Flash gave the list of names and addresses to Pinkie Pie feeling much better rested than he was expecting to be. To Flash’s complete utter shock, by the time he had finished working, Pinkie Pie had selected and packaged a gift for every child on the list. She had wanted to send the toys out all at once, but Flash talked her down to sending them two at a time, reasoning that he wouldn’t be able to carry all the packages down to the post office.
Of course, Flash had other reasons for not wanting to send out so many packages at once. The primary one was that he did not want to suddenly overwhelm Night Light with a drastically increased workload. Additionally, according to Night Light, that first delivery had put him in front of the business end of a shotgun. Flash figured that sending the presents out gradually would minimize the risk of Night Light getting killed by a sour, paranoid townsperson.
Although confused by the strange packages Flash was bringing for him to deliver, Night Light didn’t question Flash’s purpose or intentions behind them. In fact, after just two days of deliveries, he was starting to look forward to them. True, he ended up being threatened by suspicious parents the first few times, but as word got out about the mysterious toy deliveries, the threats gradually decreased.
It was the same story with every delivery. Night Light would knock on the door, and a distrustful, cantankerous parent would answer the door only to be pushed aside by one or multiple curious kids. Night would give the children the package, the children would open the package and be greeted by a burst of cake-scented confetti. During the first few deliveries, the confetti spray would scare the children, but everyone quickly realized that the confetti was harmless. Now, it just made the kids laugh. Finally, the kids would take the toys out of the box and play with them with wide smiles on their faces, and Night Light would smile back at their straight-faced parents and tip his hat goodbye.
However, Flash realized that he and Pinkie overlooked one small detail in their quest to bring joy the town of Griepsburg.
“How are we going to get packages down for Mr. Light to deliver tomorrow?” Flash asked his cheerful, pink friend. It was the day before Flash’s day off, and they had once again met up in the early, sunless hours of the morning before the workday would start.
“Yeah, you’re right. You’re not going to be here tomorrow,” Pinkie agreed. “Ooh, you could come up here early, get the packages, and run back.”
Flash winced. Tomorrow was his one day to get some extra sleep, and he was reluctant to give that up.
“Or we could tell your family what we’re doing and have Limestone help by bringing them down with all the stuff she’s going to sell,” Flash suggested.
“Ugh,” Pinkie groaned sprawling over the table exasperatedly. Flash didn’t think making Pinkie annoyed was possible, but there she was, face-down on the table, annoyed. “I wish we could, but there’s no way Pa and Limestone will get onboard. If it was just Ma, Maud, and Marble, we might have a chance, but Pa and Limestone are just as stubborn as the rocks on this mountain.”
Flash frowned as he began to realize the full implications of what Pinkie Pie just said. “So, you’re just going to keep all this and everything we’ve been doing a secret from them forever?”
Pinkie groaned again before whining, “I really, really, REALLY don’t want to, but, oooh! I don’t know. Ugh, if Granny were still here, she’d totally be onboard with this, and she’d be able to get Pa and Limestone onboard too.”
“So, why don’t you just tell them this is what your granny would have wanted?”
“Because I already tried that argument when I tried to convince her and Pa to let me throw a party. Limestone got really mad at me and yelled at me about how Granny’s gone forever and how not even all the parties in the world can bring her back.”
“They can’t,” Flash noted with a sad sigh, “but that doesn’t mean what she lived for had to die with her.”
“Oh my gosh! Yes!” Pinkie cheered in agreement. “That’s exactly what I think too, but Limestone and Pa don’t seem to see it that way. Sometimes, I feel like I’m the only one left in my family who still wants to remember Granny.”
Flash bit his lip as he contemplated his and Pinkie’s options. Maybe it was the uncharacteristically sad tone in her voice or the miserable expression on her face as she sprawled across the table or the way her hair seemed to deflate as they talked, but he just couldn’t bring himself to further argue against her. He gritted his teeth and sighed. Boy, was he going to miss those extra few hours of sleep!
“Fine, I’ll come early to take the gifts we want Mr. Light to deliver tomorrow,” Flash conceded, “and you can tell your family about this when you’re ready to.”
“Really? Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!” Pinkie cheered, her hair seeming to reinflate itself as she pulled Flash into a crushing hug.
“Just so we’re clear,” Flash began, pulling away from her, “you are going to tell your family about this, right? I know you’re having trouble seeing eye to eye with them right now, but keeping this all a secret from them just doesn’t sit well with me.”
