//------------------------------// // Prologue: Nothing to Hold Us Back // Story: Dinky and Derpy's Big Adventure // by Echo 27 //------------------------------// Derpy flew along her usual route, peering down at the homes and denizens of the village she called home. She could still feel a substantial weight in her mailbags as she went along, dampening her flight and wearing her down. She had volunteered for a double-shift that morning and had been hard at work ever since, delivering a myriad collection of packages and letters to all her friends across Ponyville. She glanced at her list with her crossed eyes, concentrating hard as she looked down hard at her list of houses. Up next was Roseluck’s, with a package of what sounded like new seeds for her garden. She dipped her wings forward, brought them in tight and descended. The blonde mailmare landed harder and closer to the door than she had meant to, being forced to dig her hooves deep into the ground to avoid skidding into the door. As she came to a halt, she could even see the marks from where she had run into it last time. With a sigh of relief, she knocked. Roseluck was a pretty young girl who had been one of Derpy’s first friends when she had arrived at Ponyville, her soft nature only marred by an anger as thorny as the flowers she so carefully tended. She squinted out into the sunny day and noticed Derpy standing before her, the pegasus’ mouth carrying the package of seeds. With a smile, Roseluck caught the package as Derpy tossed it to her, giving her a muffled “Thanks” in reply. Giving a smile in return, Derpy took to the skies once more, on to the next house. “Hey, Derpy!” said a voice, and the pegasus turned to see Berry Punch heading towards her, as fast as the mare’s hooves would carry her. “Hi, Berry Punch,” Derpy greeted cheerfully. “What do you need? I know I delivered all of your mail correctly today.” “No, Derpy, I know you always look out for me, but aren’t you forgetting?” Berry Punch asked her, gazing at her meaningfully. Derpy returned the gaze confusedly, her cross-eyed expression somehow becoming more cross-eyed than usual. “Forgetting what?” “Derpy, school let out a while ago. Dinky’s waiting on you!” Derpy bit her lip, for she hadn’t actually forgotten that school had been let out of prison. What she had forgotten was to ask Berry Punch to go get Dinky for her. Berry Punch peered over at the mailbags, still full of various items. “Are you taking a double shift again?” “Uhh…” Berry Punch sighed and shook her head. “Derpy, you know you don’t need to do that. Roseluck, Carrot Top and I would all be willing to help you out. You KNOW that, don’t you?” This was an old argument between the two, one that Derpy had grown tired of. “Yes, Berry Punch, I know that.” “Then why won’t you let us help you and Dinky? We know what you’ve been through and I understand why you would rather not, but please, Dinky needs you full-time. You can’t just continue on like this.” “I appreciate the offer, but the answer is still no.” “But why?” “Has the answer ever changed?” Derpy asked her. “No, it hasn’t,” Berry Punch conceded. “But-” “Would you be able to go grab Dinky for me, Berry?” Derpy asked distractedly, cutting the purple Earth pony off. “I need to finish this shift if we’re going to afford this month’s payments.” Berry Punch opened her mouth as if to protest, then gave a gusty sigh. “Sure, I can do that.” As she walked off to pick up Dinky, she turned back. “Derpy?” The mailmare had already taken flight, but halted and hovered when she heard Berry Punch speak. “Mm?” “Will you please think about it? For real this time?” Derpy regarded her friend for a moment, taken aback by the intensity of the mare’s expression. Berry Punch was typically a jovial pony, not one to be serious for any length of time. This was such a change of pace that Derpy could do nothing but nod. “Thanks, Derpy,” Berry Punch breathed, sounding relieved. “See you this evening, then!” Dinky had had better days, if she were honest. Normally she performed well in her studies, but she just hadn’t been able to concentrate today. Whether it was the tantalizing breeze that filtered through the open windows or the distractions that came in the form of her fellow students, she could barely sit still. If it hadn’t been for Miss Cherilee’s patience, she might have gotten in more trouble than she had ended up in. An hour later, with all her friends having already left, she found herself still waiting for her mother to arrive. She swung herself back and forth on the swings, looking around hopefully as she waited for her mom to descend and take her home. She loved her mother dearly, and she missed that the two were not able to spend as much time with each other as they once did. She had been seeing dark shadows lining her mom’s eyes lately, and she had been more imbalanced than usual. Once or twice, though Dinky hadn’t told anyone, she had woken in the middle of the night and heard soft noises that sounded very much like crying, emanating from her mother’s room. She heard the sound of hooves on pavement growing ever closer, and Dinky peered up hopefully, but felt her heart sink like a stone when she saw it was none other than Aunt Berry Punch. The Earth pony gave the unicorn a smile and Dinky smiled in return, albeit one tinged with sadness. “Ms. Berry Punch!” Cherilee greeted kindly, walking towards her friend. “I was getting worried that Derpy wasn’t going to show up.” Berry Punch glanced over at Dinky, then said lowly, “She’s working a double shift again. I hope you don’t mind me taking her home again.” “No, not at all,” Cherilee replied