Ditzy adjusted the bouquet of white roses tied with a red ribbon one last time and stepped back to inspect her work. The instructions had indicated the bouquet was to be placed just alongside the sparse blooms in the house’s window box, where the lucky mare would see them upon opening the window. Nodding in satisfaction, Ditsy trotted out of the lawn and flipped up the little flag on the mailbox to show that the package had been delivered.
She smiled to herself as she jogged down the road. She only had two more letters and one special delivery (a wrapped box that clinked like it contained jewelry as she walked, which was to be delivered to a picnic in the park) before her run for the day was complete. Everypony at the post office worked today, since more letters were sent on Hearts and Hooves day than any other day of the year. A work load that was only magnified by the ‘special holiday delivery’ service they provided, conveying gifts anywhere all day with any special instructions you wanted.
Ditzy didn’t mind the extra work. Seeing all the joy it spread was worth all the extra effort. Still, she couldn’t deny that the lighter bag felt blissfully loose on her sore shoulder as she finished her last deliveries. She waved encouragement to the pair in the park (the stallion was sweating nervously and looked like he was working up the courage to ask his marefriend something) and headed back to the post office.
“Done for the day, Ditzy?” the post master, Silver Script, greeted as she stepped inside. His eyes were drawn to the clock hanging over the door. “You’re usually one of the first ones back. Most of the others have already finished for the day.”
“There were a lot more bundles of flowers this year, so I had to be extra careful.” Ditzy lifted the mailbag off her shoulder and hung it on its place along the wall. She caught him staring at the clock again as she turned back around. “Got some plans tonight?”
Silver chuckled and used his wings to adjust his tweed cap. “I’m meeting Parasol for dinner at the café in about fifteen minutes. I was actually getting a little nervous waiting for you and-”
The door slammed open and Leeroy Wingkins charged into the building, trailing a steady stream of wet mud onto the floor.
“Today was ridiculous!” he shouted. “And to top it off, there was this crazy stallion running around in every puddle he could get his hooves in apparently. He got mud all over me and just sped on without stopping. Urg, I gotta go home and clean off.” He tossed his bag into the far corner and sped out of the building at top speed.
“…Leeroy.” Silver Script finished, sighing. “When will that boy learn to slow down? Now I got to clean this mess up before closing…”
“I can get it for you.” Ditzy offered.
“Are you sure? You don’t have to.”
“Don’t worry about it.” Ditzy replied, lifting Leeroy’s bag off the floor and setting it on the counter with a plop. “I don’t have any plans for tonight and Dinky already knows that I might be working late. Now don’t leave Parasol waiting, run along and have fun.”
“You’re a peach, Ditzy.” Silver laughed, tugging his cap down determinedly and trotting out the door.
Ditzy watched him go with a smile and turned back to the mess. There were some paper towels under the counter along with some other supplies and she pulled them out, trying to wipe the worst of the mud off the bag. She hummed as she worked, turning the bag over to get at the worst of it. As she did, a bit of mud that had gotten inside the bag slid out, carrying with it a familiar square shape.
She paused and placed the bag down, quickly picking up the small envelope. He must have missed it under the mud. The grime had destroyed all the writing on the front, making it impossible to tell who the letter was supposed to go to, but the slim red ribbon wrapping it meant that it was a one of the special Hearts and Hooves deliveries. The delivery instructions attached to the bow were as illegible as the address. The envelope itself was of soft velvet and by some miracle the muck hadn’t disrupted the seal.
Ditzy weighed the letter on her hoof and stared at it, trying to decide what to do. Without an address, she knew she was supposed to put it in the lost-letters bin, but the ribbon held her to her conscience. All letters were important, but entire relationships might rest on letters sent today.
“Most letters aren’t sent by today’s rate without a gift…” Ditzy mused, noting an empty loop in the ribbon. Sure enough, after a moment of rooting in the bag she unearthed a single fresh lilac, crushed and crumpled by the mud.
The flower settled the matter in her mind and she stood up straight with purpose. Lilacs were her favorite flower and she felt an empathic connection with this mystery mare. I can’t leave this letter undelivered!
“But where am I supposed to deliver it to?” she said aloud, staring down at the ruined writing. She immediately dismissed the thought of opening the letter. She’d never intrude on another’s privacy like that. But there was no way to make out any of the writing anymore, so she seemed stuck. Sudden inspiration struck and she turned back to the flower. Well, that needs to be replaced before I can deliver it, anyway.
