Repair and Deliver

by SleeplessScribe

Chapter 9: The Challenge

Repair and Deliver
Story 6
Chapter 9: The Challenge
By: SleeplessScribe

Every time I woke up in Ponyville, I loved the town more and more. Being woken up by an alarm clock as opposed to shouting neighbors or some kind of road work was the greatest thing ever. Last night’s events only served to make things better, but I had already pushed my limits by asking my cousin for a day off so soon. Having to check and see how Dinky’s show and tell went after work was barely even an inconvenience, though.

After I had gotten myself ready for the day, I wrote myself a note and stuck it on the wall reminding me to get to work on those blueprints the minute I got home. I’d need it too, after what Sparkplug told me. She was already there when I got to the shop, and the minute she saw me, she started wagging her hoof as an indicator for me to come in.

“You. Seat. Now.”

It wasn’t exactly angry, but there was definitely a hint of demand in her tone. I sat down in the chair right across from her as she leaned forward, holding her hooves in front of her mouth.

“I love you, Torque, but I’m afraid I won’t continue being so lenient with you. I know how adamant you are about what you’re doing for Ditzy, but as a manager, I need to think about the business. You are one of the most experienced workers that Engage has employed, and I don’t want that to go to waste.”

I took advantage of her pause to nod, just so she would know I was listening. “Understandable.”

“It’s also very unfair to give you days ‘off’ like I did just because you’re family. So, I’m afraid I’ll have to ask you to keep your job and personal life separated. No more free days off until you’ve been at this shop for a month. Look, I know you’re patient, and I know you’re working on some complicated stuff, but I feel confident in saying that slower progress won’t kill you.”

There wasn’t much I could argue with. I honestly didn’t want to argue, I just wanted to make a few things known. “I understand. I’ve already finished my first project, and Dinky loved it. Right now, I’ve only got one more idea I know I want to make. However, I’m going to need to make an offer to someone later today before I even start it.”

My cousin cocked her brow. “Really? What kind of an offer?”

I could help but smirk at her. “I thought you just said to keep work and personal life separate?”

She puffed her cheeks out, crossing her forelegs in front of her chest. “I’m also your boss. I know what I said, but I want to know what you’re talking about.”

With a smile, I brought my hooves up close to the sides of my head. “I’m going to fix her eyes.”

Sparkplug blinked a few times before finally realizing what I just said. “You’re crazy. I’m pretty sure there’s no surgery that could fix her eyes. In fact, I’m not positive even magic could restore her vision.”

I stood up, setting my hooves on the desk and leaning forward. Sparkplug was my boss, and I acknowledged that, but I knew her well enough to know that I could get away with a little more regardless of her stance on nepotism.

“Sparks, need I remind you that a unicorn was transformed into an alicorn princess not too long ago? Didn’t you hear about all the stuff that’s been happening? Stuff like that crazy guy that attacked Canterlot or those ponies that saved Manehattan? I don’t want to hear about impossible, alright? The damage done to Ditzy’s body may be irreversible, but I will find a way for her to see straight again, because I love her, and I know having a better job will help her immensely.”

A sly grin began to spread across my cousin’s mouth, alerting me to what I had just said. I felt my cheeks head up a bit, but the words came out so easily. There was no hesitation, no reluctance, I knew what I felt now.

“Yeah, I said it.”

She slowly started to clap as her grin closed into a smile. “Well, I’m happy for you. We’ll have to talk more about this when we’re not on the job, but now that my curiosity is… somewhat satisfied, we need to get to work. Though, we haven’t gotten any jobs. Everyone else is in the garage, talking, so you can join them if you want.”

Now it was my turn to raise a brow. “How early do they all get here? We don’t open for another seven minutes.”

The mare rolled her eyes and reached forward to poke my nose. “You actually weren’t too far behind them. They’re not early, you just get here last, which is surprising. I’d have thought you’d always be the first to get here.”

“Yeah, I thought I would be too. What’s everyone doing?”

She shrugged. “Not sure. Normally they goof off and play a game or something until we get a call or walk-in. You need to get to know them better, so go in and see what they’re doing.”

