//------------------------------// // 11. Convergence // Story: Address Unknown // by remedy //------------------------------// Chapter 11 – Convergence Derpy left the post office with renewed vigor, ready to tackle the day and begin her weekend, and even more excited to visit Twilight later that evening. Today she intended to completely finish her rounds before stopping over; usually when she went over to the library, it was for short calls or for talks when she was feeling a bit low for the day. Last night, though, she had such a moving time with Twilight that she wanted to make sure they had as much time as possible to spend together. She knew that Twilight would no longer be looking for spells to fix her eyesight, but truthfully that was her furthest concern at the moment. She hummed happily, depositing envelopes in mailboxes as she went, reflecting on what she had come to realize Twilight meant to her. She had been very confused at first. To be given the opportunity to talk with somepony openly was a new experience for her, and it had felt good to know that somewhere out there was somepony who legitimately cared about her. Twilight’s was not a simple care for wellbeing, but a deep care for her emotions and a desire to understand how she felt. She had been given the reassurance she had needed, and in the end gained what she was searching for most – a true friend. The afternoon flitted by. Derpy filled mailboxes and made deliveries as though she was on autopilot; her entire mind was filled with thoughts and affections for Twilight, her heart lighter than it had ever been before. The mailpony gave cheerful greetings to everypony she met on her route, and received many pleasantries in return. By mid-afternoon she had finished her last delivery and was positively glowing with happiness. With her mailbags empty, she flew home to return the bags and her hat to their normal resting places before turning back and heading toward the giant tree marking Ponyville’s library. It was all she could do to keep herself from galloping there like a schoolfilly, but she decided that showing up on Twilight’s doorstep as a sweaty gasping mess wouldn’t be the most attractive of sights. She drew closer to the building, turned the corner, and came to an abrupt halt. Two mares were directly in front of her, and they seemed as startled as she had been. Her mind raced as they drew closer, trying to put together what it was that they wanted to say. They were definitely coming over to talk, but neither Applejack nor Rainbow Dash seemed excessively happy to see her. **************** Applejack and Rainbow Dash were as equally surprised at the additional company as Derpy, but it only took them an instant to quietly agree that this was a good time to talk to the gray pegasus who had become their friend’s mare of affection. “Hey, Derpy.” Rainbow Dash spoke first, cementing the fact that they were, in fact, intent on stopping to talk to her. Her voice was not hostile, but it was far from friendly as well. “Uh, hi, Rainbow Dash. Hi, Applejack,” She timidly responded, not exactly sure what, if anything, she should say. Applejack spoke next, and it seemed to confirm that the conversation was meant to be one-sided. “Ah’m guessin’ yer headed over ta Twilight’s place for a bit.” Her tone was somewhat flat, hinting that she was not very happy about that idea. Derpy could only nod; she could not think of anything to say to either pony. She had never exactly been on friendly terms with Applejack, and Rainbow Dash intimidated her greatly. They had never gotten along as fillies, and Dash was one of the most aggressive fillies that had poked fun of her so long ago. Their relationship had mellowed to indifference over the years, but after she had given Dash that concussion during the town hall incident, it was obvious that Dash still held a fair amount of animosity toward her. “We know that Twi’s got a bit friendly with ya for a while now,” Applejack continued. “She seems ta be a might confident that yer a fine pony ta pal ‘round with.” Derpy lightly blushed at this; her heart leapt to know that Twilight was comfortable enough to talk with her friends about her deepening friendship with the pegasus. However, her elation was kept in tight check by the mares currently eyeing her carefully. Rainbow Dash took the chance to speak up. “Twi may like you enough, but I still have a feeling you’re gonna be giving her nothing but problems.” Dash rubbed her head absentmindedly as she spoke, rubbing a phantom pain where a pillar had once crashed down on her head. The words and gesture gave Derpy a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. “Outta respect for Twi, we’re not gonna argue with her about it,” Rainbow Dash narrowed her eyes and pushed herself forward, almost muzzle to muzzle with Derpy. “But you’d better be extra careful around her, Derpy. We know enough of your track record to expect some disaster or another to come sooner or later, and you’d better be sure that when it does, Twi doesn’t get caught in it.” “Dash’s right on, Derpy.” Applejack wasn’t pressing into her face like Rainbow Dash was, but regardless, she stared at Derpy with a piercing gaze that exuded mistrust. “Twi can take care a’ herself, but ‘round you Ah can’t help but think she’s in danger