“Ugh! I know, and you know what else I know? I also know that Granny Pie wouldn’t want me to be hiding this from them. That only secrets that woman kept were her surprise parties, which were legendary by the way, and those secrets didn’t stay secret for very long.”
Later that night, Flash, Base, and their hosts were once again having supper together. Ever since Flash and Pinkie began sending toys to the children of Griepsburg, Night Light would return home and tell the family all about what had happened during the day’s deliveries. He could hardly contain his joy as he recounted what had happened to the rest of his family, and soon, everyone began to look forward to the postman’s nightly tales. Even Twilight had difficulty hiding her interest.
“You know, I can’t remember the last time I’ve loved my job this much,” Night Light remarked. “I mean, I’ve always loved being a postman, but there’s just something special about seeing your job give someone else the same joy it gives you.”
“And who do have to thank for that?” Shining Armor ribbed, bumping Flash with his elbow.
“Who?” Flash asked, feigning ignorance.
“Oh, come now. Don’t be so modest,” said Ms. Velvet. “Having Miss Pinkie mail those toys to those kids was your idea, wasn’t it?”
“Well, Pinkie was the one who made and wrapped the toys. I had nothing to do with that part.”
“Speaking of that friend of yours, when are we going to get a chance to meet her?” First Base asked. “She sounds fun.”
“When we find time in the day to take a two-hour hike just to hang out with her,” Flash replied, frowning slightly. “I’d bring her down here to meet everyone, but I get the feeling that her parents and her sister aren’t too keen about letting her leave their property.”
“You know, during my deliveries, I’ve heard most of the kids, and even some of their parents telling me to thank whoever sent the toys,” Night Light continued. “It’s too bad no one in this town writes letters. If they did, they’d be able to thank Miss Pinkie themselves, and I’d have an excuse to go up there and meet her.”
As soon as those words reached Flash’s ears, a deeply pensive look crossed his face. Flash wasn’t aware he was making that face, and no one else seemed aware of it either. Twilight, however, noticed that look and shuddered in fear of what she thought Flash was thinking of.
That night, Flash waited until he was sure everyone else was asleep before slipping out of bed and sneaking down from the attic. He was going to be up earlier than normal anyway. What’s another couple of hours short of sleep? Besides, he needed to talk to Twilight privately, and he might not get another chance to do it. He was planning on going outside Twilight’s room and knocking on her door, but to his surprise, she was already waiting for him at the dining table.
“Good evening,” she greeted. The stern glare on her face remained unchanging.
“Oh, Twilight,” Flash replied. “I was just coming down to try to talk to you.”
“I figured you might.” Twilight continued to glare at him, saying, “I don’t know what crazy idea you came up with over dinner tonight, but you best leave me and my family out of it.”
“But,” Flash protested, “can’t you just hear me out first before you shut me down like that?”
“Your idea involves having Cadance teach the children in town how to write letters and having my father take them up the mountain to your little friend, doesn’t it?”
Flash stared back at her dumbfoundedly and uttered, “Okay, umm, was I that obvious?”
“To your credit, no, no, you weren’t. I’m just the smartest person in this house,” Twilight scoffed.
Flash grimaced, feeling thoroughly off-put by Twilight’s condescending attitude, not only towards him but to the rest of her family as well. However, he elected to ignore how offended he felt in favor of asking Twilight what he actually wanted to ask her.
“Okay, you don’t seem to like the idea,” Flash began, “but I need your help with it.”
“Well, forget it. Good gosh, do you just enjoy being a burden to other people?”
“Excuse me!”
“First, you and your brother move into our attic and eat off our table. Then, you get my father involved delivering packages to the town on top of all the work he’s already doing. Now, you want to give Cadance more work by having her teach illiterate children how to read and write and send my father up and down the mountains on a regular basis on top of everything he already has to do?”
Flash took a deep breath and slowly released it. He was so angry at Twilight that he was about to start yelling at her, but he had to be considerate of his hosts and his brother who were all probably still asleep. He slowly inhaled and exhaled another breath just for good measure.
“Firstly,” Flash began, “my brother and I have nowhere else to go unless you’d rather have us sleep in the streets and pick through the garbage. Secondly, Mr. Light is only making two deliveries a day, and if I hadn’t talked Pinkie out of it, he’d be doing a lot more. Besides, he seems to enjoy making the deliveries a lot more than what he’s doing to put food on the table for you all. Finally, I KNOW my idea is extremely inconvenient. Why do you think I went to you first instead of just trying to make it happen on my own? I figured that if anyone was smart enough to work out all the snags in my idea, it was you. I also figured that if I could get you onboard, I’d have an easier time convincing the rest of your family.”