Filled with renewed energy, Ditzy finished cleaning the bag and hung it up along the wall, then carefully locked and latched the door. Turning down the steps, she set off to find a flower stand.
…
“Yep, this definitely looks like one of mine.” Rose Luck said, holding the crushed lilac up to her eyes. “Poor thing hasn’t been treated very well, though. What did you say you wanted with it?”
“I just wanted to know if you remember who you sold it to.” Ditzy asked, explaining the situation to her briefly. The sun had started to fall as she’d gone from stall to stall, trying to find one that sold this kind of flower, and she was starting to worry about leaving Dinky waiting for so long.
“Heart’s and Hooves day is one of the busiest days for me.” Rose said apologetically, handing the flower back. “I’ve sold dozens of lilacs all day. I’m afraid I can’t remember everypony who bought something today.”
“It’s fine, it was a long shot to begin with.” Ditzy sighed, slipping out a couple of bits from her bag. “I’ll need to replace it anyway. How much?”
Rose clipped a bloom from the stand beside her and placed it in front of her. “Take it, no charge. It’s the least I can do. I think it’s wonderful what you’re doing.”
“Thank you!” Ditzy cried happily, carefully lifting up the soft violet-and-white bloom. She closed her eyes and breathed in its lovely scent for a moment, then carefully set it in her bag next to the letter.
“Could I see it?” Rose asked, holding off a hoof. Ditzy obligingly pulled the letter out and Rose lifted it up to the fading light.
“You’re right; I can’t make out anything written here. What are you going to do about it next?”
“I don’t know.” She replied honestly. “This was all I can think of. I guess the next step is to find where the envelope is sold and… is something wrong?”
An odd look had crossed Rose Luck’s face as she’d studies the letter. She brought it close to her nose and sniffed. “Is that… icing? It smells like icing.”
“It does?” Ditzy asked, taking the letter back and giving it a sniff. It was mostly masked by the mud, but the sweet smell of bakery icing did faintly cling to the paper. “It does! This must have gotten cake or something on it at some point.”
“Or maybe it was written in a place that smells like icing.” Rose pointed out. “Like one of the table outside of…”
“Sugarcube Corner!” the two of them shouted excitedly at the same time.
“Thanks for all your help!” Ditzy laughed, spinning around and running in the direction of the bakery.
“Don’t mention it!” Rose called after her. “Just find the lucky mare who that letter belongs to! I’m rooting for you!”
Ditzy waved her wing in acknowledgement, but she could already see Sugarcube Corner coming up ahead. The Cakes had set up a bunch of deck tables with umbrellas and stools outside of the bakery for couples to sit while enjoying a treat. Most of the tables were still occupied by couples despite the waning evening, but one table had a familiar figure sitting by his lonesome.
Pokey Pierce, Ditzy’s friend Trixie’s personal assistant, seemed to be waiting for somepony, and for some time at that. He stopped tracing his hoof idly in circles on the tabletop and perked up as she approached, standing up from his stool. “Miss Doo! It’s a pleasure to see you!”
“Hello Pokey.” She said, slipping past him and heading up the front steps of the bakery. “I’m sorry, but I can’t talk now. I’m still on the job.”
Inside, the smell of baked goods was almost overwhelming; reminding Ditzy that she still hadn’t eaten anything for dinner. The Cakes appeared to be working feverishly in the back room, leaving Pinkie Pie to work the counter. By some stroke of luck there weren’t any customers at the moment, so Ditzy went straight up to the counter.
“Hi Ditzy!” Pinkie cried, as full of life as ever. “Here for your usual muffin?! Or do you want to try something different today?! We’ve got this great red velvet cake special for today!”
“Not right now, Pinkie.” Ditzy replied patiently, pushing the offered slice to the side. “I actually wanted to know if you recognized this letter.”
Pinkie narrowed her eyes and scrutinized the envelope. “Hmm… is it some kind of secret letter containing some super secret recipe for super duper secret pie? Ah! Or is it some kind of party invitation I mailed and then forgot I mailed it? I have to prepare for the party I’ve forgotten I’m throwing before the other guests I’ve forgotten I’ve invited arrive and find out I forgot!”
“No, Pinkie…” Ditsy tried again, catching the energetic pony’s attention again. “I meant, did you see anypony writing a letter here today? I’m trying to figure out where it came from and I think it was written here.”