a’ somethin’.” She took a few steps forward and poked a hoof in Derpy’s chest. “Ya best be careful. If ya slip up and make trouble for Twi, Dash’n Ah will be on yer flank ta fix it an’ fix it fast.” Derpy gulped. She knew they weren’t threatening her safety, but their discomfort with having her around their friend was obvious. Of course they’d be overly cautious; she had a reputation for destroying property and causing harm to ponies within her vicinity. The incident where she dropped the entire contents of a moving cart directly on Twilight’s head forced itself to the front of her memory and made her gut clench and twist. Derpy looked from Rainbow Dash to Applejack and nodded solemnly. She spoke, but not with a defensive retort or an emotional outburst, like Applejack and Rainbow Dash had expected. Rather, her response was serious and heartfelt. “I know what you both mean. I think I’m getting better with my coordination and concentration lately, and it’s all thanks to Twilight. I know I haven’t done anything to give you any reason to trust me; it’s understandable that you’d think I’d hurt Twilight somehow. Please believe me though,” she paused, trying to find the right words, “if I did anything to harm Twilight I don’t know how I could stand myself, either.” Her eyes moistened, not from tears, but from genuine concern for only the unicorn. “Twilight is the first and only friend I’ve ever had. I’ll do everything I possibly can to not let you down.” She lowered her head in resignation, hoping that they would at least give her a chance. Applejack and Rainbow Dash exchanged a glance; they had not planned for Derpy to take what they had said to heart. Even more surprising was that she had not protested their accusations at all – she had shown concern only for Twilight. Rainbow Dash looked back to Derpy with a puzzled expression, not quite sure what to make of the agreement Derpy had given them. Applejack’s appearance softened a bit. They had only wanted to give Derpy a fair warning to be cautious, but their warning hadn’t been seen as that. It had been perceived as a reminder to the pegasus of what could happen if she wasn’t careful. “Alright, Sugarcube. Twilight trusts ya, and Ah can see ya take that trust seriously. We ain’t gonna stop ya,” she shot a look to Rainbow Dash, who seemed completely lost by now, “an’ seein’ ya put Twi first makes me feel a might better about ya stayin’ ‘round for a bit.” Dash caught on to what Applejack was talking about, and staring straight into the mailpony’s eyes reluctantly added a blunt, “Yeah, okay.” She silently continued her stare for several long moments, not breaking eye contact as she and Applejack began turning to leave. “I’m still keeping my eye on you though.” Derpy nodded back gravely. “I’ll be watching myself, too,” she murmured to herself. **************** Twilight answered the knock at her door readily; she had been looking forward to seeing Derpy all day long, in addition to having news about the vision spell. She quickly noticed the crestfallen look adorning the pegasus, and her excitement gave way to worry. “Derpy, is everything alright?” Twilight looked to her friend, sincere concern evident in her voice. The pegasus looked up. She had been pondering the conversation that she had just had with Applejack and Rainbow Dash, and was feeling genuinely unnerved by the consequences her involvement with Twilight could have. However, looking up into the face of the lavender mare, all her fears evaporated immediately. She wasn’t sure how, but even in Twilight’s most worried states, she still gave Derpy a feeling of peace and happiness. Derpy gave a smile. “Yeah, everything is alright.” Twilight’s worries seemed to float away now that she knew Derpy was not troubled or depressed, and she wasted no time in getting to the news she had gathered. “Derpy, I found a spell that just might work for your eyes.” She hesitated; Derpy had perked up instantly at that announcement and she couldn’t leave her without the full truth. “There’s a catch, though,” she continued. Derpy sagged a little at that, but retained a hopeful demeanor. “The spell I found was buried deep away in the Canterlot Archives, and it hasn’t been used in ages due to the risks it has.” Twilight let that fact out slowly – she was hesitant to bring it up and cause Derpy more worries, but she had to know. “What kind of risks?” Derpy cocked her head to one side, giving an inquiring look. Twilight sighed. “The spell doesn’t look like it would be too difficult, but the scroll had a note scrawled on the side that said it could cause significant damage if done incorrectly.” Sensing the next question coming from the pegasus, she hurried along a quick addition to her statement. “It doesn’t say what kind of damage. All it says is that the worse the mistake, the worse the damage caused.” Derpy smiled slightly. “Well, I really don’t think I have anything to worry about with that. You don’t make mistakes.” Twilight managed a weak smile of her own, but shook her head. “It’s not that simple though. The scroll is badly smeared, so I would have to copy it over, making sure I have it all correct. If I miss something, it could go horribly wrong. Plus, the spell is only temporary at first. It needs to be repeated every so often, kind of