graciously. “Although, do give this note to her when you see her, will you?” Berry Punch settled the note in the back of her mane like a filly would a pencil, said her goodbyes, and walked over to Dinky. “Ready to go?” she asked. “Yeah,” Dinky said morosely, getting to her feet and walking alongside her aunt without another word. Berry Punch regarded her niece, noting her downcast expression as she pattered alongside her. She remembered the day Dinky had been born, the joy she had brought her mother that day, and thousands of days since. She had taken more after Berry Punch herself than she had taken after her own mother, favoring a bright and cheery personality over the dutiful, often klutzy demeanor her mother possessed. Today, she seemed more downtrodden than anything. “Everything OK, Dinky?” “Yes, Aunt Berry Punch,” Dinky answered quietly. She hesitated for a moment and said, “I just miss Mommy, that’s all.” That was an odd thing to say, Berry Punch thought to herself. “What do you mean?” Dinky cocked her head, something she always did when she was thinking hard. “Well, she’s been really quiet lately, and she acts like she’s super sad all the time but doesn’t want me to notice. Do you know why she’d be sad, Aunt Berry Punch?” “Uhh…” Berry Punch knew perfectly well why Derpy would have a reason to be sad. In truth, she had several. But… “I don’t think that’s something I can tell you, sweetie.” “Why not?” “Well, your Mommy would probably want to tell you rather than me telling you.” “Why’s that?” She always was persistent, even as a foal, Berry Punch thought. “It’s complicated, Dinky. I’m sure she’ll tell you someday.” “Oh. OK,” Dinky replied, noting a tone of finality hidden in her Auntie’s voice. “Where’s Mommy?” “She’s working late tonight, sweetheart, so you’ll be staying with me until she can pick you up. We can eat whatever you want, how does that sound?” “Alright, I guess,” Dinky replied. Berry Punch felt a twinge of desperation as the two walked to her house, wishing Derpy was here. Dinky needed her mother to fix this, not her aunt. Derpy felt a warm flame burning inside her heart as she watched her only child reading intently, laying atop her bed. She had always been so proud of Dinky and her enthusiasm for learning. The young unicorn was a bright and gifted girl, always ahead of her fellow students. She often would bring her mother new books and read them aloud, telling her mother of all the new and interesting things she had learned while reading. She loved books on the ocean most, and always told Derpy that she wanted to go live on the seashore one day. Derpy was grateful that she had inherited that love of reading from her. Derpy loved books, but struggled to read them for… well, for obvious reasons. Therefore, it was with a twinge of sadness that she had to have this conversation. She stepped in and knocked on the door. “Dinky? Honey?” Dinky looked up at her mother and said, “Watch out for the pile of books in front of you, Mommy.” “Thank you, dearest,” Derpy replied, taking care to not knock over the substantial pile. “I wanted to talk about something.” “Sure, what is it, Mommy?” Dinky said, putting down her book. Squinting for a moment, Derpy saw it was a book on whales, Dinky’s favorite creature. “Sweetheart, I was given a note from your teacher today,” she began. “She said you fell asleep in class this morning, and then you said some mean words to another student today.” Dinky dipped her head, averting herself from her mother’s gaze. Derpy gave a sigh. “Dinky, that’s not like you. Can you tell me what happened? From your side of things?” Dinky continued to stare at the floor for a moment longer, then said, “I was bored.” Of all the answers Derpy had been expecting, that wasn’t one of them. “Bored? Sweetie, I thought you liked school.” “I do, Mommy, but we don’t do anything!” Dinky protested. “We never go anyplace or see anything interesting! And life here in Ponyville is so boring! Nothing exciting happens here!” Derpy thought back to all the commotion that had occurred during the time she had lived here, particularly in the last two years. “We’ve had exciting things happen here, dear.” “Yeah, but I never get to experience any of it!” Dinky continued. “It’s almost like everyone gets to go and do exciting things but me! The Cutie Mark Crusaders are always doing something fun, they get to study with Princess Twilight, and Princess Twilight is always doing something exciting. She got to go on that adventure with that blue pony just a little while ago!” Derpy remembered that incident full well, as the entire events had only occurred a few months ago. She had made sure that Dinky had been kept well inside when he had returned. “Adventures can be scary things, Dinky. They’re not always as fun as they seem.” “I still wanna go on one!” Dinky pouted. “I want an adventure, even if it’s just a small one! Let’s go on an adventure, Mommy!” Derpy stood there for a moment, thinking hard. She felt a throbbing sensation growing in between her eyes, and she squeezed them shut tightly for a few seconds. As the pain subsided, she replied, “I don’t know if we can, honey. Mommy needs to work, remember? And you have school?” Dinky gave a disappointed sigh, leaning back on her bed. “You’re right Mommy,” she answered in a low voice. Derpy gave her a sympathetic smile and nuzzled her daughter lovingly. “I promise I’ll think about it,” she said softly, leaning over and pulling the covers to her daughter’s chin. “But it’s time to go to bed now, OK? You’ve got another big day of school tomorrow!” “Goodnight, Mommy,” Dinky said, giving her mother a kiss on the cheek. Derpy knew