A Derpy's Goodbye

by Dream Searcher

Confrontation

“I don’t know, Rainbow. Is it really such a good idea?” Derpy asked Rainbow, at the same time looking at the clouds above her; the clouds that were out of her reach now that she was handicapped. She had told Rainbow about her wings a few days ago when Rainbow had asked her to fly up to Cloudsdale, but of course she couldn’t. Rainbow had reacted with compassion and had given her a hug, but that wasn’t going to bring the wings back.

“Aw come on, Derpy. You need to face your fears one day. You need to look them in the eyes and tell them you aren’t a helpless mare anymore. The doctor said so himself.” Rainbow said as she stood at Derpy’s side. She’d rather fly, since it was in her nature to fly, but decided against it. She had to take Derpy’s handicap into account, and it wasn’t exactly nice to fly around a pony who couldn’t fly anymore.

“But what if they bully me again, what if I can’t take it… what if nothing has changed at all, and I just want to commit suicide again?” She stared at the ground and made a little hole in it with her hoof. She didn’t want to commit suicide again, she really didn’t want to hurt Sparkler and Dinky anymore, but she just didn’t know if anything had changed during her time in the hospital.

“They won’t bully you anymore, I’ll make sure of that.” Rainbow tried to encourage Derpy, but when she saw that Derpy kept staring at the ground, she let out a sigh and placed a comforting hoof on the mare’s shoulder. That made Derpy look up, and she made eye contact with the sympathetic look in Rainbow’s eyes. “Look, we’ll take it really slow. Today they’re gonna apologize, and we’ll see what happens after that, alright?”

Derpy kept her gaze locked on Rainbow’s eyes and knew that Rainbow had spoken the sincere truth. She nodded and managed to form a small smile on her face. “Alright Rainbow, but only because I trust you and because you’re my best friend.” She once again stared at the clouds and tried to move her wings, but she just didn’t get any motion in them. “So, how will we get to Cloudsdale?” She questioned, once again looking to her right, but she was met by an empty space.

She suddenly felt a weight on top of her, and a pair of hooves grasping her chest. After that sudden movement, she felt Rainbow speaking very close to her ear. “I’ll carry you.” She said with her voice as sweet as possible and with that tone in Rainbow’s voice, Derpy knew that Rainbow wasn’t going to let her down, not even once.

Derpy gave Rainbow a nuzzle as a sign of gratitude and off they went, towards Cloudsdale. She looked below her, at the ground and the ponies who got smaller and smaller. It made her somewhat sad and gloomy because she knew that she couldn’t experience this on her own anymore, and she wasn’t going to ask Rainbow to carry her every time she wanted to enjoy the feeling of flying. She had to give up her wings, but she received something better in return, namely her life and the opportunity to hug her daughters again. Before she could do that, however, she had to talk with Sparkler first and try to glue things back together.

She could see Cloudsdale coming closer to her; the inevitable was coming closer, but it was still some distance away, and thus she could still turn her thoughts to something else. Her thoughts went to Twilight, and how she had cared for her foals during the time she had to reside in the hospital. A few days ago, she had picked them up from Twilight, since she deemed herself healthy enough to to care of them, but she could see something in her eyes, a kind of sadness. She didn’t think much of it at the moment, because she had her hooves full with Sparkler who still refused to talk to her, but now that she had some free time, she started asking questions about it. She made a mental note to talk with Twilight after this whole ordeal had ended.

Cloudsdale was really close now, and Rainbow began her descent. It was good to be in her hometown again; it had to be two years since she last set a hoof in this city, but everything just seemed exactly the same as two years ago, she could even see the small candy shop at the corner of Cumulus and Stratocumulus Street. That shop gave her a nostalgic feel because she bought her first piece of candy, and a visit to the dentist, there when she was just a filly. Her mother didn’t like it that she ate candy since she always found it bad for the teeth, and Derpy smiled at that memory, because her mother was right. It’s a natural fact that mothers know what’s best for their foals.

Her gaze turned to the cementery she could see in the distance, the last resting place of her parents. She had let them down; her mother had probably turned around in her grave, not wanting to face the mistakes of her daughter. Her daughter had left her foals behind, just for her own sake. No reasonable mother would do that because your foals always come before your own needs. She brought one of her hooves to her right eye and wiped some tears away. When she saw those tears, she made a promise she wasn’t going to break until the day she was reunited with her parents. She would be there for her foals. From now on, she would be a good mother for them; they came first, and she came last.

Rainbow let go of Derpy just above the clouds of Cloudsdale and landed. She looked around and saw that Rainbow had brought her to the main street of the city. “So this is where they are right now?” Derpy asked as she saw that Rainbow had folded her wings.

