It was another sunny day in Ponyville, its citizens walking about exchanging pleasantries and buying produce and everyday needs from the market. A particularly dizty pegasus was happily strolling along, minding her own business while somehow failing to notice the occasional crate or pony being knocked to the ground in her wake. To everyone's relief, the grey pony finally found the stall she was after and came to a stop. She looked at the apples for sale and licked her lips hungrily, eyeing the produce.
“Well howdy Derpy!” greeted the stall owner, an orange earth pony with a stetson sitting atop her head.
“Heya Applejack!” responded Derpy, with a large grin.
“What can ah get for you today?”
The grey pegasus looked at the wide selection of apples for sale, scrutinising them with her wall-eyed stare.
“Hmm,” she hummed, “I think I’ll have three golden delicious and a couple of galas today.”
“Comin' right up!”
With a dexterous flick of her hoof, the apple seller picked up the required apples and dropped them into one of Derpy’s saddlebags.
“That’ll be three bits,” smiled Applejack.
As Derpy was about to search for the right amount of currency, she noticed a discarded cardboard box lying behind the stall. The pegasus let out a huge gasp as she pointed her hoof at the object.
“H-how much for that box, Applejack?” she stammered, her excitement apparent.
The mare looked around confusedly and spotted the large, flimsy cardboard box. Turning back she stared at Derpy with a raised eyebrow.
“Uh, well ah wasn’t really selling it, ah just used it to carry some items with me to the market today-”
“I’ll give you five bits!” shouted Derpy.
“No, it’s ok-”
“Alright, you drive a hard bargain, ten bits!”
The pegasus threw the money at Applejack before she could respond and flew around the stall to snatch the object. Derpy then zoomed off into the sky, cardboard box dangling from her hooves. Applejack stood there for a second, before sighing and calling out to the next customer in line. It was going to be one of those days wasn’t it.
Crash landing through the open window of her house, Derpy rolled to a stop and placed the box on the ground. With a giggle, she rummaged through some drawers until she found what she was looking for, a black marker. With a 'squee' the pony took off the lid and, using her mouth, started to write on the front flap of the box.
“Um… Mum, what are you doing?” came an inquisitive voice from the kitchen.
Standing in the doorway was a small unicorn holding a half eaten slice of toast in her magic. Derpy gave her daughter a cuddle.
“You'll see, sweetie!” she announced, before flying out the open window.
Ten minutes later, Derpy placed the box down in the market square, between a carrot stall and flower stall. Both vendor ponies turned to look curiously at their friend's antics. Derpy smirked triumphantly and then stepped into the box and sat down with her snout poking over the top. Her tail wagged as she smiled happily. Both the two stall owners looked at one another and then walked towards her.
“Derpy what...” was all Carrot Top could say before she read the words written on the front.
'FREE Hugs'
“You're giving out… hugs?” asked Roseluck, who came to stand next to Carrot.
“Yep!” exclaimed Derpy, “But not just any hugs… free hugs!”
Carrot and Rose looked at one another in bemusement. Carrot scratched the back of her head confusedly, “Do you normally charge for your hugs?”
Derpy let out a cry of shock, “I would never do that!”
“So then why specify that they're free?”
“So that everypony knows that they are.”
Carrot looked at Derpy, and Derpy looked at Carrot. Carrot Top shook her head as she walked back to her stand, “You do you Derpy.”
Roseluck stepped forward and smiled at her friend, “I'd like a free hug Derpy.”
Derpy cheered and wrapped her arms around Roseluck, “My first customer!”
Roseluck laughed and then broke the hug, “Anyway, I'd better go back to my stall. Seeya Derpy!”
“Have a great day Roseluck!”
Roseluck walked back to her stall with a smile. Derpy sat back down inside her box and waited for her next customer.
Around thirty minutes had passed, and while a few ponies looked at Derpy's box with interest, no one had actually come over for a hug. That was, until a pink pony appeared.
“Oooooh, hiya Derpy! You giving out free hugs?” exclaimed Pinkie Pie, the town's premium party pony.
“Apparently it needs to be specified that they're free,” called out Carrot Top from her stall.
“Of course it does, so everypony knows that they are!” giggled Pinkie.
Carrot Top groaned and put a hoof to her face.
