//------------------------------// // A delivery is made! // Story: Life on the Frontier // by Starwind Dood //------------------------------// Chapter 2: A delivery is made! "I would like to apply for a job," Derpy told the colt at the dimly-lit Appleloosa EPS office. Derpy wasn't going to let herself sponge off of Carrot Top while she raised her daughter, so she had applied for the one job she knew she could do better than any other pony: delivery. She was a mailmare at heart, and she was going to show Appleloosa what this mailmare had to offer. "Miss, this is the post office," the teenaged-pony answered her with his voice cracking. "I know! I'm a great mailmare. Best Ponyville has ever seen!" Derpy replied, filled with pride. The teenage pony was taken aback by the sudden enthusiasm of the pegasus before him. She looked like she honest to Celestia wanted one of the worst jobs Equestria had to offer. "Well… Miss…" "Derpy! Derpy-Doo!" "Well," the greasy-maned pony sighed, "we don't have any openings." "I don't get it," Derpy replied. Carrot Top glared at the wooden structure before her: an outhouse. Everything about it symbolized the end of civilized life as she knew it. It's not that Appleloosa wasn't civilized, it just had outhouses. "You need to get over this," she tried to console herself. "It's not going anywhere, I can't ignore it… and I really need to use it." Carrot Top stared at the open and mocking door of the wooden lavatory. "I will beat you!" she shouted, antagonizing it. "Carrot Top!" it answered back. "Agh! Don't eat me!" She screamed in terror as she jumped away and covered her head, cowering in fear. "I don't taste good, I swear!" "Carrot Top, what are you doing?" Derpy dropped out of the sky and landed right next to her cowering friend. She looked back at the outhouse and back at her friend before asking, "Are you arguing with a potty?" "No!" Carrot Top collected her shattered pride and answered the pegasus back, "I'm just preforming some morning rituals. Now, what is it, Derpy?" "It's terrible! Just terrible!" Derpy had gotten uncomfortably close to her orange-topped friend, eyes almost touching. "The post office! They're- they're- they're-" "Breathe, Derpy." Carrot Top tried to calm her panicky friend. "Breathe, and then try again." Derpy took her advice. "The post office," she lamented, "all the positions are full. I can't get a job there!" Derpy cried, truly distraught. "How will I support Dinky? I don't care if I have to starve, but my daughter means everything!" "Derpy," Carrot Top places a hoof on her friend's shoulder, "why don't you apply for a different job?" "A... different job?" Derpy focused her eyes on Carrot Top, even more confused than before. "What kind of a different job?"   "Well, any kind," she offered. "You can do anything you want, I'm sure. Perhaps try for something less exhausting? You do complain a little about your wings aching." "A different job?" Derpy mulled over the idea. "You really think I can do anything?" "Of course," Carrot Top replied, "I'm sure that you have talents other than delivery, and this place must be ripe with opportunity. This isn't Ponyville; this is Appleloosa. Just imagine all the new interesting things to try!" Carrot Top waved a hoof into the sky. "For a hard working mare like you, the sky is the limit." Carrot Top could feel herself fill with energy as well. "All sorts of new things?" Derpy echoed. "Yes!" "Like folk music!" "Well, I suppose." "And carriage chases!" "Isn't that dangerous?" "And outhouses!" Carrot Top cringed at the utterance of the word. "Yes… outhouses…" "Thanks, Carrot Top." Derpy grabbed her friend in a titanic, gravity defying hug. "I'll go out there and find my new destiny!" "Yes, destiny is fine and all but please put me down! I'm afraid of heights!" Carrot Top screamed as the air around her got thinner. Little Strongheart struggled against the rope in her mouth. She was pulling up a wall for Appleoosa's new dance hall, all because a certain pony asked her for some help. "Just a lil' more, Lil' Strongheart," Braeburn called to her. "We almost got the thing nailed in!" Little Strongheart dug her hooves into the ground to keep her body from slipping back. While she and other ponies worked to keep the wall steady, another team of ponies fixed it into rest of the building. With the wall fastened in place, Little Strongheart felt the burden on her ease to nothing. "I did it," Little Strongheart congratulated herself. "That sure was a spectacle there, Lil' Strongheart," Braeburn called to her. He jumped down from the top of the building and joined her by her side. "Thanks for the help with the building. A new dance hall will raise some spirits 'round here. You sure are somethin' to be able to do that." Little Strongheart's little heart skipped a beat as Braeburn complimented her. "It was nothing, just a feat of strength, is all." She turned to face the building she had just helped build. "So, this is called a dance hall?" Little Strongheart examined the large and half-finished building with closer detail. "Is a building just for dancing really necessary?"   "Well, everypony here loves to dance, and everypony feels safer inside a buildin'," Braeburn replied matter-of-factly. "Don't you dance in your tribe?" "Yes," Little Strongheart replied excitedly. "I love dancing with everybuffalo. We would dance all night for rituals or celebrations or just for the love of dancing." Little Strongheart closed her eyes as her mind wandered to some of her earliest memories of dancing with her friends and the chief. "We simply dance wherever we have settled at, outside in the open air." Braeburn laughed a little as he got closer to Little Strongheart. "I guess it sounds kinda skittish-like when you put it that way, but everypony really comes out of their shells when they feel safer." He turned back to the building, admiring it and what it will mean to Appleloosa in the coming month. "Feel safer?" Little Strongheart repeated nervously, overtly conscious of the lack of space between herself and Braeburn. She was thankful that Braeburn didn't notice her trembling legs. She closed her eyes, wondering what a dance with Braeburn might look like. She imagined a dark night with just the light of the moon to guide them. Braeburn would turn his head to her and smile, offering a hoof, and she would accept it. They would lean on each other for support as they danced to a slow drum beat next to a large fire. "Lil' Strongheart." He would say to say her name just like that with that charming country voice. "Lil' Strongheart?" He would look at her and say, "Lil' Strongheart!" "Huh!?" Little Strongheart snapped out of her day-dream. "Y-yes?" "You okay? You were kinda spacin' out there." Braeburn placed his forehead right next to hers, the tip of her nose now touching his. "You're kinda warm," he commented with concern. "You should get some rest." "It is nothing." Little Strongheart pulled herself away abruptly, almost falling over from her own sudden reaction. "I-I am just… hungry!" Little Strongheart's stomach took its cue and started to growl. "Uh, buffalo get warm when we are hungry, so I'll be fine once I find something to graze on." "Oh that's all right. If you're hungry, we can go grab a bite to eat together!" Braeburn whinnied, smiling back as he began to lead the way to the Salt Block. "We can get one of them buy-one-get-one-half-off specials!" "Oh, I do not have any bits," Little Strongheart replied, saddened. "I'll just find a nice patch of grass outside of town." "It's no problem that you ain't got bits. It's my treat for helping with the town hall." Braeburn tried to grab Little Strongheart around a foreleg and guide her, but she suddenly fell over with the slightest tug. "Lil' Strongheart, are you alright?" Braeburn turned and offered a hoof to help her up, but Little Strongheart just lay there. "I already took some of your bits before," she replied, slowly getting back to her hooves, "and It would be rude of me to impose any further, so I must decline." "But I don't mind, really!" "No," she insisted, "I cannot keep taking your bits." "In that case, why not get a job 'round here," Braeburn suggested, motioning in the direction of the town bulletin board. "It would be nice to see you 'round more, and then we can have lunch together." "It would?" Little Strongheart stared back, dumbfounded. "You want to see me around here?" "Well, yeah!" Braeburn whinnied again, jumping off his forehooves. "Well then, I guess I will try and get a job." How hard can that be? Braeburn had directed Little Strongheart to the dimly-lit town hall to check the public board space for any job opportunities. She entered into the small building, expecting it to be empty, but instead found a familiar grey pegasus hovering over the flyer-stuffed board. "Derpy?" Derpy-Doo stared intently at the board; flyers and posters were haphazardly plastered all over it, making for a hard-to-read mess. "Hmm. Barbershop in need of another manecutter. Maybe that's my new destiny!" she gleefully announced to no one in particular. "Destiny?" Little Strongheart interrupted Derpy. "What is this about destiny?" Derpy turned to the sudden intruder. She had expected to be alone in this endeavor and wasn't expecting to run into a buffalo here. She waved a hoof and responded, "Hi, Little