Rainbow nodded and pointed with a hoof at one of the many café’s located on Main Street, this one was called Altocumulus café. The outside of the café wasn’t that large, just a normal house like any other in Cloudsdale. It was made of clouds and reeked of booze, not exactly a place Derpy wanted to have the meeting. In fact, she didn’t want to meet them at all. “Yep, they’re in that café and I personally set the meeting up.” Rainbow answered with confidence and pride in her voice, her boasting nature once again showed itself.

Derpy nodded and began a slow walk to the café, Rainbow walking right beside her and giving her some support by draping a wing of her body. She appreciated Rainbow’s moral support, she really did, but she knew that it wasn’t going to change the situation; she had to face her fears, even if she didn’t want it. The door of the café came closer and closer, like a predator slowly closing in on its prey. She sighed and shook her head a little to dismiss that thought. As long as Rainbow was with her, everything was going to be alright.

Rainbow opened the door and let Derpy in and once Derpy was inside, she too stepped through the doorway. The café wasn’t that big, to her left was the bar where ponies could order drinks and to her right the tables were they could drink their beverages. The cloudy wall was decorated with medals and photos of the many races held in the arena of Cloudsdale. This café was also the favorite one of the Wonderbolts, so it wasn’t a surprise to Rainbow that she saw several pictures of the Wonderbolts gathering dust on the bar.

Rainbow nudged Derpy forward with her wing, but she didn’t move, she was like a living statue. Rainbow sighed and tried the more caring approach. “I know you’re scared, but you have to take the plunge and I’ll take it with you. I’ll always be there for you, no matter what.”

Derpy nodded but kept her gaze focused on the ground. She just didn’t dare to look at the tables and thus at Flitter and Cloudchaser who were probably sitting at one. “I know and I appreciate it, but that doesn’t change the fact that I’m terrified. I just managed to build a small shell around me but with one hit it can easily shatter, and then everything starts anew.” She could feel a small tear falling down her cheek, and she hated herself for crying so much, but at some moments she just couldn’t control herself.

She suddenly felt Rainbow hugging her and whispering to her. “But if you overcome this obstacle, then that shell will be stronger.” She let go of the hug and looked Derpy firmly into the eyes, not one second breaking eye contact. “You will get stronger, Derpy. After this, it will get better, and that I promise. Do you trust me?” She asked, still not breaking eye contact. Rainbow knew eye contact was very important if you wanted a pony to calm down.

Derpy nodded with all the power in her neck. “Of course I trust you. What kind of a question is that?” She would go with Rainbow to the pits of Tartarus because she knew that Rainbow would protect her.

“Let’s go then.” She said as she began to walk towards the table at the back of the café, the table where Cloudchaser and Flitter were drinking their lemonade.

Derpy reluctantly followed Rainbow towards the table but there was one little sentence that always kept replaying in her mind: ‘She’ll protect me.’

After a few seconds, they arrived at the table in the corner of the café. Rainbow had explicitly asked for this table so that they could talk in private, no unnecessary ears were needed in the soon-to-be conversation. Rainbow nodded at the two sisters, a stern look on her face that told them that she wasn’t going to allow them hurting Derpy ever again, and they understood it because they nodded back with an expression on their face that had a mixture between fear and sadness. Derpy, however, didn’t dare to look at them and kept looking at the ground, biting her lip at the same time and her face full of fear.

Rainbow guided her friend to one of the chairs opposite of the two sisters. When she saw that Derpy, who was now looking at the table, was sitting comfortably, she sat down on the chair next to her friend. She cast one last look at Derpy and cleared her throat. “We all know why we are here?” She received nods in return and continued. “Alright then. Derpy, please look up.” She received a slow shake in return.

“I… can’t.” She answered as she felt a tear going down her cheek, and her stomach began to turn upside down. She just wanted to get out of there, fear had made its way into her heart, and now she just wanted to leave the café and never come back; she wanted to run away from her problems, like she had done before.

“Please Derpy, otherwise I can’t help you, and I really want to help you. I won’t force you to look up, but it’s better if you do.” Rainbow said as she wiped some tears of Derpy’s cheek with her hoof. It pained her to see Derpy like this, but it was a necessary pain to ensure progress in her friend’s healing process.

Derpy sighed, she knew that there was no way out. She had to look up and face her fate. She nodded very slowly. “Al-alright Rainbow, I trust you.” After she had said that, she slowly looked up and saw the two sisters. Cloudchaser was staring at her with fear and sorrow while Flitter was just crying and not even trying to cover it up.

Flitter sniffed and slowly took a tissue that lay on the table. “I never knew… I never knew we had hurt you so much.” She broke down, brought the tissue to her nose, and blew in it. It just didn’t seem so bad at the moment when she and her sister had bullied Derpy, but now she saw that her actions had really big consequences. One of those consequences was that she had almost taken a mother away from her daughters. During the months Derpy had to reside in the hospital, she had to live with the guilt of causing an attempted suicide, and it had been eating her up from the inside out, but now it all came out because she was confronted with her guilt.