Again, I couldn’t argue, and I was mildly interested in actually knowing my coworkers. When I went through the door into the garage, I saw everyone sitting at a table in the center and Drill Bit rolling a pair of dice.

“Only three? Come on, man!”

Once the cubes were still, Sprocket put three tallies on a sheet of paper before looking up at me. “Oh, good morning, Torque!”

I smiled at her as I walked up to them all. “Hey, everyone, what’s going on?”

Stainless Steel turned around in his chair, nodding to the table. “Our Monday morning tradition. We play a little dice game, loser buys lunch. If you want, we can start over and you can join in.”

Sprocket pulled up the empty chair beside her and gave me a bright smile when I sat down. “Sure! How’s it work?”

Fuse Box still astounded me with his apparent ability to see through his long hair. “Not too hard. You got two dice, and you roll ‘em. We go in turns, and everyone gets five rolls in total. Whatever number you roll gets added to your score, and the one with the lowest score loses.”

“Sounds easy enough, I’m in.”

Sprocket flipped to a new sheet in the notepad she’d been writing on, writing down everyone’s names again. “Alright, Torque gets to go first since he’s new here.”

Drill Bit gave me the pair and I rolled a twelve on my first go. “Wow! This is shenanigans, I never roll that high! Torque, you’re like a Luck Child or something.”

Once Sprock was done recording my score, I handed the dice to her. “I guess so. I like to think myself pretty fortunate given my circumstances.”

Sprock rolled a five, but nearly dropped her pencil at the big guy’s next words. “Heck, I bet everything went perfectly on your date just because of your luck!”

I drew back, staring at him for a moment. “Wait, wait, hold on. How did you know about that?”

Fuse chuckled as he gave the dropped pencil back to Sprocket. “Dude, word spreads fast in this town. It’s not often you’ll hear false or bad rumors, but if someone sees something they want to share, you can bet the whole town will know in a few days. We just assumed you took that Derpy girl on a date, and—”

He froze when he saw the look I gave him, gulping nervously before starting over. “Uh, that Ditzy girl. We just assumed you were taking her out because of how snuggly she was with you. It’s not a bad thing, we just wanted to bring it up.”

“I think it’s really… sweet what you’re doing.” The mare beside me handed her dice off to Stainless before turning her attention back to me. She tried to grin, but she couldn’t keep her teeth out for long. “From what I understand, she doesn’t get very much company that often.”

“She doesn’t, but I’ve just been taking her out to help her get her mind off things.”

Drill Bit blew a raspberry, pointing to the door to my cousin’s office. “Bud, we heard you talking to the boss. At least the whole spiel about ‘the impossible’. You know, the one you ended with ‘because I love her’?”

Now my face heated up for real. I was about to say something, but Fuse threw up his hoof. “Hey, man, don’t freak. Like I said, it’s not a bad thing, we were just curious. If it bothers you that much, we won’t bring it up again.”

Drill Bit rolled and got another three. “Ah, come on! This is rigged somehow!” After a quick facehoof, he looked back up. “Yeah, bud, we’re just messing with you. I didn’t realize it was such a touchy subject, and while I still want to ask you something, feel free not to answer: aren’t you a little scared?”

I raised a brow at him, watching Fuse roll a seven. “Scared? Of what exactly?”

Drill adjusted the brim of his cap, probably to avoid having to watch me roll a nine. “You’ve seen some of her accidents. Aren’t you a little worried that something might happen while you’re around her?”

I just shrugged. “Not really. She’s pretty good when she’s on the ground, and I’m going to find some way to help her see straight in the air.”

Sprocket took her roll as she spoke, though she made it clear she was much more interested in the conversation. “How exactly do you plan on doing that?”

As she wrote down her score and passed the dice on, I thought about it. “Well… I’m not sure. I have a few ideas, but they’re kind of out there.”

Stainless rolled now, clapping as he got a twelve. “Like what ideas?”

“Well, right now I’m working on designs for a special pair of goggles. I think if I can put in more than one lens into one of the eyes, I can shape them so that it angles the light in front of her into the pupil of the crooked eye. I’d pay for her to get surgery, but I don’t feel the danger of an operation is worth it. I mean, I know if it works, she’ll have perfect vision again, but it could cause even worse damage if it goes wrong.”

