With Hearth's Warming drawing nearer, few ponies are kept quite as busy as mailmare Derpy Hooves with as she fulfills her numerous deliveries and responsibilities to the residents of Ponyville. At their behest, however, the wall-eyed pegasus finds herself trading her winter garb for summer duds as she takes some time off work for herself this holiday season.
Little does she realize that certain strings are being pulled together behind the scenes, culminating in a holiday surprise that Derpy could never have expected!
As requested by publiq for Jinglemas 2023. Hope you enjoy!
Cover art by me 
Chapters (3)
very nice
cute
11784392
Thanks, glad to hear you're enjoying it!
that was lovely and 3 cheers or Dinky!
11784395
found it though it being added to the group, cant belive i am the first commenter here
Derpy is every bit as overworked as I am this winter—and I’m already in a tropical paradise! How delightfully topical. Calling Matilda a jenny was a nice touch. Always appreciate horse-isms in stories.
Since your story description says you also made the cover art, I’ll use here as the place to say that the simplistic design looks great and fits the story.
11784393
Which part did you find cuter, the pegasi gliding over the waves to find the perfect dive zone (so they don’t hesitate due to cold hooves) or imagining them shaking their undulating manes like IRL horses to dry off?
11790981
i have no idea what you mean, i just liked it in general
Derpy is so me. Never being able to enjoy yourself because you care too much about quality to trust your replacements will do the job right while you’re away—the story of my work life. Burnout is soon to follow without gestures of appreciation like Derpy received.
Sadly, my home neighborhood has been churning through mailmen this past year. In years past, we’d have the same mail carrier for at least a year at a time, so we’d know his (or her) name when it was time to make Christmas cards for him.
One more thing: mechanics-wise, I appreciated how you integrated dialogue and prose. My writing is often way, way too heavy into dialogue and reads like a screenplay. Will save this story for future stylistic reference.
11790820
Thanks, wanted to make sure I gave your prompt the justice it deserved!
11790981
Thanks for your feedback on the art! Kinda settled for that particular art style given the time frame, but I'm happy that you thought it fit well!
11793503
I really appreciate that, wanted to make sure it didnt feel too heavy one way or the other. I feel like I've learned a lot about balancing dialogue and description since I first started uploading to this site that I'm excited to keep working at it in the future!