Cloudchaser nodded in agreement but kept herself strong. She was a bit like Rainbow Dash, she still had a reputation to uphold. “Yeah, we’re very sorry for the pain we’ve caused you, your family, and your friends. If I could go back in time, I would have stopped all of this from happening. We were stupid, and we’re very sorry for that. Can you forgive us?” She asked with a hopeful tone while slowly rubbing the back of her sister, trying to calm her down.

Derpy stared at the two sisters, not knowing what to say. She had entered the café with the fear of getting bullied again, but now they were apologizing for their behavior. Still, could she really forgive them so easily and continue life like nothing had ever happened? One side of her wanted to forgive them, so she could end this chapter of her life, but the other side of her told her that she couldn’t forgive them so easily, nopony could after what they and the other bullies had done. In the end, she just stayed indecisive, she just wasn’t ready to decide. “I-I don’t know. What you two and the other bullies have done to me isn’t something to be taken lightly. I want to forgive you, I really want to, but I can’t. I’m sorry.”

Derpy thought that Flitter was going to break down again, because she had technically said no to them, but to her surprise she tried to stop crying. After a few seconds of wiping her tears away, she spoke. “We knew you were going to say that, and you have all right to say no because we also aren’t proud of our actions.” She stared Derpy firmly into her eyes, her pair of puffy red eyes making eye contact with Derpy’s pair of puffy red eyes. “We know we can’t change the past but do know that we are very, very sorry for what we’ve done, and we wished it had never happened.” She lowered her gaze and stared at her pack of tissues. She took one out and shoved it across the table. “Here, looks like you need it.” She gave Derpy a small smile.

Derpy looked at the tissue in front of her and accepted it. “Thanks.” She said, returning that small smile. This whole situation between her and the sisters might not heal right now, but maybe, in due time, things will change to the positive side.
Flitter then looked at Rainbow and saw one tear going down her cheek. A small grin formed on her face, and she shoved one of her tissues to Rainbow’s side of the table. “Do you also want one, Rainbow?” She knew Rainbow wasn’t so fragile as Derpy, so she could tease her a bit.

Rainbow brought a hoof to her face and felt the tear on her hoof. Immediately afterwards, an irritated expression formed on her face. “Darn it, I don’t act sappy, just so you know it.” She then took the tissue and wiped the tear away. “Thanks.” She said as she heard a small laughter coming from her right. She looked at Derpy and saw that she was trying to stop giggling. “Glad to see you’re happy again.” Her voice wasn’t angry or annoyed, but instead it was cheerful and happy. Even if she had just embarrassed herself, she was glad that Derpy was feeling alright again.

After that embarrassing moment, Rainbow nodded to the barman, who was waiting for his sign, and he nodded back. He went to the radio and placed a CD in it, immediately after he had hit play, a song came out of the speakers, a very happy song. Derpy turned to Rainbow with a smile on her face but mixed with confusion. “Rainbow, what is this?”

Rainbow smiled back. “Don’t you hear it? It’s something to make you happy.” Rainbow began whistling the tune of the song, the two sisters soon following.

Derpy laughed, for the first time she actually felt really happy again, and all her worries seemed to disappear like snow before the sun. She couldn’t contain herself any longer and hugged Rainbow. “You’re the best” She said, giving Rainbow a little peck on the cheek. She needed to show Rainbow how grateful she was.

Rainbow broke the hug and looked at Derpy. The smile on her face, the tears that were drying, and the occasional laugher; she knew that Derpy was going to be alright. She motioned for the barman to bring in the drinks, and he did. In less that a minute, four sarsaparillas stood on the table, ready to be consumed by the four ponies. Rainbow took her sarsaparilla and raised it in the air, the rest soon followed. “Cheers,” She said. “To a life without bullying.”

"To a life without bullying.” The three others repeated, all delighted that this whole problem had been resolved.

Derpy beamed, maybe things weren’t so bad after all. Flitter and Cloudchaser were sorry for their actions, they weren’t going to bully her again, and although she can’t forgive them now, doesn’t mean she can’t forgive them in the future. And then there was Rainbow who had set this whole meeting up, and it seemed that she had confidence in it from the beginning. She was really glad she had Rainbow as a friend, because she couldn’t wish for a better one. Finally it seemed that things were looking up for her. Now the only two issues she still had to address were Twilight and Sparkler but for now she just needed to do like the song told her: ‘Don’t worry, be happy.’.

“Thanks, Rainbow. I’ll see you tomorrow, alright?” She asked Rainbow as she was set down on the ground in front of the library. The whole meeting had taken two hours, so it was around four in the afternoon by the time she arrived at the library. It was a nice meeting and she had seen the good side of the two sisters, but forgiveness still had to wait until she was ready for it.