Bighoof. Are you here looking for a new destiny too?" "It is Little Strongheart," Little Strongheart corrected her. "I said that," Derpy defended. "No you did not." Little Strongheart gave the winged pony an accusing glance, making Derpy fidget a little. "Uh, sorry," Derpy apologized, falling to the floor. "Apology accepted." Little Strongheart turned to the town bulletin board, growing confused with the numerous flyers stuck all over it. "So, do ponies put up destinies on these public boards? I thought jobs were put here." "Well, jobs are destinies," Derpy answered, now hovering above Little Strongheart. "Whatever I do here will create a new Derpy-Doo. Derpy-Doo the mailmare is now a figment of the past. From that figment rises Derpy-Doo the… new thing!" "Are you okay, Derpy?" Little Strongheart asked with concern. "You are sounding odder than usual." "Oh, I'm fine," the odd pegasus answered her, dismissing any concern. "I'm just excited to try out all these new things. It feels like I'm rediscovering my cutie-mark again!" "Cutie-mark?" Little Strongheart had heard these cutie-marks being mentioned many times in her time around ponies, but never understood what exactly it was about. "What is a cutie-mark?" she asked. "You don't know?" Derpy stared at her dumbfounded. "How do you not know what a cutie-mark is?" "Maybe because I am not a pony…" Little Strongheart sighed. She found ponies had a hard time grasping that buffalo did not have these cutie-marks they love to talk about. She changed the subject. "This board contains jobs, right?" "Yep." Derpy replied. "Are you looking for a new destiny too, Little Bighoof?" Little Strongheart noticeably cringed when she heard her name being misinterpreted again, but chose not to pursue the topic. "New destiny?" She tried to wrap her mind around the ominous wording. Was a job for a pony equivalent to a destiny? "Sure, I'm looking for a destiny, if that what these papers are advertising." "That's great!" Derpy spun in the air and turned back to Little Strongheart. "We can seek out a new destiny together." "I think I'll be fine on my own," Little Strongheart replied hesitantly. Derpy's mood fell along with her. "Well, all right." She turned back to the flyers. Little Strongheart hoped she hadn't hurt the flying pony’s feelings, but she didn't want to be side-tracked by such an eccentric pony. Little Strongheart turned back to the board and, much to her annoyance, realized that she couldn't read pony letters. "Actually, I guess we can look for destinies together." "Really! Then I know the perfect one to try first." Derpy grabbed Little Strongheart and dragged her off on their search for destiny. "Oh, great," Little Strongheart told herself. Derpy dragged Little Strongheart to a building with a pair of scissors for a sign. A large baby-blue stallion with a pink cowboy hat and a mean look sat at the front counter. He looked Derpy and Little Strongheart over with confusion. "Are you here for mane cuts?" he asked gruffly. "Nope!" Derpy proudly declared. "We're here because of your help wanted flyer." "I don't know." The baby-blue stallion didn't seem impressed with the two. "You two don't exactly have the cutie-marks for this line of work." "Cutie-mark?" Little Strongheart still had no idea what those were. "Give us a chance," Derpy replied, getting uncomfortably close to the large pony. "I cut my daughters mane all the time!" The barber-pony still didn't look satisfied. "And you?" he turned to Little Strongheart. "Do you have any experience cutting manes?" "Well…" Little Strongheart had never cut a mane, or even fur, before. Buffalo simply let their fur grow out. It was a sign of maturity and wisdom for a buffalo's fur to be big and fluffy. However, this had given her some experience with another aspect of handling fur. "I have done some styling and grooming." Big fluffy fur does require lots of maintenance. The blue pony looked over Little Strongheart, examining her fur. "I guess," he sighed, "that will do. Take a stall and wait for someponies to show." "Righty-oh, boss!" Derpy replied as she glided to a stall. "I understand," Little Strongheart affirmed as she took her place next to a stall. Two ponies walked into the barber shop: a green mare with a red mane, and sandy-coat stallion with a blonde mane. "Welcome to the good, the bad, and the best cuts," the blue stallion called to the two customers. After they exchanged a few words with him, the sandy-coated stallion walked over the Little Strongheart's stall. "Cormano tells me you're good at styling stallions?" he asked while sitting himself in the stall chair. "What?" Little Strongheart returned. "I suppose?" "Well