“Ohh!” Pinkie cried, then threw up her hooves in a shrug. “No, I didn’t see anything like that today. Have you tried asking Raindrops?”
“What does Raindrops…” Ditzy started, but the front door opening up behind her interrupted her question. Raindrops, a jasmine pegasus and one of her best friends, walked into the shop.
Raindrops paused when she saw her friend at the counter. “Oh, hey Ditzy! I didn’t expect to see you here. What are you up to?”
“We’re solving the mystery of the mysterious mystery letter!” Pinkie shouted, leaping up onto the counter top and striking a dramatic pose with the letter before her. From somewhere she had pulled a deerstalker hat and a fancy pipe. She puffed on the pipe and a stream of bubbles floated from it into the air. “And I can’t help but wonder… what letters have you been writing today? Hmm?”
“Thanks Pinkie, but I think I can handle this on my own…” Ditzy sighed, taking the letter back and returning it to her bag.
“Okie dokey lokie!” Pinkie laughed, hoping off the counter and flicking the hat and pipe away with a toss of her head. “You’re here to pick up the birthday cake for your brother, right? Mr. and Mrs. Cake are just finishing it up in the back now! I’ll be right back!”
“It’s Snails’s birthday soon, but we’re going to celebrate a few days early.” Raindrops explained as the pink earth pony zipped off into the kitchen. “But what was that all about?”
Ditzy pulled out the letter and went over the last few hours once again. “And now my last idea has run dry.” she finished.
Raindrops tapped her hoof in thought for a few moments. “I can’t think of anything myself. Are you sure you can do this? It sounds like you have no choice left but to wait for somepony to come looking for it.”
The grey pegasus shook her head immediately. “Somepony is waiting for this letter and I won’t let her day be ruined if I can help it. I just have to think it though and I’m sure an idea will occur to me.”
Raindrops nodded, and then widened her eyes as an idea occurred to her. “Hey, have you tried taking it to a unicorn yet? Maybe you can find its owner using magic.”
“That’s a great idea!” Ditzy said, brightening at the thought of a new possibility. Her smile turned to a frown as she turned to the door and saw the fading light. “It’s getting really late, though…”
“I can stop by your house and let Dinky know what you’re doing.” Raindrops offered, knowing what was weighing on her friend’s mind. “You do what you have to do.”
“Thank you!” Ditzy said, giving her a quick hug with her wings before galloping out of the bakery. She thought she heard somepony shout her name as she left, but she didn’t stop to find out. She knew exactly which pony she needed to find, and she hoped she would still be there.
…
“So you want me to try and find out who wrote this letter using magic?” Trixie asked, tapping the envelope on the coffee table between them. They sat in her living room, sipping tea Trixie had brewed up while Ditzy explained the situation. Trixie's cup had a slice of cucumber wedged on the lip.
Ditzy nodded and blew on her cup to cool the drink down a little. “It’s all I can think to try at this point. And I don’t want to just give up after all this!”
Trixie sighed and set her cup down next to the letter. “I’m sorry, but I don’t think I can do it. Scrying magic like you’d need is very rare and tends to be personal to the pony that uses it. I think only a few unicorns in Ponyville can do it at all and it’s always for something specific, like how Rarity can find gems but nothing else.”
“Well, thanks anyway.” Ditzy sighed, starting to get up, but froze in shock as Trixie picked up the envelope and started tearing open the flap. “Wait! What are you doing?!”
Trixie paused and looked up at her. “If you really want to deliver this letter, the fastest way is to open it up and see who signed it. We don’t have to read the letter, just check the bottom.”
“No!” Ditzy shouted forcefully. “Postal workers do not open other pony's mail and read it! I will not do that under any circumstance! It’s a matter of trust!”
Trixie bit her lip but nodded, letting her friend snatch the envelope from her hoof. “You’re right. I was only trying to help.”
“And I’m sorry for shouting.” Ditzy apologized, picking up her tea and drinking.
“At least you know the letter is written on government paper.”
Ditzy sputtered and quickly set down the cup, wiping her mouth. “What? How do you know? Did you…?”
“I didn’t see anything when I tore it.” Trixie said, getting up and walking over to the door to her office. “Do you feel those little bumps on the inside of the envelope? Forming a little circle near the top?”
Pressing the letter softly against the table, Ditzy soon found the odd bumps Trixie was talking about. “I do. What is it?”