Our resident only-mare-in-the-room was writing even as she spoke. “Yeah, I’d try everything I could before resorting to that. Magic, maybe?”

Every time I saw Fuse, he was trying to lean back, but he kept having to come back for his roll every five minutes. “Nah, Sprock. That’s pretty dangerous, too. Who knows what could go wrong? Besides, unicorns probably charge a helluva lot more than a regular doctor would.”

She rolled her eyes, and I saw her write a lower score than what he got. Sprocket opened her mouth, but before she could speak, I pointed to the sheet, forcing her to correct it. “What would you know about magic, Fuse Box? Hell, what would you know about sight? You’ve got your hair in your eyes so much, it’s a wonder you’re not blind!”

He slowly rose, shooting Sprocket a rather menacing glare. “I know more about it than your ass, Sprocket! I lived in Canterlot for a few years, where are you from again? Oh yeah, Dodge Junction, A.K.A. the Hick Town of hick towns!”

The mare opened her mouth but shut it immediately as I slammed my hoof on the table. “Enough! Look here, I don’t raise my voice very often, but if this is what spawns from a simple conversation, I’ll start! How about we all just calm down and finish the game, huh? We’re open now, too, and what’s it going to look like if someone walks in and see you two fighting?”

Both pairs of ears fell as they sat back down. Neither of them said anything, but it was okay since I wasn’t finished. “I don’t know why you two are so quick to attack each other, and it’s not really any of my business, but how about we keep it out of the shop? Sparks just asked me to keep my personal life out of work, and I’m sure she expects the same out of you.”

Drill rolled, but kept his attention on Fuse and Sprock. Wow, he really did not want to look at those dice. “I agree. Torque, you’re right, it’s not your business, but we all know what happened, and you need to keep that out of this shop. The boss tries her darnedest to keep you two from going out on jobs together, but like it or not, you’re going to have to put up with each other here.”

Fuse was about to take his roll, but my cousin poked her head through the door. “Guys! I need someone to run over to Sugar Cube Corner and look at the Cakes’ lights. They won’t turn on, and they’ve checked the fuses to make sure none of them are busted.” He then rose from his seat and grabbed his electrical tool belt. “I’ll go. Anything to get out of here right now.”

When he passed Sparkplug and left, she looked back at us. “Did you two get into a fight again? What have I told you about that, Sprocket?”

She let out a long sigh before looking up at our boss. “To keep my feelings out of the shop. I know.”

My cousin angled down her brows, scowling at the other mare. “Then why have you been unable to do so? This is the third time I’ve had to speak to you about this, and if it weren’t for the fact that I need workers, one of you, at the very least, would’ve been sent to another shop if not fired altogether at this point. I’m not going to put up with this for much longer, so tighten up.”

Sprocket lowered her head, keeping her eyes on the notepad before her. “Yes ma’am.”

“Good. Now calm down, and find something to do that doesn’t bring back month old memories.”

Once the door was shut, Sprocket grabbed her radio and opened one of the garage doors. “I’m going out for a walk. Don’t ask where, and don’t follow me.”

Steel and Drill both looked straight at me once she was gone, but Drill spoke up first. “Torque, you’d better watch out for her.”

I furrowed my brow and rubbed my chin. “What? Why?”

The kid nudged my shoulder. “You didn’t notice how she was basically cuddling up to you? She did that with me when I first started here, too. We think she’s trying to make Fuse jealous.”

My gaze shifted between my two coworkers for at least a minute before I finally said something. “Guys, I’m really not comfortable talking about her behind her back like this. Like I said, it’s none of my business.”

Drill slowly shook his head. “Nah, man, this is something you need to know. A long while ago, Sprocket and Fuse used to date. She claims she caught him cheating on her, so she dumped him. Ever since then, they’ve been really bitter towards each other.”

I slowly tilted my head, cocking my brow again. “That doesn’t make any sense. Why would she want to make him jealous if they don’t like each other?”

