the bookcase he knocked over, knocking him out cold. You immediately turn and run to Derpy’s side sitting on the couch next to her.

She lifts her hands up showing you the rope in which you start to untie. It takes a couple minutes but you manage to do so. As soon as the rope fell from her wrists, she lunges into you and wraps her arms around your neck, toppling you over so she is lying on top of you. She rests her head just under your chin.

“I knew you would make it in time to save me. I never once thought differently.” Derpy says to you while squeezing you tighter.

“Derpy, if I wasn’t fast enough, for all we know they would have done something. I don’t want to put you in danger like that again.” You say, causing her to look up from her resting spot.

“As long as you’re with me I know that will never happen.” She says reassuringly.

“I was so worried I wasn’t going to make it.” You say as you hug her tightly.

Derpy smiles gently and looks you in the eyes, melting your worries away almost instantly. “It makes me sad when I see that frown appear on your face like that.”

You take a deep breath and let it out slowly, letting your negative thoughts disappear with it. Derpy slides off you and sits up, letting you do the same. You take this moment to look her over and notice a few things.

A blush grows on your face as you look away from her.

“What’s wrong?” She asks, curiously.

“You’re pants are still down and your shirt is wide open.” You explain, still not looking directly at her.

“She looks down and blushes deeply while covering herself up and pulling her pants back up.

“Sorry about that.” She stutters.

“Don’t worry about it, though I have to admit I wasn’t expecting you to be the type to wear panties with frills on them.” You say in a joking tone.

Derpy looks at you with an annoyed expression and sticks her tongue out at you. You could not help but chuckle at her childishness.

You slide off your coat and wrap it around her to give her something to cover herself up. She thanks you and slips it on the rest of the way. You hear movement coming from behind you, making you turn to look.

The two Stallions you first took care of slowly get to their feet and look around. They notice there friend still unconscious and go to check on him.

“He’ll be fine. Though, I’m sure he has a broken snout.” You say.

“We’ll get him out of here, don’t worry about us attacking you, we never wanted to in the first place but we were afraid of him, sorry.” One of them tells you.

“Fine, I won’t hold it against you. Though, I suggest getting better friends.” You say back as they picked up the other Stallion and carried him out of your house.

Soon after however, you hear someone yell, “What’s going on here?” Coming from direction of the broken door, as you stand up to turn and look, you see Derpy’s father standing there.

“I just saw some kids leave your house looking like they were hit by a wagon.” Her father says.

The next ten or so minutes was spent explaining what happened from start to finish. Derpy clung to your arm through it as well. As you finish your story her father looks at his daughter and looks her over.”

“I’m glad you are safe and after I explain this to Mayor Mare those kids are going to be punished as criminals. Thank you for looking after my daughter.” He says as he walks over to Derpy and hugs her tightly.

“Well, we are heading back, don’t worry about anything that’s broken or damaged, It will be replaced once I explain everything to the authority’s.” He tells you as him and Derpy leave you alone.

After looking around the room and seeing what was damaged, you decide you will just deal with it tomorrow as you head for your room and collapse onto your bed.

~*~*~

“You really are okay right?” Derpy’s father asks her.

“Yes I’m fine for the fifth time Dad.” Derpy says to you worried father.

“I just had to make sure. He is a remarkable young Stal-err man.” He says, almost forgetting you are human.

“Yeah, he is….”She trails off as he wraps your coat further around her.

Her father chuckled slightly at his daughter actons. “You know your mother did that a lot as well.”

“Did what?” She asks curiously.

“She would do the same thing when I gave her my coat.” He stated causing Derpy to blush and look away while shoving her hands into the pockets.

She pauses when she feels a rectangular box in one of the pockets and pulls it out. She stops at a streetlight to get a better look at the item she is holding. She notices right away what it is. She gasped and with curiosity gripping her, she slowly opens it to find the gold necklace you bought her inside it with a piece of paper.

Her father turned to see why she stopped and noticed the box and shook his head while smiling.

Derpy picked up the little note and read it silently.

Derpy, I cannot express how much you

mean to me. When I felt alone, you came

to my rescue and became a true friend to

me. I will never be able to repay your kindness

But I thought this would be a start. I also need

To tell you how I really feel about you as well.

it ate away at me that I did not tell you right away.

Believe me when I say, I wanted to but had to be sure.

So, once you read this I will tell you face to face with

no more hiding.