“Why are you trying to get Cadance to teach and my father to deliver letters in the first place?” Twilight asked. “How does giving Father and Cadance the opportunity to do the jobs they came to do but couldn’t benefit you or your brother in any way?” Twilight paused before continuing, “For that matter, how does having my father deliver toys to children benefit you or your mountain girl friend?”
“Why do we need to get something out of it for us to want to do it?” Flash pointed out.
“Why would you be doing it if you didn’t get anything out of it?” Twilight retorted. “I know you and Pinkie Pie have some reason for doing everything you’re doing, and I demand to know what it is.”
Flash sighed and stared at her. Twilight could tell from the way he was looking at her that he was getting irritated by her, but she didn’t care. In fact, she regarded Flash’s annoyance of her as payback for all the times she found him annoying and was quite glad.
Meanwhile, Flash frowned as he carefully thought about how to answer Twilight’s demands most truthfully. He wanted to tell her that he and Pinkie were delivering the toys purely to be kind and unselfish, but he had a feeling Twilight wouldn’t believe him if he did. Besides, the more he thought about it, the more he realized that maybe he and Pinkie’s motives weren’t as purely altruistic as he initially believed.
“Okay, okay, I’ll admit it,” Flash confessed. “Pinkie and I are getting ONE thing out of delivering the toys.”
Twilight smirked, prepared to start feeling incredibly smug. All that smugness deflated when she heard Flash’s answer.
“Pinkie had a grandmother who used to love making other people smile,” Flash explained, “and Pinkie wanted to be just like her when she got older, but her family has been shutting out everything that reminds them of her grandmother, so the only way Pinkie can make other people smile now is by mailing out those toys.”
“And you?” Twilight asked, tilting her head in confusion.
“Me? Well, let’s just say Pinkie’s not the only one trying to keep someone else’s memory alive, in my case, more than one someone.” Flash opened his mouth to say more, but nothing came out. He tried again, but the words kept getting caught somewhere between his heart and his mouth.
Twilight looking into Flash’s eyes. Even in the dim light, she could see Flash’s heartache inside of them. She could see something else underneath that, but she couldn’t quite name what she was seeing. She tried to remain disinterested in Flash’s tale, but her curiosity prodded at her mind while what’s left of her compassion tugged at her heart.
“Tell me about them,” Twilight prompted gently.
Flash couldn’t help but give a small smile at Twilight’s sudden interest in his story. Maybe she was finally warming up to him like how Pinkie predicted. He chuckled mirthlessly and sat at the table beside her before continuing his tale.
“My mother and my grandparents lived by three principles,” Flash began. The unidentifiable spark of emotion Twilight saw in his eyes earlier seemed to shine brighter as he spoke. “One, work hard. Two, take care of the people you love. Three, treat other people how you would like to be treated. Our family didn’t have much, but whatever we had we were willing to share, even if it was something as small as a smile or a kind word or a helping hand. It didn’t make us a copper richer, but our hearts were always full. Ever since First Base and I got here and saw how miserable life was for the townspeople, I have been wanting to do something that could make their lives better by just a little bit because I know that’s what Mother, Grandmother, and Grandfather would have tried to do.”
“You and Pinkie do know that—” Twilight began.
“That nothing we do will ever bring our family members back? Yes, we know that,” Flash interrupted, “but if we let the good they left behind die with them, they would have lived for nothing.”
“That explains the toy deliveries, but what does all that have to do with getting Cadance to teach and getting my father to deliver letters?”
“Well, try to put yourself in your father and Ms. Cadance’s place,” Flash explained. “They both have jobs that they love doing, and they can’t do them anymore because the people around them won’t let them. What would you want someone to do for you if you were in their place?”
Twilight didn’t have to think hard to find the answer to that question. “Find a way to let me do that job.”
Hearing Flash explain himself made Twilight feel more inclined to help him with his crazy scheme, but years of disappointment and resentment held her back. Besides, if that crazy idea of his actually succeeded, then her family might decide to stay in Griepsburg, and for reasons she cannot disclose, Twilight cannot let that happen.
“I’m going back to bed, and when I get up in the morning, you better have forgotten about your crazy idea because I absolutely refuse to help you in any way,” Twilight spoke plainly to Flash, getting up from the table and going inside her bedroom. Despite her warning to Flash, Twilight found herself lying awake in bed as everything they had discussed that night kept running themselves over and over again in her head.