They both shrugged. It seemed like every time they had a tie like that, Drill Bit had a faster voice or something. “Torque, she’s a mare. They don’t come with manuals. Heck, if they did, I’d actually read a manual for once in my life!”

That got a chuckle out of both of us, despite the fact that I was probably the only one in the room that made a habit out of looking at manuals when I needed to. “So, I take it the game is over?”

Drill once again beat Steel to the punch. “Yeah, I guess. I’ll buy lunch today. My luck is pretty crap anyway, so I end up having to buy most weeks. Get used to this too, bud. We can go entire weeks without getting one call or walk-in, and the next week we never stop moving. It’s crazy.”

“Yeah, that’s how it was back home. I assume you guys don’t have a basketball hoop out back though, right?”

They both looked at each other again, wide grins plastered on their faces. Finally Stainless got the chance to speak before Drill. “Actually, we do! We just… lost the ball.”

Steel started to chuckle, but I was a little concerned. Well, I shouldn’t say I was concerned, since it wasn’t that big a deal. However, there was something I wanted to do, so I knocked on the office door so I could ask Spark about it.

“Come in.” Her ears perked up when she saw me, setting down the papers she had been looking at. “Hey, cousin. What’s up?”

I saw down in that same seat I was in earlier, teasingly nabbing the one screwdriver she had been occupying herself with that one time we spoke. “Do you mind if I head out? I want to see if I can find out when show and tell is at the school, and I want to see if I can pick up a new basketball for the hoop outside.”

She set the papers down and took her screwdriver back. “Fine, but make it quick. If you haven’t missed it, you can check again during your lunch break. However, if I call you in, you come in, regardless of whether you’re in the middle of her presentation or on your way to get the ball or whatever. You haul tail back here if I call you, got it?”

“Understood. I’ll be as quick as I can.” I grabbed my radio and set off rather quickly, but slowed down once I was a decent ways away from the shop. My statement about being quick was kind of a half-truth; I had some things I wanted to think about, so I planned on moving pretty slowly to give myself some actual time to do so.

There was no denying that I did have a romantic attraction to my clumsy friend anymore. What was odd about it was the fact that I still questioned myself when I actually gave it some thought. I guess I really did need to stop listening to my head in this situation.

As I walked, I noticed a store called Barnyard Bargains, which I marked for my return trip. Big stores like that usually had at least a small bit of everything, and I was confident in saying that this place probably had a sporting goods section.

Despite this, my first goal was still the school. I found it a little odd that the children’s’ school was farther away from the center of town than the high school, but hey, what do I know, I’m no architect. It looked as if things were just starting, and had I not spotted a little problem, I’d have gone in to say hello.

“Sparks, are you there?”

There was a bit of static that preceded her response, but she came through clear as day. “I’m here, what’s up?”

I walked over to what was “up” just to get a closer look. “I’m at the school playground and it looks like one of the swing sets is broken. Do you want me to ask Cheerilee if she wants it taken care of right now?”

“What’s wrong with it?”

Before telling her what I noticed, I took a look at the entire structure to make sure there was nothing else wrong. “The swivel on one of the swings is loose. Too much weight on it will snap it off the frame. It shouldn’t take too long to tighten it up, and if that doesn’t work, I can get the parts to replace it when I check Barnyard Bargains for a basketball.”

“Alright, go ahead. Nice to hear that you’re actually looking for work instead of just goofing off. You might be able to make up for being ballsy enough to ask for that early break.”

I chuckled a little, and I could hear my cousin doing the same on her end. “I’ll remember that.”

“Don’t worry about it, bud, we found it! Turns out, Stainless Steel forgot it was back in its box up on one of the shelves. If we don’t get any jobs when you get back, we’ll play some.”

Had it not been for Drill Bit’s input, I’d have forgotten that everyone with a radio could hear us. “I look forward to it. See you in a bit.”

I knocked on the doorframe to get the teacher’s attention, and she waved me in once she saw me. “Oh, good morning, Torque! How are you today?”

“I’m doing pretty well. I was hoping to catch Dinky doing her show and tell, but I spotted something I wanted to ask you about.”

The mare raised both brows. “Well, we do the show and tells at the end of the day, so you can come by then, if you have time. What is it you want to know?”