like reinforcing the magic until the effect is permanent. That means I would have to cast the spell so often that a mistake could be inevitable.” This fact gave Derpy pause; she definitely trusted Twilight’s abilities, but multiple chances at unknown damage from a single mistake did make the choice much more difficult. She looked at Twilight, who was clearly uncomfortable with the whole ordeal, and felt an upwelling of guilt for putting such pressure on her friend. She walked over to the unicorn slowly, until she was right next to Twilight. The purple mare was running her hoof across the floor, frustrated with herself at the disappointment she must have caused for the pegasus. Then she felt a hoof on her shoulder, firmly tugging her closer. Derpy wrapped her in her forehooves, trying to comfort the only pony in Equestria to have ever shown her consideration, especially of this magnitude. Twilight returned the embrace, tears trickling down her cheeks reminding her of her failure to find an acceptable solution. Derpy nuzzled her cheek, feeling the tears soaking into her mane. “Twilight, I know it’s not a perfect solution. I’ll have to give it some serious thought before I can decide if it’s something I want to go through with or not.” Holding the unicorn, Derpy’s heart sped up and her face flushed. If there had been any doubt in her mind before as to her feelings for Twilight, they were now long gone. Spending so much time with her had convinced Derpy that there was one pony she wanted to stay beside, and that pony was in her embrace, sure that she had failed at meeting the pegasus’ request. Derpy, however, felt a flame of emotion ignite in her chest; Twilight had become her reason for existing, and whatever problems she had with her eyes were now only a distant consideration. Placing a hoof under the unicorn’s mouth, she gently pulled the mare’s face in line with her own. Twilight noticed they were muzzle to muzzle, and she could feel Derpy’s breath playing across her lips. She looked upward to find herself locked in a gaze with Derpy and felt her face flushing with heat. “To be honest, Twilight, my vision is the last thing I’m thinking about right now.” She leaned forward slightly, her eyelids falling shut, and placed a delicate kiss on the unicorn’s lips. **************** Derpy had felt uncertain about how Twilight would react to the abrupt display of affection, and her heart began to race faster as her wings slowly spread. She forced her wings back down for the moment, and questioned herself at how much she had just escalated the relationship. Her feelings for Twilight had undeniably blossomed into genuine love – the two ponies seemed to share so much in common – but there was no guarantee that Twilight might feel the same affections. Her uncertainty vanished as she felt pressure pushing back against her own muzzle. She parted her lips slightly, allowing her tongue to trace the outline of Twilight’s mouth, tasting an intriguing mixture of orange and almond. She was pleasantly startled when another tongue cautiously emerged to mingle with her own. She had fallen in love with Twilight, and even though she had been unsure of what the unicorn though of her, she had unabashedly bared her feelings with a calm reassurance that it was meant to be that way. Apparently she’s not the only one of us that can read the other’s mind, she reflected with an inner smirk. The pair remained entwined for only a short time before slowly pulling apart, a thin strand of saliva connecting their two tongues which were still unwilling to separate from their partners. A furious crimson blush crept up both of their faces as each pony realized what that moment had meant. Each sensed a deep affection for the other, and it took no words to express it; they had just seemed to know how the other felt and responded accordingly. Derpy inhaled sharply at the implication of what had just happened struck her. Her wings had extended again in excitement, and she looked toward Twilight with wonder, attempting to put together the words to confirm what her mind was telling her. There really was no need. Twilight stared back at her, mouth partly open, and panting slightly. She looked at Derpy caringly as she reminded the pegasus of their conversation from what now seemed like an eternity ago. “I told you that I thought you were beautiful… I guess I just didn’t realize how much more there was to say.” She paused tentatively. “I know it may be a bit strange to hear, but I guess we have the same thing on our minds.” Twilight bit her lip cautiously as she considered where her heart was leading her. Taking a deep breath and throwing all hesitation to the wind, she quickly made her admission before her mind decided to stifle the emotions now coursing through her. “I love you, Derpy.” She hadn’t been sure exactly how the pegasus would respond to her confession; shock, confusion, hesitation, and fear were all very real possibilities. Her answer came with a tackle of gray as the mare launched herself forward and wrapped Twilight in a tight embrace. She could feel tears flowing down Derpy’s face as she whispered, “I love you, too. Dear Celestia, I love you so much.” They could at last release the emotion that they had neglected. They finally had somepony to love them back.