Derpy had a very strict routine.
8:00-Get ready for work.
9:00-Breakfast
9:30-Leave for work.
10:00-Start mail route.
1:30-Go to the asylum.
She had been visiting Screw Loose, for about…
"Five months, two weeks, and three days," she said to herself factually, looking as straight ahead as she could manage. Derpy was a mare on a mission. She stepped inside the hospital where the nurses and secretaries greeted her as usual.
"Hi, Red Heart!" said Derpy cheerfully.
"Hi, Derpy!" was her reply.
Her smile quickly faded, her expression one of concern. "How… How is she?" she asked, in a low voice.
The nurse hesitated a moment, then replied, "I—I think she's doing better… Maybe you should see for yourself."
Derpy's usual smile returned and she said, "That's exactly what I plan to do!"
She promptly walked to room 130B; she had been there so often by this point, she could waltz in as she pleased without supervision, so long as she left by the appointed time. It was another routine of hers:
1:55-Say hi to everyone, let them know where you're going.
Walk down the hall, turn right.
Walk down another hall, say hello to the residents, turn right again.
Move three doors down, make a left, and there you are!
As she approached room 130B, she heard a familiar sound that made her heart jump into her throat with glee and, admittedly, anxiety. It was that of an excited dog yapping and barking. Derpy peeked inside the room through the small window on the door and waved. She turned to a doctor looking over someone else's charts and asked him to open the door and let her in. He complied with her request and as soon she stepped inside, she was knocked to the ground.
A woman with messy white hair shoved her down in an attempt to hug her. Against the doctor's protests, Derpy undid her straightjacket and the patient climbed on top her, sniffing and snuggling her. "Hi, Loosey!" she said cheerfully, a little too cheerfully in fact, and ruffled her hair.
For five months, two weeks, and three days, she had been putting on a brave face, especially in front of Screw Loose. She didn't like talking about it, but she knew perfectly well why her beloved Loosey was in the hospital to begin with.
After all, it was her fault.
-
The pair had known each other long before her hospitalization; they had been dating since four months beforehand. They were inseparable, and absolutely crazy about each other.
Once, on a dinner-date, "Loosey" (as she was affectionately nicknamed) proposed that the two moved in together. Her hair was pulled back in a neat ponytail, her jeans jacket and denim skirt were void of any of wrinkles, her blue t-shirt was immaculate, and her eyes—those beautiful purple eyes that Derpy so fell in love with, stared into her own walled-ones with such focus and affection, her knees would have buckled if she hadn't already been sitting down.
"I think I should move," said she, taking the blond woman's hand gently in hers. "Oh, I kinda like where we're sitting," replied Derpy. "Are you sure? The waiter will be here soon; I think he's a little busy."
She bit her lip to suppress a smirk. "No, I meant move… away." Derpy was stunned. "You mean," she leaned in, "leave?" Loosey almost couldn't keep up the joke, not when Derpy so looked concerned. She grinned and said, "Well, I was thinking move toward." The other frowned. "I don't get it."
"I want us to live together, silly!" she announced, giggling. The blond stood up from her seat and leaning over the table, kissed her purple-eyed beauty and replied, grinning ear-to-ear, "I thought you'd never ask!"
-
There are advantages to working for a moving company, especially when your girlfriend's the one moving, and especially when she's moving in with you. Derpy was ecstatic to be helping, and everything was going so well.
"I've got it, don't worry!" she argued, laughing as she dragged a large couch up the stairs.
"Are you sure?" asked Screw Loose, a tad nervous. "I'd hate for you to drop it and get hurt."
"What are you talking about? It's just a sofa!"
She was currently pulling the abominably heavy piece of furniture upstairs to her apartment. Despite the difficulty of the task, she wouldn't allow Screw Loose to lift a finger. She couldn't resist following close behind, however, to keep an eye on things and for her own peace of mind.
Derpy misjudged just how many steps there were and wasn't aware of what was behind her; because of this slip-up, she fell and so did the couch. Neither of them reacted in time and Screw Loose was sent tumbling down the stairs and hit the bottom, unconscious and bleeding.
-
"Miss Hooves, you've been sitting there for two days, why don't you go home?" She simply shook her head, refusing to make eye contact. She continued looking down as she had been for the past forty-eight hours; even if she was in a coma, Derpy couldn't bear to look at Screw Loose without feeling terribly for causing it in the first place.
The doctor gently took her by the hand and she made no protest to him leading her out. She continued staring vacantly at the ground, sobbing quietly.
-
"It's really a miracle she even recognizes you," Nurse Sweetheart said with feigned optimism. It was true, though. Screw Loose was completely oblivious to all her caretakers and would fight them off if they came too close, barking and snarling like a frightened dog.
But when Derpy visited, she got so excited! She couldn't speak, she probably didn't realize she human, and most likely didn't remember her past at all, but for some reason she remembered Derpy. Whenever she appeared, she start hopping and yipping and grinning the biggest grin she had ever seen.
And it broke her heart. To think that she was the cause of her madness… This woman, who until only a week ago, was one of the most put-together, smart, witty, and organized people she knew, reduces to thinking that she was a dog. She didn't do anything to deserve it.
"She won't be able to live her on her own," the doctor said.
"But she can still live with me, r-right?"
He sighed and looked at her as though he would regret his next statement. "I'm afraid not; it would be best for everyone if she stayed here, where we could keep an eye on her. Who's knows what danger she could get into? I wouldn't want to make this any more difficult than it already is for you. You understand, don't you?"
"Not really."
-
So every day without fail for five months, two weeks, and three days, Derpy had been visiting and practicing with Screw Loose, hoping to fix what the doctors couldn't. She didn't know how to do that or even what that really meant, but she had to do something or else she might lose her marbles too.
She always forward to visiting but she had to train herself herself to stop crying in front of Loosey. The first few weeks were the worst; as soon as she stepped in, she broke down sobbing and apologizing profusely, and would hold her beloved in a tight embrace until it was time to leave.
The madwoman didn't understand any of this, but she knew that the lady with walleyes was sad and, for some reason, this made her sad, too. She seemed vaguely familiar, though she wasn't sure why. She would spend the afternoons snuggling into her shoulder and whining sadly. When it came for Derpy to leave, she would bite her pant legs and growl. On several occasions she had even escaped the hospital and ran back to Derpy's apartment, scratching at the door; the fact that she remembered this alone baffled everyone.
Nowadays, however, Derpy had come to terms with her lot in life and was determined to bring back the Loosey she knew and loved, or at least some sense of normality back into their lives. She tried teaching her to speak and would tell her stories about her day, and it seemed the other could understand more and more as time went on. Still, others told her she was being too optimistic. They had already done everything, just face it.
-
The two were laying together lazily that afternoon, Screw Loose gnawing at her sleeves and Derpy stroking her hair. "Loosey?" The other made no reply, but she assumed she was listening. "You know I love you, right?" She made a "Yip!" sound. "And you know I'll always be here for you, no matter what, right?" A low bark, still gnawing. "And you know that I know that you love me. Right?" The crazy woman with deep purple eyes left her sleeves alone, picked her head up and began licking Derpy's face before completely climbing onto and snuggling her like the lap dog she clearly was not, smiling contentedly.
Derpy grinned, though there was a slight sadness in her voice. "Good girl."