then, get to work," the sandy stallion ordered. "A-all right," Little Strongheart stuttered. She searched her station for a comb, but couldn't find one. "Mr. Owner," she called to the pink-hatted stallion, "I need a comb." "There's one on your left," he agitatedly answered, "and my name is Cormano," he added gruffly. Little Strongheart smiled nervously as she looked to her left. An instrument with numerous bristles along a straight line sat in a cup of water. "This is a comb? Where are the bones?" she asked aloud. "That's a pony comb," her customer replied curtly, eyeing her with dissatisfaction. Little Strongheart berated herself as she took the pony comb and started to brush the stallion's mane. She kept trying to assure herself that this would be no different from handling buffalo fur, and after a while she was really beginning to believe it. "I've got this." "Got what?" the stallion asked. "Nothing," Little Strongheart replied as she brushed back the stallion's mane. "Do you even know what you're doing, buffalo?" the stallion hissed at her. "I don't want no buffalo cuts." "Buffalo cuts?" Little Strongheart repeated, unsure if she should feel offended. "Yeah, that mess of a thing you call a mane-cut." "I do not have a mane," Little Strongheart answered with frustration. "I do not have a mane, I do not know what a cutie mark is, and I do not know anything about mane cuts!" "Then what are you doing at a barbershop!" the sandy stallion roared back, catching Little Strongheart off-guard. "You trying to pull something on me, buffalo?" "I have a name," Little Strongheart replied, trying to stay as calm as possible, "and it is-" "What is this!?" A scream interrupted her, the mare the stallion walked in with in fits about her stylist’s latest work. She roared at Derpy, pointing to her new man's childish design. "I thought you said you have experience cutting manes!" She looked the spitting image of Derpy's daughter, Dinky-Doo. "I do!" Derpy roared back, not backing down and inch. "Why, I think you look as cute as a junebug. Now if only your attitude matched," Derpy spat back at the unappreciative mare. The mare huffed at Derpy and turned to Cormano to complain. "This pegasus has no idea how to cut manes. Exhibit A: my mane!" she yelled. "Terribly sorry," Cormano sighed. "Your next cut is free." Cormano turned to Derpy. "And you, take that buffalo and get out!" "Fine," Derpy replied, sticking her snout in the air. "I have other destinies to try anyway. C'mon, Little Bighoof!" "Wait, what?" Little Strongheart suddenly found herself being dragged out by Derpy, comb still in hoof. "My name is Little Strongheart!" she yelled as the barber shop disappeared from view. The Salt Block was in the middle of the lunch rush, and they had been lacking in waiters for a long time. Derpy had dragged Little Strongheart all the way from the barber shop to the eating establishment. She bucked open the doors and proudly said, "We're here for your job opening!" "What she said," Little Strongheart added, still taken aback by Derpy's forceful nature. "Hey, Little Strongheart!" a familiar voice called out to her. Little Strongheart's head almost snapped off her body as she turned to face the familiar and charming voice. "B-Braeburn?" she stuttered. There, sitting at a table with a menu between his hooves, sat Braeburn, seated next to Carrot Top. He waved at her and with a smile called, "Here to finally grab some lunch? You should join us." Carrot Top's jaw fell open. She wanted to say something, to shoo away the buffalo and secure her alone time with Braeburn, but she doubted that would make her look very good in his eyes. "N-no," Little Strongheart stuttered. "I'm looking for a destiny, like you said?" "Destiny?" Braeburn echoed. "What’s this about destiny?" "Isn't that what you call a job?" Little Strongheart asked as she was dragged away by Derpy. She was dragged to the manager's office, where a salty-looking stallion sat behind a desk piled with papers. "You're here for the waiter job?" the manager asked curtly. "Waiting?" Little Strongheart echoed. "As in, just waiting for something?" The manager shot a curious glance at the pair before him: a buffalo with little sense about pony life, and a curious pegasus mare who was staring at something else. "No, as in taking food orders. Do you know how to do that, buffalo?" "I can learn," Little Strongheart replied back. "How hard can it be?" "Famous last words," the manager huffed. "With that attitude I should just kick you out now," he threatened, "but I need waiters, and you two are the only idiots available." "With an attitude like that, it's no wonder you need waiters," Derpy retorted. "Isn't