“It’s the Royal Seal.” Trixie explained, levitating a piece of paper into the room and showing it to her guest. A shining silver circle was imprinted on the top of the page. “Every piece of my official stationary has the same symbol on them. I could recognize it blindfolded by now, with the amount of paperwork that goes through my hooves…”
“Who else has this stationary?” Ditzy asked excitedly.
The blue unicorn tapped her chin thoughtfully. “Probably the Mayor has them too, and I think I gave a stack to Carrot Top to help with the group she’s forming. The library, the schoolhouse, and other government-backed places might have a stack, but they’d never use it for something personal like this.”
“So somepony could only get it from either you or the Mayor?”
“Well, I haven’t been passing them out…” Trixie hesitated. “I suppose Pokey could have given some away. You could always ask him, if you could find him. He rushed out real early today and I haven’t seen him since.”
“I just saw him a little while ago!” Ditzy said, standing up hurriedly. “I’d better go see if he’s still there. Thanks for the help.”
“Don’t mention it.” Trixie said, using her telekinesis to open the door for her. Ditzy trotted out the door and turned back towards Sugarcube Corner.
Night had finished falling while she’d been with Trixie and the wind had started to pick up, bringing with it the crisp scent of nighttime. The street had mostly emptied while she’d been inside, the falling light sending couples to their warm homes. Ditzy clapped a hoof to her head to stop a particularly strong gust from blowing her mailmare cap from her head, but the sudden movement caused her bag to fall open. The wind plucked the letter up, flower and all, and carried it quickly out of reach.
“No!” Ditzy shouted, taking off from the ground after the spinning letter. But the wind tumbled it around her outstretched hooves and she had to chase it further and further. She was just about to finally grab it when a last burst of wind caught her off guard and she crashed into something soft. She spun out of control and collapsed to the ground, tucking herself to break the worst of the fall. The thing she’d crashed into wrapped around her a bit and tied her wings to her side. For a few seconds, the world spun around her as she tried to catch her bearings.
“Miss Doo?”
Finally managing to focus on her surrounding, Ditzy realized she’d crashed into an umbrella at one of the tables around Sugarcube Corner. All the ponies who had been here earlier were already gone save for Pokey, who was standing over her with a worried expression on his face. He helped her to stand up and brush off the front of her uniform.
“Are you alright?” he asked worriedly.
“I’m all right, but have you seen…” she started, but the words dies on her tongue as she looked up and saw the letter impaled neatly on Pokie’s horn. “Oh no! It’s been ruined!”
Pokie seemed to notice the letter for the first time and pulled it off with his magic. “But this is…”
“I’ve been trying to deliver that letter all night.” Ditzy said sadly, staring at the hole nearly the size of a bit in its center. “I thought that I could figure out who it belonged to even with the name destroyed, but nothing I could think of worked. And now this happened. I can’t deliver the letter like this!”
“It was never even opened…” Pokey said softly, then laughed and shook his head in wonder. He popped the letter open with his magic and pulled out the parchment inside.
“Wait! You can’t do that!” Ditzy started, but he pushed the paper towards her.
“Go ahead.” He said, smiling.
Ditzy stared at him for a moment, but finally turned to the page. The symbol Trixie had talked about shone at the top and the edges bore slight stains from having been written on a not-quite-clean table. The hole bore through the letter in two places, it having been neatly folded in half in the envelope, but it was clearly legible anyway.
My dearest Ditzy Doo,
I’ve wanted to tell you how I’ve felt for a long time now, but I’ve never been able to find the words. Would you please join me for some dessert at Sugarcube Corner today? I will wait for as long as it takes.
Forever yours,
Pokie Pierce
Ditzy stared at the letter for a long time, trying and failing to think of something to say. She felt something brush her ear and looked up to see Pokey had levitated the lilac out of her bag and set it in her hair.
“I asked for it to be left for you to find at work.” He said, then caught a look and her face and swallowed nervously. “Uh… I wanted to be romantic. Um, that is… unless it’s too late?”
Ditzy watched him fidget, then blushed and sat down at the table. “No… I have time.”
Pokey broke out in a wide grin and sat down across from her. Above them, the stars appeared in the sky and bathed the whole area in starlight.
Author's Note
This entire story was written in under five hours. While I'm not one to brag, I consider it a personal best. Anyone who is familiar with my glacial writing speed would probably agree.