“Yeah, fine. I’m gonna nap a bit.” She said, and she gave Derpy a hug. The whole meeting was actually a wild guess to make Derpy happier, and she wasn’t sure if it would work, but it worked very well. Derpy was happier than ever, and thus she was making progress. “I’m proud of you.” She said as she let go of the hug and ruffled Derpy’s mane, which, in turn, elicted a small chuckle from the wall-eyed mare. Rainbow spread her wings and took off, her destination a fluffy looking cloud above her. “See ya!” She yelled as she disappeared behind the clouds.

Derpy kept staring at the clouds for a few moments and shook her head, a small smile forming itself on her face. She was really lucky to have a loyal friend like Rainbow, a friend who would go through fire and ice and all just for her. Derpy made a mental note to buy some chocolates from Pinkie, that way she had something to give to Rainbow as a ‘thank you’ present.
She turned her gaze to the tree in front of her, Twilight’s library. Now it was time to talk with Twilight about her rather weird behavior. Ever since she had picked up her children, Twilight had been a bit downcast, but when she and her children saw Twilight on the market, then it always looked like she tried to avoid them, and that was starting to worry her. Not wanting to wait any longer, she walked to the door and knocked on it. She fixed her mane, trying to make it look the way it was before Rainbow ruffled it while waiting for the door to open.

After a few seconds she could hear a voice coming from inside the tree, and she immediately connected it to Twilight. “Come in, the door is open. Seriously, this is a library, the door is always open, from morning until evening.”

Derpy opened the door and closed it behind her, her response ready. “Well, this is also a house, so I guess privacy is one of the norms.” She replied as she saw Twilight sitting at her desk, scribbling with her quill on a piece of parchment.

Twilight put her quill down and looked up. “Well, it’s… oh, it’s you, Derpy. How’s it going?” She said with an uneasy smile on her face. Immediately when she saw Derpy, she pictured the faces of Dinky and Sparkler in her mind, and her smile began to waver. It was still a giant pain, thinking back at one of the best months of her life was a pain and torment.

Derpy began to eye Twilight a bit suspiciously but soon hid it with a smile. “I’m fine, thank you. Rainbow took me to a café in Cloudsdale, and Flitter and Cloudchaser have apologized to me, but I’m not ready yet to forgive them.” She said, her eyes first scanning Twilight’s face and then the ground. She had a little bit of guilt for not forgiving them, but she knew it was better to wait a moment; the whole situation needed some time to digest.

Twilight walked from behind the desk and to the gray mare who was still standing at the door. She was sure Derpy still needed some help in her healing process and now that she was here, Twilight was going to do everything to help and in the process trying to burn the image of those two beautiful foals out of her mind. “Why don’t we sit on the couch for a moment?” She suggested while placing a hoof on the gray mare’s back. Rainbow had told her that Derpy couldn’t fly anymore, since she was also part of Derpy’s healing process, but she still wanted to see it herself, and thus she moved her hoof to the place of the pegasus’ back where the two wings came together. When she saw that Derpy’s wings didn’t make any motion, she mouthed an ‘oh’ and placed her hoof on the ground again. She stared at Derpy and Derpy stared back, a sad expression on her face, and her head slowly nodding.

Twiligh’s sighed. “Come on.” She said as she guided Derpy to the couch that was placed in the main part of the library, where all the books on the shelves stood, that way ponies could read in the library while sitting on a comfortable couch. Sadly, the couch wasn’t used that much, since the ponies of Ponyville didn’t have a huge interest in books, and thus she was considering to sell it, but not now because now she was going to have a talk with a friend on that couch.

Moments later, they were sitting on the couch, neither of them saying anything and just staring at various things in the library. The open book on the ground, the statue of Star Swirl the Bearded, or the book on the shelve called ‘Past Sins’. It all seemed so appealing to stare at, and yet they knew that one of them had to break the everlasting silence.

Twilight shifted her gaze to Derpy, who was sitting next to her while staring at one of the things in the library, and wanted to open her mouth, but just as she was about to that, Derpy spoke. “Twilight, why are you sad?” Derpy asked her, still not pulling her gaze away from the object that had caught her attention.

Twilight was flabbergasted, to say the least. She hadn’t expected that, and now she couldn’t form a response. The only thing that came into her mind was that she was busted and that she knew she couldn’t hide her emotions so well; she didn’t have a good façade. She lowered her head, not wanting to look in the eyes of Derpy if she decided to look at her, and did nothing, just trying to formulate a reply. After a few seconds, she sighed and got off the couch. “Follow me, please.” She said, still not looking at Derpy and making her way to the stairs.

Derpy’s gaze followed Twilight’s movements and after a few seconds she too got off the couch, thus following Twilight. She knew she had caught Twilight off guard but it was necessary if she wanted answers and, at the same time, returning the favor by helping Twilight with her problem.

Twilight opened the door of her bedroom and walked through the doorway, Derpy following soon after her. She was afraid, really afraid. She didn’t know how Derpy would react if she told her that she missed the foals, that she actually missed ‘her’ foals. She had created a bond with them, a mother-daughter bond, and now it had been ripped out of her life. She walked to her bedside table and stared at the three photos in their respective frameworks. Those pictures were three happy moments in her life, but now they served as a painful reminder of what had been, but is no more.