a manager supposed to treat his employees with respect?" she argued. "You're not my employees, yet," the manager growled. "Now then, are you going to wait, or not?" To Little Strongheart, it sounded like a threat. "Oh, we'll wait all right!" Derpy exclaimed. "We'll wait like our lives depend on it!" "Good, because they do," the manager answered her. "What!?" was all Little Strongheart got to say before an apron was thrown over her and a notepad and pencil shoved in her mouth. "Okay, just take orders and give them to the cooking pony. I can do this!" she cheered herself on. "Service!" Braeburn called out. Little Strongheart steeled herself. "This is it, your time to shine, Little Bighoof… I mean… dang it." She walked up to Braeburn's table and said, "I'm here to wait for you." "I think you mean; can I take your order," Carrot Top corrected her. "Oh, can I take your order," Little Strongheart repeated, feeling a little embarrassed. "I'll have a double daisy burger with a side of hay fries," Braeburn answered. "Easy on the mustard." "I'll have…" Carrot Top paused for a long time before sighing in resignation. "Just a carrot salad and some water." She didn't seem very excited about the order. "All right," Little Strongheart wrote down the order and trotted off to the kitchen. She hung the order on a cylindrical metal-rack. "Who is next for waiting?" "Over here," a pony called to her. "Coming!" Little Strongheart answered. Twenty minutes passed and Little Strongheart and Derpy continued to run from one end of the building to the other to catch everyone's order and Little Strongheart was feeling slightly accomplished. She was afraid she would mess up with the barbershop job, but this job was so ridiculously simple that nothing could go wrong. "Lil' Strongheart," Braeburn called to her. "Yes?" She trotted up to the table, confident that this time she'll be able to impress the impossibly cute stallion. "Where's our food? Its kind ‘a been awhile." "The cooking pony hasn't finished it, I am assuming," Little Strongheart answered. From previous dining experiences in the town of Appleloosa she knew that a separate pony did the cooking and would call her when the order was ready. "I will go ask him." Little Strongheart barged into the kitchen to find the only chef curled in a corner reading a book. "Hello, are you not supposed to be cooking?" "I would be if I could read the orders," he replied. "What?" Little Strongheart turned to the orders she had written up. They were perfectly legible. The doors to the manager's office literally exploded as the bull of a pony trampled into the kitchen. "You two!" He pointed a hoof at Little Strongheart and the chef. "Why am I getting complaints from hungry customers!?" "Well, boss-pony, check out the order sheets," the chef said, motioning to the rather cluttered ring of orders. The manager tore a few sheets off of the ring. His face looked like it was going to boil off as he turned to Little Strongheart and the chef. "What is this!?" he yelled as she shoved a few orders onto Little Strongheart. Little Strongheart looked at Derpy's orders and noticed she had drawn the orders rather exquisitely. "These are beautiful!" Little Strongheart couldn't believe that the Derpy mare could draw so well. "I don’t see any problem here, Mr. Manager." "First: You write the orders," the manager growled. "Second: You write the orders in pony! Not in buffalo!" he roared. If reality was a hammer, it just hit Little Strongheart. "Oops, I don't know pony letters." "I figured," snapped the manager. "Tell your feather-head friend that you both are out of here! And you!" The manager turned to the chef and began his verbal beat down on him, who took it all in strides. "Stupid manager," Derpy steamed. The two of them were once again in front of the town board looking for a job. "It was an honest mistake!" "Yes, it was a mistake." Little Strongheart vented. "Do you see anything else on the board that we can try?" "The local Applemart needs some checkout clerks!" Derpy stated with passion. "Let's not keep out destinies waiting, Little Bighoof!" "It's Strongheart," Little Strongheart sighed. "I said that." Derpy continued to deny any mistake. Appleloosa's Applemart was home to all manner of apples for the apple-loving ponies of Appleloosa. The store itself was small, with crates filled with apples lines up to make aisles. At the front of the store was a single counter for checkout. "I had no idea there were so many different types of apples," Little Strongheart commented as she examined each of the crates. "What are these?" "Braeburn apples," Derpy responded, hovering over the crates with a look of hunger