Derpy wipes a tear from her eye as she finishes the note and looks up at her father.

“I guess he’s been through a little too much today to be alone. Just do not think I completely approve of him yet. I haven’t given him the full check out.” He finishes up with a kiss on his daughters forehead and hugs her.

She smiles widely and hugs her father back before running back to your house.

~*~*~

“Why did today have to turn out like this? I had it all planed out and everything.” You say aloud to yourself.

You almost want to take it as divine intervention against you. Sitting there, fifteen minutes pass as you think of reason after reason for why it did not work out. However, in the end you decide it best not to think about it as you lay back down.

Suddenly, you hear your door opening up and hoofsteps coming into your house. Thinking it might be them coming back for another round, you jump up and walk to your bedroom door. As you open it, you see none other than the one mare you thought you would not get to see again tonight. Derpy stands there a few feet from the door staring at you.

“Derpy, what are doing here? Didn’t you head home with your dad?” You ask, confused.

“Yeah, but I found something of yours that I thought I should return.” She says as she looks into your eyes.

“Uh, if it’s the coat I lent to you so you could cover up from the cold so don’t worry about it.” You say, still not sure where this is going.

“No, it is something else. Something I’m sure you probably wanted to give me yourself.” She pulls out the rectangular box and hands it to you.

You freeze in place as your breath hitches in your throat. You are not sure what to say or how to react at all. You forgot it was in your pocket the whole time and kicked yourself mentally for forgetting it in the first place.

Slowly, you reach out, take it, and look at it.

“Um, did you look at it?” You ask hesitantly.

“Maybe.” She simply adds.

Taking a deep sigh and steeling your mind, you place it back into her hand and smile at her.

“So, what did you want to tell me after I read that wonderful note?” Derpy smiles sweetly at you making your heart skip a few more beats.

Taking a deep breath, you ready yourself “Uh, remember the other day I hid something from you and told you I would tell you when I was ready?”

“Mhmm” She nods.

“Well from that morning to now I have realized something that I think I have felt since I first meet you. Something that after all we have been through and how close we are is allowing these feelings to nurture and become what they are now.” You take a deep breath before continuing.

“Derpy, since the day I’ve meet you to now. I think I have fallen in love with you.” You finally say and throwing it all out there for her to do with as she pleases.

Derpy blushes and places her hands to her heart as she shed a few tears.

“Are you okay?” You ask, worried.

“Yes, I am. I am just so emotional right now. I have wanted to hear you say those words for a while now, I was just too afraid to ask you. But the truth is, I love you to.” She looks up at you and smiles.

You wipe her tears away and look deep into her eyes while taking a deep breath. “Will you be my marefriend?”

Derpy throws her arms around your neck and pulls you into a passionate kiss of pure bliss. You wrap your arms around her waist and hold her closely as electricity flows through your body from the sensation of Derpy’s lips pressed against yours.

Derpy pulls away from you, panting slightly. “Yes, I want nothing more than to be together with you more than anything else. It is because of you that I am happy again. You protect me, stand by my side and are always there for me. I love you; I love you so much!” She leans back in and you both slowly let the world around you disappear aside from the passions of both your hearts. Your last thoughts were merely.

“ I will always be here for you, my love.”

Chapter 5
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A Bubbly Hearth's Warming Eve

Chapter 5

Warning! Clop scene ahead! You have been warned!

Your lips remain connected to hers as you both slowly make your way to the bed. She shuts the door gently behind her as you continue walking backwards. As you get to the bed, Derpy lightly pushes you down to a sitting position and crawls into your lap, her legs folded on each side of yours as she straddles you.

“You know, I wanted to give you a present as well. But I couldn’t think of anything to give you, until now.” She says, staring lustfully into your eyes.

She then resumes kissing you passionately; placing her hands on your face while you squeeze her waist. You decide to take a bit of risk and ask for entry by sliding your tongue against her bottom lip. To your surprise, her lips part ways, allowing your tongue to slip through and glide over hers. Both tongues battle for supremacy as you caress her sides. You can hear her softly moaning in your mouth as she forces her way past your lips.