She gave the first picture to Derpy while holding back her tears, this was going to be one of her worst days ever, and she knew it. “What- what do you see?” She asked, the dams in her eyes almost starting to break.

Derpy took the picture and stared at it. Twilight could deduct from Derpy’s smile that she found the picture heartwarming, but it didn’t calm her nerves, not one bit. It was a picture with Dinky sleeping in her bed while Twilight was tucking her in. It reminded Derpy of herself because she always tucked Dinky in. She shifted her gaze back to Twilight and saw small tears were beginning to escape her eyes. “I see you tucking my daughter in.” She said, not sure where Twilight was going with all of this.

Twilight nodded, sniffed and gave the second picture to Derpy. “Well, what d-do you see i-in that picture?”

Derpy once again stared at the picture and laid eyes on a more comedic sight. This picture showed her foals sitting, and laughing, at the kitchen table while Twilight was trying to bake muffins, although it wasn’t going very well since she had batter on her coat and in her mane. It brought a smile to Derpy’s face, but it quickly disappeared given Twilight’s current situation. “Apparently you were trying to bake muffins.”

Twilight gave a light chuckle, tears streaming down her face, and nodded. “Yes, trying.” She turned her gaze to the last picture on the bedside table and gave it too to Derpy. “And what do you see on that picture?”

Derpy looked at it, and her heart almost couldn’t take the cuteness that she saw in the picture. Twilight was smiling at the camera while Sparkler was kissing the left cheek and Dinky the right. After a few moments of thinking and making the connections between the pictures, she knew why Twilight was so sad. She laid the three pictures on the bed and stared at her while giving her a warm smile, one that was trying to tranquilize the violet mare. “Do you miss them?”

Twilight was once again stupefied, this time because she had never thought that Derpy could make the connection that quick. Still, it is rather obvious if one saw how her mood worsened after giving Dinky and Sparkler back. She swallowed the lump in her throat, which was rather audible, and nodded slowly. “Yes.” She murmured, not even higher than a whisper. She had told Derpy one of her deepest secrets, and she really hoped that she could help her.

Derpy knew that something was eating Twilight up from the inside out, and now she had received her answer: she missed Dinky and Sparkler. She slowly began to walk towards Twilight who was now lying on her bed and weeping into her pillow. She knew Twilight had pent up her emotions in that studious mind of her, and now she had to let it all out. When she reached Twilight, she placed a hoof on the mare’s shoulder and began to stroke it while softly whispering to her. “Shh, it’s alright.” That was one of the techniques she used when she had to deal with her daughters when they were sobbing.

After ten minutes, Twilight stopped crying, but not because she wasn’t sad anymore, but because her eyes couldn’t produce any more tears; they were empty. She had expected to be shouted at or to be insulted, but she didn’t expect Derpy trying to calm her down. Maybe she had misestimated that gray mare, and maybe her mind had once again failed to relax and to see things how they actually are. With some hesitation, she dared to look at Derpy and sniffed. “Are you not mad?”

Fear and pain was present in her voice, and Derpy was slightly insulted that somepony could think about her that way. She had no reason to be mad. What Twilight was going through was normal if somepony had to give up his or her foal, she herself had to do it once, but it was too painful to think about at the moment. “I’d never be mad at you because you helped me out when I was going through a living hell. Tell me, what do you think of my foals?” Derpy was beginning to formulate a solution to Twilight’s problem, but first she needed to know Twilight’s opinion about her foals.

Twilight floated a tissue to her, wiped her tears away, and blew her nose in it. Afterwards, she threw it into the small dustbin next to her bed which was only used when she was reading a tearjerker and now of course. She once again laid her head on her pillow and enjoyed the feeling of Derpy stroking her coat. It just felt so good to know that there was somepony with you, and who was caring for you. She briefly wondered if this was the feeling Derpy felt when she was lying in the hospital and knowing that Rainbow and herself were caring for her but after a second, she knew that was not the case since it was probably suppressed by the depression.

“Well, Dinky is just so adorable. She especially enjoys reading with me and studying the secrets of magic, and she also likes to play hide and seek with me. It’s just… You don’t have to do much for her, and yet you receive a lot of love in return. Sparkler is a bit harder to handle, but that’s mostly because she’s in her puberty, and she had to go through a hard period. But there’s a sweet, nice mare hidden behind that emotional roller coaster of her. She especially enjoys to feed the ducks, it gives her a feeling of relaxation, like she can escape the world for a few minutes. She isn’t so affectionate like Dinky, but she shows her love in very small and indiscreet ways. What she really enjoys with her whole heart is that you’re there for her when she’s in need of a listening ear. Your foals… are two beings sent by the heavens.” A dreamy smile appeared on her face when she had finished speaking. It felt good to talk about them, even if she knew she couldn’t raise for them anymore.