she was still disappointed, she could see it in her eyes, but she hid it all the same. As she closed the door to Dinky’s room, she felt a lump rise in her throat, threatening to choke her. She sat on her haunches and brought her front hooves to her head, rocking slowly in a rhythmic motion. She counted to ten -once, twice, three times over- and felt her breathing normalize. I’m sorry, Dinky, she thought sadly, wiping the tears away from her eyes. I wish I could give you the life you deserve. The morning brought the very tired, very melancholy Hooves family to life, albeit at a slower pace than they were used to. Dinky struggled to pack her books into her bag, Derpy tripped over the coffee table twice, and by the time they managed to reach the door, they were both a little battered from a fierce altercation with a glass of orange juice. “Now, have fun today, alright, sweetheart?” Derpy said, giving her daughter a goodbye kiss. “I will, Mommy,” Dinky replied, running off to school before the bell rang. “Behave today!” Derpy yelled, though she doubted her words ever reached her daughter’s ears. It was a rather blustery day, poor weather for mail delivery. Mail delivery! Derpy hadn’t changed into her uniform yet! She dashed back home and slid open the doors to her closet in a hurried attempt to assemble herself. In her haste, she overreached and smacked a box off the top shelf, causing it to fall atop of her. She gave a cry of pain, her eyes watering, as she noticed the cover of the box had come loose, revealing a bit of cloth hanging over the sides of the container. It took Derpy a second to realize what she was looking at, a shudder coursing through her body as she did so. Slowly, with a careful reverence, she lifted the cover off and stared down at an old, weathered Equestrian flag. An old one, as it only possessed Princess Celestia’s sun on the front and back. The flags flying atop Canterlot today would have both the sun and the moon, in honor of Luna’s return. Derpy felt hear heart twist as she examined the flag. It was pristine, nearly untouched since she had held it last. It still contained all the smells, sights, sounds and memories of a time that felt like it was part of a different life. It was a part of her in a way nothing else was. She gazed around at the bare house, cluttered by a few books, worn and ragged furniture, and second-rate appliances. They managed to scrape through due to Derpy’s hard work and careful spending. They lived, but Derpy felt overwhelming guilt that, despite all her efforts, Dinky hadn’t been given a chance at making a life. She took a deep breath, taking in the scent of the neatly folded flag, her eyes closed. She hadn’t felt this at peace in a long, long time. She returned to her room, packed a few things in her bag, and did the same in Dinky’s room. It was time to go. “Derpy, you’re almost late, girl!” Her boss, Stamp, yelled. “Here, I need to you take the western route today, you’ve got some priority deliveries to do!” Derpy pushed aside the bag, staring at her superior with a lopsided intensity. “Stamp, how long have I worked here?” The inky pegasus was taken aback. Derpy may be his most accident-prone employee, but she was certainly one of his best. “Uhh… gee, Derpy, got to be over six years now.” “Have I ever taken a sick day or a vacation day during that time?” Derpy pressed. “Not one,” Stamp answered. “And I wish you had back when you had the feather flu,” he muttered under his breath.” “So tell me, then, Stamp,” Derpy said, “how many vacation days do you owe me?” “Uh…” Stamp peered around as he ran the numbers. “About a month’s worth, I think.” Derpy smiled in satisfaction, having come to that conclusion well before she arrived. “Excellent. I’ll be taking a week’s vacation, if you don’t mind.” “N-now?” Stamp stammered. “Vacation d-d-days? Now?” “That’s right,” Derpy replied with an energetic nod of her head. “See you in a week, Stamp!” Recess! Dinky and the other schoolponies raced to the doors and burst out onto the playground, eager to eat their lunches, play games with friends, and generally disregard school for as long as they could. Dinky’s day had been going as poorly as yesterday had gone. She had been too tired to take notes in class like she should, and had almost fallen asleep more than once. She was starting to worry she would fall asleep and miss the school bell for the end of recess- “Hey, Dinky, your mom’s here!” Pipsqueak cried, pointing to the sky. “Mommy!” Dinky cried in surprise, watching as her mother performed a pinpoint landing- something she had seen her mom do only twice before. “Mommy, what are you doing here?” Derpy caught sight of her daughter, gave her a wink, and went into the schoolhouse. In a few minutes, she was back out again, gesturing for Dinky to join her. “Mommy, what are you doing here?” Dinky asked in confusion. “Don’t you have to work today?” “I won’t have to work for seven whole days, sweetheart,” Derpy said happily. “And I just talked to Miss Cherilee about how you’ll be out of school for a couple of days. Do you know what that means, Dinky?” Dinky caught her breath in excitement, her eyes growing wide as her mother lifted her wings, revealing the pair of saddlebags hidden beneath. “Mommy, Mommy! We’re really gonna go? Where are we going?” “Oh, wherever we want to, I guess,” Derpy said mysteriously, a grin across her features. “You ready to go?” All tiredness forgotten, Dinky grabbed hold of her saddlebag and strapped it across her back. Leaping up onto her mother’s back, the two raced off into the distance, taking flight at the top of the hill and soaring out into the wilds.