You allow her entry as she explores every nook and cranny of your mouth. Derpy then momentarily removes her hands from your cheeks and starts working the coat off without breaking the kiss. You help slide it off as well and toss it to the ground as she wraps her arms completely around your neck, deepening the kiss. Your hands slowly work under her torn shirt. Touching her soft fur as it grazes in between your fingers, you cannot help but think about how amazing this feels to you. You continue to caress her sides and stomach as you lightly bite her lower lip earning a soft moan from her. Derpy gently pushes you back onto the bed, as you open your eyes, you notice her wings were unfurled and raised a little. Seeing your curious look, she follows your gaze and then looks back at you, her half lidded eyes displaying a deep want and need to be close to you again.

“When a Pegasus like me gets really excited or… aroused, their wings start to stiffen and stick out more.” Her blush deepens as she leans and kisses once more.

Your face reddens at her explanation, making your arousal increase as well. Her shirt having a tear that exposes most of her breasts did not help either. You almost want to curse her bra for concealing them. Derpy then pulls away from you while still hovering over you.

“There is something I need to tell you before we go any further.” She says, panting slightly.

“What’s wrong?” You ask, slightly curious.

“Remember the other day when I came over and spent the night with you?” She asks you as she avoided eye contact.

“Yeah, I do. Right after that fight with your father happened.” You raise an eyebrow trying to figure out what she was getting at.

“Well, when I asked you to stay by my side and I asked if you would sleep next to me. I kind of planned what happened after that.” She stated, blushing brightly.

At first, you did not quite get what she was meaning until it hit you like a ton of bricks. “You mean in the morning when I woke up, you….” You trail off.

“Yeah, I purposely crawled over next to you and cuddled up next to you. Watching you sleep so peacefully made me feel more relaxed and comfortable. I felt so safe and warm when I was next to you that I ended up drifting off to sleep and did not wake up until after morning came, just before you woke up.” She explained.

As you remember the events of that night, the beating of your heart seemed to echo in the whole room as well. “I don’t know what to say to that, you know if you were feeling uncomfortable or afraid you could have just woke me up.”

“I know but, it was a little embarrassing and I didn’t want to wake you since you seemed to be sleeping so well. Not to mention you looked really cute when you were asleep and I wanted to watch you sleep for a little while.” She said as she cutely plays with your shirt and avoided eye contact.

You chuckle to yourself at her antics. “You know, when I woke up and saw that, I nearly jumped out of the bed.

“Oh, I see.” Derpy almost seems disappointed by your answer.

“Well yeah, I mean the mare I secretly have a crush on cuddled up next to me while I had my arms wrapped around her kind of took me by surprise to say the least.” You say in a nonchalant tone.

Derpy’s wings twitch as she fidgets with your shirt while still straddling your hips, not sure what to say to you.

You decide to go a little further. “Oh and you had your legs wrapped around mine. Moreover, I have to say, I did not realize how soft your tail was until then either.”

“I guess I am the type that likes to cuddle when I sleep.” She tries to laugh it off.

“Then you kept grinding against my crotch…” You trail off on purpose.

“I… I did what to you?” She stutters.

You chuckle as you watch her sway back and forth.

You smile at her. “Is that all you wanted to tell me?”

She looks at you, leans forward, and hovers just above you. “I love you.” She then slowly leans towards you.

“I love you to, Derpy.” You lean forward, connecting your lips with hers yet again for a passionate kiss that sends electricity down your spine.

She breaks the kiss and while still on her hands and knees, slowly crawls up the bed, letting her tail graze up your body as she rocks her hips back and forth in an enticing manner.

“Wouldn’t you be more comfortable up here with me?” She says in a seductive tone.

You slowly stand up. “Of course, as long as I am next to you, I don’t care what happens.” You say as you walk around the bed and lay next to her.

“I’m so happy you feel that way.” Derpy says just before pulling you on top of her and locking lips with you. She then proceeds to slide her hands up your bare stomach, dragging your shirt up along with and sending shivers down your spine. Helping out, you slide the shirt up and over your head and toss it to the side. She takes this moment to stare at your shirtless figure and gingerly runs her fingers down from your chest to your stomach just before your pants line.

You continue to kiss her, slowly working your way down to her neck and then the collarbone. She moans lightly in your ear as you tend to her body. Her tail starts to move around in between your legs, occasionally brushing against your crotch. After another minute of casual foreplay, She starts getting restless and decides to move things forward. She slowly grabs her shirt and lifts it up and over her head, tossing it to the side. Your eyes slowly take in the site in front of you.

“Derpy, you’re so incredibly beautiful.” You say in a soft voice.

She blushes at your words. “Thank you, I’ve never had anyone tell me that before.”