in her eyes. "Braeburn apples!?" Little Strongheart stared intently at the apple, expecting to find some likeness of Braeburn on the fruit. "I had no idea Braeburn had how own apple." "No, he's named after the apple," Derpy explained to her. "Not the other way around." "What?" Little Strongheart inspected the apple again. "You name each other after apples? Ponies have such a weird naming convention." Little Strongheart looked at the apples uncomfortably and turned away. "I don't think I can be comfortable eating Braeburn." "Are you two here for the position?" a yellow-coated pony asked, emerging from a room in the back. "Yep!" Derpy answered her, flying in front of her to shake her hoof. "I'm Derpy, and this is Little Bighoof." "Little Strongheart," Little Strongheart corrected her. "All right, nice to meet you girls. I'm the manager here, Apple Bumpkin," The manager answered with a smile. "I'll need you girls to work the counter for today. When customers show, sell them apples. I'll go grab list of our prices you can reference with. I'll be right back." Apple Bumpkin zipped off to the back-room of the store. Little Strongheart inwardly cursed. She knew she wouldn't be able to read the sheet and that this was likely to end badly. "Looks like another failure is ahead of me," she sighed. "Don't talk like that!" Derpy landed in front of Little Strongheart, taking hold of her head and lifting it up to meet her own. "You've gotta remain positive, Little Bighoof." "I would like to, but I can't read pony letters," she admitted, feeling oddly embarrassed about it. She never had any reason to learn to read pony, but now here she was, lost in the world of pony culture with an eccentric pegasus for a guide. "That's kind of why I've been following you. You can read the board and I cannot. I am sorry if you feel used." "It's all right," Derpy let go of Little Strongheart's face and wrapped her in a hug. "In my old line of work ponies would use me all the time. I'm used to it." "But... that is terrible!" Little Strongheart exclaimed, feeling more guilty for it. "Don't you ever feel sad about it?" "I would if I didn't have friends and family that remind me every day that I am loved," the warm pegasus told her. "So I get up every day, haul my plot to my job, and work as hard as I can for them. I've got a daughter to raise and it's my true destiny to raise her and see she grows up to be as great as I know she can be." Derpy finally let go of that hug, and on her face was a small serene smile, as if everything in the world made sense to her. Little Strongheart felt silly; she wanted a job just as a convincing excuse to be around Braeburn, but Derpy needed a job to raise her daughter, and the whole time she had thought the crazy mare to be just that, a crazy mare. Instead, before her stood a strong pegasus who never gave up despite all their set-backs. "Derpy, I had no idea this meant that much to you." "I'm a pony of many blankets," Derpy joked. "Now let's sell some apples!" "Yes, let us sell apples," Little Strongheart repeated, letting Derpy's enthusiasm guide her actions. "Glad to see you girls have more passion than my last employees." Apple Bumpkin had returned with a couple of pamphlets for Derpy and Little Strongheart hugged against herself. "I overheard that you can't read pony, Miss Strongheart?" "I'm sorry, but I can't read pony letters. You would not happen to have something written in buffalo?" "Actually," Apple Bumpkin galloped to the back of the store and returned, hauling a rather large sign. "When I heard we would start doing business with your tribe I was able to get another pony who knows buffalo to write this. Of course it's not till after I pay him that I realized buffalo don't have bits. Is this readable?" "Yes!" Little Strongheart exclaimed ecstatically. "I can read this perfectly, thank you." "It's no problem." Apple Bumpkin smiled back at the two, "you can have two apples at lunch-break; don't let me down." She returned to the back room to continue her paperwork. "Lucky break, huh?" Derpy giggled. "I think you have a saying that goes 'third time is the charm'?" Little Strongheart started giggling as well; the laughter between the two slowly growing louder and more jubilant. "Then this is it!" Derpy declared, pumping her hooves in the air and rising with a single beat of her wings. "As of now, our destinies are to sell apples! Did you get a cutie-mark?" "I still don't know what those are." Business was slow at first, giving ample opportunity for Derpy and Little Strongheart to get the hang of the job. They would consult their respective charts on the prices of different apples and then take the