Derpy smiled and put her solution into action. She enjoyed it that Twilight talked about her foals like that, and she knew Twilight would make a good mother. “It’s settled then, you’re going to live with us, or we’re going to live with you. Your choice.”

Twilight nodded, still thinking about Dinky and Sparkler, and thus Derpy’s solution didn’t fully register into her brain. “Yeah… wait, what?” She was once again surprised for what had to be the umpteenth time today. “What do you mean live with with us?”

“Like I said, you’re going to live with us, or we’re going to live with you in the library. Listen Twilight, I can’t stand to see you depressed, and I know what I’m talking about.” That elicted a small chuckle from the violet mare, but she quickly covered her mouth with her hoof. Derpy just waved a dismissive hoof and smiled, clearly not offended by the chuckle. “What I’m trying to say is that you’re feeling miserable, and it’s only going to get worse. If I reunite you with my foals, then you’ll start feeling better, and I’ll have an extra pair of hooves that can help me with caring for them.”

Twilight liked the solution. Hell, it was like a gift from the Gods. To be reunited with Dinky and Sparkler, it was like a dream come true. Still, there were a few issues that kept bugging her, though. “Well, I’d like it if you could come and live here, this tree has enough rooms for all of us, but what about Carrot Top?” She really wanted to have Derpy, Dinky, and Sparkler living here in the library, but she didn’t want to take them away from Carrot Top.

Derpy’s smile faltered slightly but returned soon afterwards. “Don’t worry about her, she and Caramel are going to get married, and then they’re going to buy an apartment in Manehattan. She’s leaving in two weeks.” Derpy could feel a tear beginning to form in her right eye and quickly wiped it away, but Twilight still caught it.

“Oh, I guess I have to congratulate them. But what about us? I mean, we’re not even in a relationship. How can two foals have two mothers who aren’t in a relationship?”

Derpy crawled onto the bed and turned Twilight around so that she was lying with her back on the bed, eyes staring at the ceiling. Then she positioned herself above Twilight and stared her firmly into her eyes, even with her eye condition. It was a technique she had learned from Rainbow. “Do want to take care of my foals?” A stern tone in her voice.

Twilight nodded quickly and said, “Yes.” In a tone that reminded Derpy of Fluttershy.

“Then what’s the problem? You want to take care of them, and I want to help you. You don’t have to be in a relationship to raise foals. But…” Derpy came closer to Twilight’s nose and gave it a little peck. “What isn’t now, can still be in the future.” Derpy couldn’t lie to herself, she found Twilight absolutely attractive, and she had eyed the mare under her quite some times in the past.

Twilight’s eyes first widened from the sudden move, then a blush began to form on her face, and lastly she smiled. “Thank you. For everything, I mean. For calming me down, for reuniting me with Dinky and Sparkler, and for finding me attractive.” She wasn’t ready to be in a relationship right now, but like Derpy said: ‘What isn’t now, can still be in the future.’

“Hey, it’s only fair. You took care of my foals when I wasn’t capable of doing it. It’s only fair to return the favor… and more.” She answered as she got off the bed. Normally, she was never so bold, but she had a special bond with Twilight, one that could grow into something more. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I still need to pack a lot of things.”

Twilight got off the bed and galloped to Derpy before she could go down the stairs. Once she reached Derpy, she gave her a big hug and whispered into her ear. “Hurry.”

Derpy nodded and went down the stairs. This day had been going really well, come to think of it. Rainbow had helped her with her problem, and now she had resolved Twilight’s problem, at the same time creating the start of what she knew was going to be a wonderful relationship. Now she only had to deal with the worst problem of them all: Sparkler.

“Sparkler, open the door!” No response. “Sparkler!” Again there was no reply, not even a step on the ground or a mumble.

Derpy sighed and rested her head against the closed and locked door of Sparkler’s room. Why had she given Sparkler the only key of the room? Now she had to convince her daughter to open the door, and it looked like she wasn’t going to comply with her mother’s demands. Still, Derpy knew she deserved it. Due to her attempted suicide Sparkler got a feeling of abandoning, she thought her mother didn’t want her anymore. Derpy cursed herself for acting so stupid. She had hurt her foals beyond measure, and now she was slowly losing one.

She cast a glance at Dinky who was sitting next to her, a worried expression on her face, one that didn’t fully comprehend the magnitude of the problem. Derpy knew that the problem had a very big consequence if she didn’t manage to have a talk with Sparkler: the loss of a daughter. Sparkler had locked herself into her room and only came out to drink and eat, to go to the toilet, and to wash herself. During the time she left her room, she didn’t talk to her mother, she didn’t even look at her; it was like she was air for her daughter, and that had hurt her straight in her heart. If she ever wanted to repair the bond between them, it was going to ask a lot of work of both ponies, but first she had to open this damned door.