You look deep into her eyes, letting your emotions through with every word you speak. “I am so very lucky to have you by my side and love me for me, and I promise you that I will love you, always.”

You lean in and kiss her, placing your arms on either side of her careful to avoid her erect wings. Derpy proceeds to unbutton and unzip your pants and with your help, slides them off, hers following close behind. You use one hand to caress her side, slowly running down to her hip and repeating the action earning another series of moans from the aroused mare beneath your form. Your hand works its way from her hip to her stomach and up. Eventually, it runs into a small snag in the trail, her bra strap.

She looks you and nods her head, giving you permission to unclip it. Luckily, for you, it clips from the front and with one hand; you unclasp her bra strap and slowly pull it away, exposing her breasts.

Derpy takes a sharp intake of air as she feels your hand slowly glide over her soft mounds. Derpy’s tail starts to move back and forth, rubbing against your crotch area again. The feeling of her tail rubbing against your now erect member made it difficult to concentrate completely as you begin to move your hips around. To combat your urges you decide to take the initiative and slide your hand down her body, resting it just above the panty line as you look up at her. She understands and nods while smiling at you.

With that, you hook a finger under the fabric and slowly pull it down, sliding them completely off. Derpy takes a deep breath as you place your hand near her marehood and slowly run your fingers over her moist outer lips. She gasps at the new sensation and begins to moan softly as you continue to stroke her. A couple moments of delicate teasing later, you move to her clit. This really makes Derpy squirm as she wraps her arms around your neck and kisses you, aggressively forcing her tongue past your lips.

“Please stop teasing me; you are making me lose my mind!” She says to you between breaks as she squirms under you.

Not wanting to torture her, you insert your middle finger slowly into her, pushing past her vaginal wall causing her to moan out in pleasure. Slowly, you pump your finger into her marehood, gradually increasing tempo over time. Moan after moan escapes past her lips as she continuously battles for supremacy in your mouth. Her wings start twitching slightly as her release drew near. She began breathing heavily, wave after wave of pleasure courses through her body. With one last thrust of your finger, Derpy grips your back and moans loudly as she cums all over your hand.

As Derpy lays there panting, you kiss up and down her neck, letting her regain her senses. After a minute, she comes to and looks at you with a smile on her face.

“It’s your turn now.” Before you could say anything, she pushes you off her, crawls on top of you, and kisses you again before moving down your body. She stares at the bulge in your boxers and gives you the same courtesy by silently asking if it is okay.

You simply smile and nod your head.

Derpy grabs the elastic band of your boxers and slowly pulls them down, revealing your fully erect manhood standing at attention. She then lightly grasps its base feeling its thickness.

“It really is the perfect size. Not small, but not scary big either.” She sighs to herself as she lightly licks the base of your member.

Slowly, she works her way from the base to the tip with her tongue, causing you to sigh aloud. She then kisses the tip of your member before licking the crown, allowing her drool to coat your erected spire. You continuously moan from her actions, your breath becoming erratic from her tending to your manhood. She then takes the tip into her mouth and slowly lowers her head onto the rest of it. The warmth of her mouth feels amazing as she continues to lowers her head onto your full length. As she reaches the base of your member, she slowly raises her head then repeats, working your shaft. You can feel it throb in her mouth as she sucks and bobs her head continuously, slowly getting faster. Your eyes slowly gaze down at her; you notice she is staring at you intensely. Your blush deepens when you notice she is not breaking eye contact, her eyes displaying all the lust and desire she has held for you up to this point. The pleasure you are feeling is starting to become too much.

“Derpy, I don’t want to cum just yet.” You say through your moaning, Causing her to slowly stop.

“Good, I want to become as intimate as possible with you.” She says, crawling back up your body.

You could not help but to blush at her comment she made, but if she is happy, then that is all that matters to you. She leans forward while still grasping your spire and kisses you.

“I’ve wanted to become this intimate with you from the beginning of out kiss session.” She admits as she starts to rub her wet lips with the tip of your throbbing member.

You gasp at the sudden sensation; the warmth of her marehood mixing with pleasure is driving you crazy. Small moans escape both your lips as she continues using your spire to pleasure herself. After a couple of minutes, she looks up at you, panting slightly.

“I’m ready if you are.” Her cheeks redden a little more as she looks deep into your eyes.

You nod as she switches positions with you. Placing the tip of your erect member against her marehood, you wait for her signal.