bits and secure them in a bit-slot vault under the counter. As time went on more and more customers began to show, customers hungry from a day of work and looking for something to snack on. "That will be four bits, sir," Little Strongheart told the old mare at the counter. "You raising the price on me, buffalo?" the customer spat back, poking and offending hoof at her. "I know you're cheating me, buffalo!" "Is there a problem here?" Apple Bumpkin stood behind the irate customer, wearing a fake smile and hoping she can disarm any situation. "If you have any complaints, you can address them to me, the manager here." "This buffalo raised the price on me!" the customer continued to rant obnoxiously. "You can't trust them, y'know! Golden delicious apples used to be three bits. Now it's four? This buffalo wants my bits!" "Ma'am, the golden delicious apples’ price has been raised. If you don't like it, go shop somewhere else. I think the next town is only fifty miles west," she said with a smirk and sarcastic humor. "Fine!" the crusty mare shoved four bits onto the table, took her apple, and left with a huff. "Sorry, some ponies haven't really gotten over the incident awhile back," Apple Bumpkin sighed, apologizing for the nature of some the less friendly ponies in town. "Please, believe me that they are the minority here in Appleloosa." "It's alright," Little Strongheart answered. "I know not to expect forgiveness from all the ponies here. Even some buffalo aren’t very happy with the current set up of attempting to share the stampeding-land, but Chief Thunderhooves keeps everybuffalo in line." "Sheriff Silver-Star and Braeburn do their best here for that. My big brother has a tough job ahead of him," she sighed. "Wait, you're related to Braeburn?" the love-struck buffalo gasped. "Yeah, why?" "Uh, well-" "She has a crush on him," Derpy answered for her. "Derpy!?" Little Strongheart jumped at the pony, who simply flew over her. "I bet you want to ask her for some kind of hoof up on winning over Braeburn from Carrot Top." "What?" Apple Bumpkin gawked. "You have a crush on my lug of a brother? A pony so thick that getting bucked in the head was liable to make him smarter?" "Well… yes," Little Strongheart admitted. "Aren’t you on Carrot Top's side, Derpy?" "Oh yeah," Derpy realized, her mouth hanging open for a moment before snapping together. "Scratch away everything I said!" "Can I buy some bucking apples already!" the next customer in line cursed. "You can talk about your love lives later, I'm hungry!" "Oh, yes, of course," Apple Bumpkin replied. "Back to work, girls." Closing time was just around the corner. After hours of handling bits and selling apples for half the day, Derpy and Little Strongheart finally got their break. The two slumped onto the counter, mentally exhausted from having to deal with so many ponies. To Little Strongheart’s relief she didn't have to deal with any more bigoted ponies. In all truth, she was beginning to have fun. "Thanks, Derpy," the tired buffalo admitted. "Huh, what did I do?" the exhausted pagasus asked, slouched over on the counter. "Thanks to you, this day turned out pretty nice," she laughed. "I did not think I would have had this much fun if I tried to search for destiny on my own." "I've had lots of fun with you too, Little Bigfoot." "It's Little Strongheart." "I said that," the both of them said at the same time before bursting into laughter. "All right, girls, it’s quitting time." Apple Bumpkin appeared again, her mane ragged and eyes dropping from a long day of work. "You girls did well. If I ever need help again I'll know who to turn to." "You mean we can't be full-time?" Derpy asked, feeling dejected. "We worked really hard and I think we did a pretty good job." "Sorry, but today was a special case. I needed to do paperwork, but tomorrow I'll be a counter jockey again. It doesn't take a lot of pony power to run this place, but you're still getting paid for today, don't worry." she assured them, hoping not to get their spirits too down about the temporary job. "I think fifty bits each should be enough." "Thank you," Little Strongheart replied. Even if she couldn't find a job she could be happy about finally pay back Braeburn for buying her lunch before. "I am grateful for the employment you could provide for us today." "It's no problem, Miss Strongheart. You girls are the ones that did me a favor anyhow. You can go ahead and wait outside. I'll meet you outside with your pay after locking up." Derpy and Little Strongheart exited the little grocery store. Outside the sun had begun to set, coating the city with a brilliant orange. "It's beautiful!" Derpy exclaimed. "Appleloosa