“Dinky, get the crowbar, please.” She ordered her daughter, who cast a look at the door and got up, getting a crowbar for her momma.

Derpy sighed once again, she had to break down her own door in order to have a talk with Sparkler. That was going to lessen her selling price of her house.

Five minutes later, Dinky returned with the crowbar in her mouth and from the looks of it, she didn’t enjoy the taste of it. “It tastes yucky.”

Derpy chuckled and ruffled her daughter’s mane with her hoof. “I know, muffin.” She then took the crowbar out of her daughter’s mouth, stood on her hindlegs, and placed the curved end of it between the lock and the door jamb. She placed her forelegs on the flat end of the crowbar and warned her daughter. “Alright Sparkler, if you don’t open the door by the count of three, I’ll break it down with the crowbar. Your choice. 1…2…3. Fine.” She began to push on the damned thing with all her might, and slowly the door began to crack. She began to push harder and harder, even Dinky began to push with her, a bright smile plastered on her face. After a minute of hard work, the door gave in with a crack and opened. What Derpy saw inside wasn’t expected.

Clothes were sprawled across the whole surface of the floor, the doors of the closet still open. Everywhere lay pieces of glass and a broken frame of a photo. The photo, or what was left of it, was lying on the ground near the closet, just to the right of the door in the rectangular room. Derpy quickly saw what important date the photo had captured. It was Sparkler’s tenth birthday, and she had a little bit of cake on her nose. Derpy was wiping it off and just at that moment, Carrot Top decided to take a photo. It was a really memorable date, and her daughter had torn it to pieces. She wasn’t mad or angry, not at all, she was just heartbroken. Now she saw she had caused her daughter much suffering, but she was going to make it all right, if she just wanted to listen and talk.

She saw a little form moving under the blankets of Sparkler’s bed that stood just opposite of the door. She ordered Dinky to wait at the door, then she began a slow and cautious maneuver though the glass shards. When she reached Sparkler’s bed, she placed a hoof on the blankets, but it was quickly pushed away by Sparkler’s right foreleg. She sighed, she could label today as ‘sighing day’, and saw that she had one major wound to heal. “Listen Sparkler, I-“

She couldn’t finish her sentence because in less than a second, a fuming Sparkler stood in front of her face. “No, you listen! I’ve been worried sick about you for four and a half months! Four bucking months! And now you’re acting casually like nothing ever happened. Nothing may have happened to you, you can say yourself, but to me?! I’ve almost lost my mother, I’ve almost lost the pony I love the most! I-I’ve been an orphan once, I d-don’t want to become one again! I-I cared abo-about you and- and loved you, b-but you just g-gave me a slap in my face!” When she said that sentence, Sparkler broke down and began to weep into her pillow, just like Twilight did. All the bitterness and hatred towards her mother had formed a cocktail of nothing good, and now she had let it go in a giant waterfall of tears.

Derpy could feel her heart being ripped out of her chest and being stomped upon by her own daughter. The wound she had to heal in Sparkler’s heart had begun to fester. She could place the blame on Discord and his disharmony, but she knew that she had caused all of this; for once, she was Discord. “Sparkler, I’m sorry, I didn’t know I had caused you so much pain.

Sparkler raised her head and stared at her mother, her face full of hatred. “Lies! You knew damn well how much pain you’ve caused me and Dinky, but you just don’t care! You just take action without even considering the consequences of said action! You just care about yourself and nopony else, not even your own daughters!” By now Sparklers voice had become hoarse, and she knew she had to stop shouting to spare her voice, but she was just so angry with her mother. Deep within she knew she wasn’t thinking rationally, but she just didn’t care about that, she just wanted to let her mother know the pain she had felt during those four and a half months.

Derpy was tearing up even more than in the café. Two bullies she could handle with Rainbow’s support, but a daughter that hated her, she could not. “I’m sorry, I know it w-was stupid of me to take my own life and if I could turn the clock back, I would have done so, but that just isn’t an option. I want to make it right, Sparkler, I really do, but you’ve got to let me make it right.” She pleaded, her teary eyes staring at the hatred filled ones of Sparkler, but she could see something also, almost something like remorse. Maybe there was still hope, maybe she could still make things right.

“Easy for you to say, you aren’t as hurt as me.” She blocked her mother’s apology attempt with a calmer voice.

“That’s not true,” Derpy objected. “Because you just showed me how much pain I’ve given you, you did the same to me now. That feeling of not being loved anymore, of ponies turning their backs to you. It hurts, I know, but it was never my intend to hurt you. I want to make it all right, please let me make it right. You might not see me as your mother anymore, but you are still my daughter until the end of time. I still love you with my whole heart, and nothing is going to change that, not even this.” She placed her hoof on Sparkler’s right hoof, but now she didn’t pull away, the hatred was also gone from her eyes and replaced by sadness.