Derpy looks at you; her eyes displayed a deep love and readiness to accept you and only you. “Please, make me yours.” She says your name in a tone as sweet as honey.

Without breaking eye contact, you slowly push past her folds, slowly moving in deeper and deeper until your full-length buries inside of her. Its takes a moment for her to adjust to you, but as she does, you slowly start to move in and out of her. Her moans steadily got louder and louder as you increase your tempo.

“Please, don’t stop!” She yelled out between moans.

Leaning in, you kiss her before you move to her collarbone again, lightly biting and kissing the area as you continue to drive your spire deep into her. Her loud moaning is proof enough she is enjoying every second of it, as are you. Her slippery walls offer no resistance against your member as you thrust harder into her. Her moans become louder still, she tries biting her lower lip to stifle her outbursts to no avail.

Moving faster, you cannot help but to let the pleasure over take you as well. Steeling yourself, you push ahead as you feel her inner walls squeezing your member tighter as she nears her second release. Her breasts bounce in timing to your thrusts as you continue to penetrate her. She then wraps her legs around your hips allowing you to fill her to the brim with your pulsating member. You can feel her marehood becoming more and more lubricated with each thrust until finally, with one final thrust; she lets out a very loud moan as she came for the second time, soaking your erect member and collapsing in a heap on the bed panting heavily.

All of a sudden, Derpy pushes you off her and rolls you onto the other side of the bed, straddling your hip; you can feel your spire pressed against her sopping wet marehood as she looks into your eyes. You can see a burning lust in her eyes as they focus onto yours.

“I want you to cum inside me.” She says in a seductive tone, guiding her wet folds up your shaft.

You try your best to stifle your moans to no avail. Her aggressive behavior was something you did not expect, but you are not complaining in the least. You raise your arms up, cup both of her breasts in each hand and massage them gently. Without warning, she spears herself onto your member, causing a sharp gasp to escape your lips as she places her hands on your stomach and starts to lift herself up and down slowly on your shaft. You both start moaning with pleasure as Derpy continues working your member. As she continues to grind her hips against yours, you start working on her breasts more vigorously, massaging them rougher and kneading them like dough. She leans into your hands and starts moving up and down on your shaft a little faster.

Your breathing soon becomes erratic and quick. The pleasure is becoming so great you are unsure of how long you can hold out. You can tell she is getting close to another climax as well from her moans and facial expressions. You figure you can help speed things along to make it more enjoyable. As she was ready to thrust downwards, you thrust up meeting her halfway; the sudden jolt of pleasure makes Her squeal out in pleasure. To your delight, Derpy gives you a look of, “Do it again” and of course, you love following her orders, so you do as she asks and continue to meet her thrusts gaining a positive response. Her wings arch straight up as her tail wraps around your right leg for support. Both of your thrusts increase in tempo as your climax gets closer and closer. You could feel her inner walls tighten around your throbbing member as Derpy’s loud moans turn into squeals of pure ecstasy.

“I’m going to-!” You voice hitches in your throat.

“Me too!” She exclaims through quick breaths

You both moan loudly in unison as you both cum at the same time, your hot semen pumps into Derpy’s soaking marehood as she drenches your spire and nether regions. Slowly, you lower her into you and wrap your arms around her, hugging her tight. Her wings lay on either side of you, limp as she slowly looks up at you, she smiles.

“That was amazing.” Derpy said lazily.

“Yeah, it really was.” You smile back at her.

“I love you.” She says your name as sweetly as possible.

“I love you too, Derpy.” You say as she snuggles into your chest, letting your warmth radiate to her.

You grab the blanket with your foot and pull it up and over both of you. Derpy gets enough strength to fold her wings, crawls off you, and lays her head on your pillow next to you.

“You didn’t have to do that.” You lightly chuckle.

“I want the first thing I see when I wake up to be you.” She states with a smile.

You could not help but blush a little at her words. You hug her close.

“You have a good point there, there’s nothing I’d want to see more than the beautiful face of the mare I love when I wake up.” You say with a grin.

She blushes cutely and leans in to kiss you. You follow suit and connect your lips with hers before laying your head on the pillow and drift off to sleep.

“I Am so happy your with me, this will be the most cherished Hearths Warming Eve in my life.” You both think just before your fade from consciousness.

Author's Note

That's all folks! Hope you enjoyed the read! Please rate and comment!

Be sure to look at my group Anthropomorphics for stories like mine and more!