looks so nice in this light." "Excuse me," a stout stallion interrupted her, "is this the Applemart? Is it closing?" "If you hurry, you might be able to buy a few apples," Little Strongheart informed him. "Thank you." The stallion bowed and left them to buy apples. "What a polite stallion," Derpy replied. The doors of the mart burst open as the stallion they just met ran out of the mart with Apple Bumpkin attempting to follow. "Stop, thief!" she yelled. "Thief? He stole something?" Derpy shot back. "Somepony, call the police ponies!" Little Strongheart exploded with energy as she took off after the thief. In her tribe, theft was met with swift and harsh punishments and she was going to introduce this pony to that aspect of her culture, buffalo style. "You won't out-stampede me!" she yelled at the thief as he ducked into an alleyway. Little Strongheart skidded past the alley as she tried to brake. "Dang it." Derpy just managed to catch up with the buffalo. "Where is he?" she asked. "He's in the alley." "I'll fly overhead, you just stay close," Derpy told her as she skyrocketed upwards. "He's making his way to the south gate!" "I can get there first!" Little Strongheart dug her hooves into the ground and threw herself forward, building up momentum and exploding twice forward. She raced to cut off the thief before he could escape. "He's almost there!" Derpy yelled back. "Can you cut him off?" Little Strongheart asked. "I'll try!" Derpy dive-bombed through the air. The thief saw her coming and stopped himself, skidding to a stop as Derpy completely missed him. "Hah! How's that, birdbrain!" he yelled at Derpy only to be completely run over by Little Strongheart moments later. "I've got you, thief." Little Strongheart yelled as she pinned the thief to the ground and Derpy joined her moments later. "So what now?" she asked Derpy. "That was incredible," a gruff voice called to the two. A brown pony with a blue vest and a silver-star badge approached the ponies. "Well I'll be, you caught Slim Jim." "Slim Jim?" Little Strongheart repeated. "Who's that?" "This is," the silver-starred pony answered her, digging his own hoof into the fat thief’s back. "You two do good work. By any chance, what do you think about becoming officers of the law?" Braeburn had been chaperoning Carrot Top around town all day. The poor mare seemed to have no sense of direction and needed his help to locate just about every single place. They had been searching all throughout town for some possible replacement tools for her broken ones, but found almost nothing to replace anything with, and now had to lead Carrot Top home. "Here we are Miss Top. Home sweet home!" "Thank you, Braeburn," Carrot Top replied. "Would you like to come in for some coffee? I've got a full night’s work ahead of me so I need to cook some coffee beans anyway," Carrot Top complained. "Dirt, I swear it's more trouble than it's worth." "I guess I could go for a lil'," Braeburn replied. "Got any cinnamon?" "Maybe," Carrot Top replied. "Careful not to wake up Dinky." The two ponies tip-hoofed into the dark little shack, only for a certain pegasus to burst into the hovel as loudly as possible. "Carrot Top! I got a new destiny!" Derpy exclaimed. "As of now, I am a pony of the law. My destiny: delivering justice." "Celestia help us," Carrot Top whimpered. "Oh!" Derpy shot up. "I have to go somewhere!" The buffalo tribe awed in amazement over Little Strongheart's shiny silver-star badge. Pride was not something Little Strongheart liked to indulge in, but she was too filled with accomplishment to care for the time being. Bringing back a crate of apples also helps to impress her tribe. "Little Strongheart," Chief Thunderhooves approached her, "I am quite proud of you, helping our pony neighbors in dispensing with thieves and scoundrels." "Thank you, chief," Little Strongheart replied. "I am told that this star is a symbol of my rank in pony society. I am also told it has my name on it, but it's written in pony." "Still, be proud of your accomplishments. It's always a good thing when those who would steal from others are caught and dealt with. Let us dance!" Chief Thunderhooves announced, cheering from across the tribe joining him. In the light of the moon, Little Strongheart danced with all her friends and family. No, there was an important friend missing from this. "I'm here!" Derpy announced as she dropped out of the sky. "Derpy, I'm glad you could make it," Little Strongheart replied. "Welcome to my tribe." "I told you I wouldn't miss it!" The two friends danced the night away, their silver star badges gleaming in the night light. They read: Derpy-Doo and Little Bighoof.