It was an average day in Ponyville. The sky was clear, ponies were chatting amongst themselves, and every plant was in bloom.
Pinkie Pie stood at the counter inside Sugarcube Corner, half bored, but kept herself occupied by playing around with the register. Normally she tried to restrain herself, but the early afternoon had been so slow today. Not too many ponies came in on the weekdays.
Every once in a while somepony would come in and buy something, and a few even wished Pinkie a happy birthday. Of course, her birthday had been on Saturday, but she accepted the late wishes with joy. It got her thinking about how she'd spent her special day. It was simple, just spending time with her friends and enjoying their company. Oh, sure, she could have put together her own birthday party, but that just seemed selfish. Pinkie preferred throwing parties for others and making them feel special. Presents weren't too big of a deal, either. She'd told all her friends that she didn't want anything other than their company. Only Rarity, who insisted that she recieve something, had given her a box wrapped in shiny gold paper and a purple bow. Pinkie loved the present- a large pink top hat with a blue ribbon at the rim- and had worn it the rest of the day.
Today she was making up for the shift she usually worked on Saturdays (She had been given the day off on her birthday.) From her stance at the counter she could listen to Mr. and Mrs. Cake in the kitchen. They were hard at work baking cookies, cupcakes, and other sweets, while also discussing the possibility of having foals. The idea made a smile appear on Pinkie's face. She love kids, and she felt that the Cakes would make super parents.
The thought of parents and families brought Pinkie memories of her own family. Ever since she'd moved to Ponyville, she hadn't seen them or heard much from them. Once in a while, they'd exchange letters, but that was about it. She knew her parents and two of her sisters, Marble and Limestone, were still living on the old rock farm hard at work. Her oldest sister, Annabelle, was always traveling across Equestria as the manager of their cousin Octavia's fancy band. As a result, she barely had time to see any of her friends or family. Pinkie had always thought about sending Annie a letter, but it was impossible to known where exactly she and her band was and for how long. She was the family member Pinkie had been least able to keep in contact with.
Pinkie's thoughts were interrupted by a whoosh sound followed by a yelp. She went over to the front door and headed outside. Above her, a certain grey pegasus was flying around trying to skid to a halt. She was holding a large cardboard box.
"Hiya, Derpy!" Pinkie waved hello.
Finally the pegasus reached the ground. She handed the package to Pinkie.
"Hey, Pinkie," said Derpy. "Got this for you just today. Had to be sent over to you immediately, apparently."
"Who's it from?" asked Pinkie.
"I forgot her name, but she was beige-coated with a brown mane. She said you were her sister."
Pinkie blinked. "And you got this from where?"
"Well, when I was delivering mail over in New Mare-lins," Derpy explained. "She asked if there was a pony in Ponville named Pinkamena. When I said no, she then asked if I knew anypony named Pinkie. I told her yes, so she said she had something for her- well, you, I guess. And then she gave me this package and said to deliver it to you as soon as possible."
Pinkie took the box from Derpy. "Did she say what it was?"
"Nope!" said the cheery pegasus. "Just said to get it to you. You know, it's kinda light for such a big box."
"Huh," Pinkie tried to guess the mystery package. She moved it up and down with her hooves.
"Wait, don't shake it!" Derpy said suddenly. "The other pony said not to move the box around a lot. Maybe it's delicate, whatever it it."
It was then that Pinkie noticed the holes poked into the box- on top and on all four of its sides. "Derpy, did you notice these holes?" she asked.
"Can't say I have. I just took the package and flew over." The mailmare's right eye looked towards the sky. "I gotta get back to my boss and check in with him."
"Okie Dokie! Tell Dinky I said hi!" said Pinkie, waving goodbye as Derpy flew off.
Once the pegasus had disappeared, Pinkie turned her full attention to her box.
"Alright, Boxy. Whatcha got?" she asked.
Of course, there was no answer.
She took the package inside the shop and placed it next to the counter. She'd open it later after work.
More customers came in that day. Not a lot, but enough to distract the pink pony whenever she wasn't ogling over her mystery box. She'd tried crouching down and looking through the holes. But they must have been made with a pushpin or something, because the holes were way too tiny to see anything through.
Why would anypony wanna poke holes in a box? Pinkie wondered. Did it have anything to do with whatever was in there? She was dying to know.
At long last her shift was over. After letting the Cakes know she was done, Pinkie moved the package over to an open space in the living room. She tore the box open at the top as quickly as she could. Once the flaps were open, she took a peak inside.
On top of some comfy looking leaves, lay a tiny baby aligator.
It had been asleep when Pinkie had first opened it. Once the light from the room shone through the box he'd begun to open his eyes.
"Aww, he's so cute!" Pinkie exclaimed as her hooves reached down to scoop the critter up. He didn't give much of a response except for blinking twice.
"Where'd you come from, little guy?" Pinkie asked him. "Oh, wait, New Mare-lins, duh! That's what Derpy said."
She looked again inside the box to see if there was anything else. Tossing the leaves out of the box, Pinkie managed to travel to the bottom, where a white piece of paper lay. The top of the paper read, "To Pinkie."
Pinkie unfolded the paper and read;
Dear Pinkie,
It's been a long time since we've communicated. I hope you're doing okay. My schedule makes it hard for me to keep in touch with anypony in the family. I don't even think I've seen the rock farm we grew up in for at least a year.
Ever since I got this job, I've adored every minute of my new life. But as much as I was glad to leave the farm, I missed how I used to see my family every day, especially you. One week ago I realized I missed everypony at home moreso than usual. I'm thinking of going back, just for a little bit at least. Once I do I'll try and see if I can visit you in Ponyville. In the meantime, I have decided to wish you a happy belated birthday.
Recently our band stopped in New Mare-lins. After our first gig we came across a pony standing next to some newborn alligators. The smallest one looked so helpless and sweet, but stoic. The pony told me their mother had left them and they needed new homes. I remember you've always wanted a pet. I don't know if you already have one in Ponyville, but even if you do, he can now have a playmate. In any case, I've adopted this small baby alligator for you, and I hope you give him all the love and care that you can. For somepony like you, that's shouldn't be too hard. Just know that I miss you, and I hope we see each other again soon.
Love, Annie
P.S. We''ll be here another week if you want to write back about life in Ponyville. I'd love to hear about it!
Pinkie felt tears forming behind her eyes. Her sister had sent her a pet! And after all these years, too...
She clutched the letter to her chest. "I hope I see you again soon, too." She turned to the baby alligator. "I'd better name you soon, so I can write back a 'Thank You' letter quickly." Pinkie looked at her pet and studied it.
"Hmm, you don't do much," She said out loud. "And you don't seem very excited about anything... I got it! How about Perry?"
The alligator just continued to stare into space.
"You're right, that's more like a platypus name." Pinkie thought. She kept looking at him, observing his green scaly skin, large purple eyes, and toothless grin.
This is gonna take awhile, she thought.