Sparkler began to move and threw her forelegs over her mother’s head, locking them in a deep hug while both of them cried into each other’s shoulders. “Oh momma, I was just so scared you didn’t love me anymore, that you didn’t want me anymore. I’m afraid to be alone.”

Derpy could feel that her shoulder was beginning to get wet, but she didn’t care since she was doing the same to her daughter. She began to whisper, trying to calm her daughter and herself down. “Shh, momma’s here. I’ll never leave, don’t ever forget that.” After a few minutes of hugging and weeping, Derpy let go of the hug and stared at her daughter. Her mane was a bit unkempt, but the rest was fine. She then stared into her daughter’s eyes, not firmly like with Twilight, but one filled with love for her daughter. “Are you still mad?”

Sparkler nodded. “Yes, but not as much as I used to be. I’m just glad you aren’t abandoning me."

Derpy gave her daughter a nuzzle to reassure her that abandoning wasn’t going to happen. “Hey, that will never happen.” She turned her attention to the door. “Dinky, you can come in, but be careful because there’s shattered glass on the floor.” She said while giving her daughter a poke, that way Sparkler knew she wasn’t in any real trouble, but that her mother was not pleased about the shattered glass and the whole mess in her room.

Dinky made her way through the labyrinth of glass, careful not to step on the glass, and when she arrived at her mother, she smiled. “Everyting okay? No more sadface?”

Derpy laughed at her daughter’s use of vocabulary and found it cute at the same time. “No more sadface. Are you going to help Sparkler and me with cleaning this room up?” Dinky hesitated but reluctantly nodded, not wanting to upset her mother. Derpy smiled and gave Dinky a quick kiss on her forehead, which was answered with that sweet chuckle Dinky had. “Oh, and I have a surprise. We’re going to move in with Twilight, she just couldn’t let you two go.” Derpy could only laugh at the amazement that spread on her daughters’ faces and a second later, she had to gasp for air because her daughters were giving her a bonecrushing hug.

“Twilight, I’m home.” Derpy announced as she closed the door of the library behind her. She had just finished her shift in the post office. She wasn’t a mailmare anymore, but now she sat at the desk, helping ponies who have questions or sorting mail, and she actually liked it. It wasn’t the same as being a mailmare, but it was a good replacement.

Her problems had also disappeared into the background of her life. The bullying had stopped, Twilight was okay, and Sparkler loved her mother like she used to; everything was back the way it used to be. She still had one little issue that needed to be resolved, and she was going to take care of that now.

Twilight came down the stairs, that lead to her bedroom, and walked to Derpy. Once there, she gave the love of her life a kiss and hug. “So, how was your day?” She asked as she let go of the hug, eager to hear about Derpy’s day.

Derpy chuckled and shook her head. Ever since she and her two daughters moved in with Twilight, the violet mare was really protective of her special somepony and her daughters, maybe even overprotective. She didn’t mind, not at all, it actually felt rather good, knowing that there’s a pony who really cares about you and expects you home at exactly five PM. “Good, but could you show me where you keep your parchment and your quills?”

Twilight had a look of confusion on her face, but it quickly disappeared and was replaced by a smile. “Of course, follow me.” She began to walk towards her desk that had now been placed in her study, the room just behind the main part of the library. There she kept her records of the books that had been lent to ponies and the due dates of said books. She also studied there when she was in the mood to study or when the Princess gave her an assignment but caring for two foals had taken up a lot of her free time, so the room was used less than it used to. She opened the top drawer of her desk, took out a quill and parchment, and placed it on the desk, ready to be used. “So, it’s ready. Why do you need all of this?” She asked, her curious nature just couldn’t keep quiet.

Derpy walked to the desk, sat down on the chair, and studied the parchment. “I need to write a letter to somepony.” She picked up the quill and began to write.

Twilight stood there for a few moments, awkwardness hanging in the air, before finally walking towards the door of the study. “Okay, holler if you need anything.” She said and closed the door behind her. Once the door was closed, she shook her head and went back upstairs to continue helping Sparkler and Dinky with their homework.

Ten minutes later, Derpy stood in front of a house, the house of that gray Pegasus with the green mane; the Pegasus who was also being bullied. She stared at the envelope that was held in the grasp of her hoof and sighed, she wasn’t going to let this pony suffer like she had suffered.

She walked to the brown front door, waited for a couple of seconds and eventually knocked on it. She placed the envelope on the front step and walked away.

Seconds later the door opened and the gray young Pegasus stood in the doorway, clearly surprised that nopony stood in front of him. Something in the street caught his attention and he looked at the point of interest. It looked like a gray Pegasus with a blond mane and bubbles as cutie mark; he had seen this mare several times sitting at the desk in the post office, but why was she waving at him? She continued her walk and he looked at the ground, labeling this encounter as coincidence, but then his eyes saw the envelope lying on the ground in front of his hooves. He picked it up and opened it. It read:

He smiled, connecting that name to the gray mare and went back inside. He isn’t weird, he is just being himself, and it’s great to be different.