Pinkie gave Derpy an extra hug and then continued on. A few ponies who had seen the party pony accept the hug and came over to see what all the fuss was about. The bubbly pegasus was more than happy to oblige. Before long there was a small line in front of Derpy's box. Carrot Top was looking over in ever-increasing bewilderment.
The day carried on and it seemed that more than half of the town had received one of Derpy's hugs.
“Why don't you come get a hug Carrot Top?” asked Derpy when the line had thinned.
Carrot had been staring at Derpy for a while now, and looked away in embarrassment.
“Uh, no I'm alright Derpy. I don't need any hugs.”
“Don't be silly everypony needs hugs, at least sometimes!” countered the pegasus.
Before Carrot could respond the ground shook.
BANG
“What is THAT?” cried Roseluck.
BANG
Ponies looked around in alarm as the shaking got louder and louder. The large, rumbling footsteps shook the surroundings as a massive creature came into view. It was an evil looking monster, standing on two legs, it had jet black skin and blood red eyes.
“HELLO PUNY PONIES. I HAVE COME TO YOUR NATION TO DESTROY WHAT YOU HOLD DEAR, AND LAUGH AS YOUR SCREAMS SHATTER THIS QUIET AFTERNOON.”
There was a pause, and then all the ponies in the area scampered, screaming all the while. Doors slammed, and windows were boarded up, but you could just make out ponies peeking out from their safety.
The only one who hadn't moved was a certain grey pegasus.
“Hiya!” she spoke.
The massive creature stomped to the pony in a box and towered over her. Carrot Top was watching from around the side of a house in horror.
“AH, IS THIS MY FIRST VICTIM OF THE DAY?” the beast bellowed.
“If by victim, you mean victim of hugs, then yes!”
The big hulking mass stopped for a moment, before squinting at the words written on the box. He mumbled the words to himself.
“Free...hugs?”
“That's right! Free hugs,” smiled the pegasus.
“WHY WOULD I, THE GREAT GRUMIO ZUL NEED A HUG?”
“Well, everyone needs a hug some times. Even big scary looking creatures like you!”
The monster paused for a second, obviously quite confused as to why this pony was, not just running from his presence, but seemingly happy to be talking with him.
“WELL,” he spoke at last, “I HAVEN'T REALLY HUGGED ANYONE IN A LONG TIME.”
Derpy looked shocked, “Really? This needs to be fixed right away!”
The huge hulking monster looked like he wanted to rebuke her statement but before he could, the pegasus had put both arms around one of his legs in a hug. He was speechless, he'd crushed many towns and civilisations on his way here, he was a monster plain and simple, he was the fear that wrapped itself around the hearts of many! He was… he was…
He was alone!
Before the Great Grumio Zul knew it he was bawling his eyes out and babbling to the pegasus.
“I'm so alone! I haven't had a friend in over a century and no one talks to me… not even the other villains of this world, they're all too scared of me!”
Derpy patted the monster on the leg with a sympathetic expression, “There there Mr Zul. It'll be alright.”
Derpy helped the monster pull himself together and the two talked for a little while before they parted.
“Thanks for the kind words Miss. You really are a great pony,” Grumio Zul said
“Aw, no problem!” blushed Derpy, “I'm just glad I could help you out!”
He gave her a smile and then walked back the way he came, whistling as he did. As he disappeared over the horizon Twilight and her friends all ran into the scene and battalion of guards behind them.
“Where is he?” called Twilight, out of breath.
“Who?” asked Derpy.
“Grumio Zul! The great destroyer! Get into hiding Derpy he's around here somewhere!” cried Twilight.
“Oh, it's alright Princess Twilight! Mr Zul just left, he just needed a good hug is all.”
“I-you...what?!”
Roseluck walked out of her hiding place behind a bin and came over, looking like she was about to cry, “It's true Princess! It was so horrible, he was going to destroy Ponyville but then Derpy gave him a hug and that changed his mind!”
Twilight seemed unable to find the words to respond, in the end she did the biggest of facehooves and her friends all sighed in relief, except for Pinkie who was giggling happily and bouncing on her hooves.
“You idiot Derpy!” came a voice from behind the pegasus. Looking around, Derpy saw Carrot Top standing there her eyes tearing up and her lip trembling, “You could have been hurt!”
Derpy walked over to her friend and looked at her sympathetically, “It's alright Carrot Top, there there,” and she gave her friend a free hug.