I nudged my head outside, though I wasn’t sure if it was actually in the direction of the swings. “Just a little issue with a loose swing. I can take care of it, if you’d like. Figured it was best to ask you first. It shouldn’t take too long, either, and won’t be loud at all.”

She gave me a nod and a bright smile. “By all means, Torque! If you think it’s a problem, I’d be more than happy to have it worked on.”

“Alright, I’ll grab a few things back at the shop and see you in a little bit.” Actually, I would have if I didn’t double back to ask her something else. “Wait, before I go: Who is going to be paying the bill for the projector and this? In Vanhoover, our taxes go towards city services, including the schools, and that’s where funds for repairs and such come from, does it work the same here?”

Cheerilee nodded again, motioning her hoof towards the town hall. “That’s the system here. Don’t worry, I don’t pay for maintenance out of my own pocket, if that’s what you’re concerned about.”

After a small chuckle, I set out on my way again. “Alright, thank you for clearing things up. I’ll be back in a little bit!”

The teacher waved at me, though I froze, just for a moment, at her farewell words. “Thank you, Torque! Oh, and you and Rarity did a wonderful job with Dinky’s stuffed animal! Good work!”

I made a mental note to thank her for the compliment when I returned. Once I was back at the shop, I grabbed a rubber strap wrench, and normal wrench, and a few nuts and bolts just in case. If my hunch was correct, I could just tighten this thing up with the strap and be done with it. However, I did have a contingency plan if that didn’t work. In this business, you always need a Plan B.

Making conversation wasn’t on my “to do” list, so once I had the tools, I just slipped out. I took a different route to the school this time, and it just so happened to be one that took me past the post office. As I thought about it, I became surer that I could get away with stopping by once I had finished up at the playground.

Just as I had thought, a little elbow grease and the strap wrench made short work of the loose metal. You know, it’s actually kind of funny when you think about it; because of the fact that it’s used for a lot of sturdy structures, others kind of forget how malleable some metals actually are.

Anyway, Cheerilee was actually in the middle of teaching now, so I just poked my head in and gave her a wink to let her know I was finished. She returned my wink and resumed her lesson, and I made a mental note to come back later if I could.

I chose not to radio in my cousin to let her know I was done. Instead, I took a detour into the post office, went right up to the counter, and rang the bell. To be honest, I was actually very relieved when it was a mare other than Ditzy that came up to me.

“Hello there, friend! How may I help you?”

There was no doubt in my mind she saw it as an odd request, but I didn’t see any reason why it’d be a problem. “Hello, may I speak to your boss? That is, if he’s in.”

She tilted her head at me before turning around. “Um, yes, give me a moment.”

A few minutes later, she returned with Air Mail following behind her. The two of us traded looks for a moment before I finally spoke. “I’d like to speak with you about Ditzy.”

He turned to the mare that had answered me before nudging his head a little. “Head on back to your station, Love Letter.” She gave him a nod and trotted off as he turned his attention to me. “I remember you, kid. You were there when she crashed into that building. So, what’s this about?”

I set my hoof on the counter, and though I wouldn’t say I slammed it, I did put a little more force that necessary into it. “I’m here to make a deal with you. I have been trying to figure out an invention that will allow her to see straight when she’s in the air. If I can pull this off, will you agree to let her perform deliveries again?”

The big guy let out a sigh, turning to face the window on his right. “I’ll have you know that kid has been working her for a long, long while. She’s like a daughter to me, but while I understand how hard things are for her, the damages she causes while out on deliveries far outweighs the difference she makes. Son, if there were a solution to her problem, I’d have already helped her find it. Surgery is too dangerous, and I doubt you can make anything that will correct her vision. I appreciate it, and I have given her a small raise to make up for the money she’s loosing, but there’s just no way it can be done.”

After a deep breath, I looked back up at him and puffed out my chest a little. “Sir, I don’t think you understand how determined I am. I’ve said it before to others, and I’ll say it again to you: I am in love with that mare, and I’ll do anything I can to make her life better. It doesn’t matter to me what you say; I’ll make the impossible possible.”

A small smile stretched across the stallion’s muzzle as he looked down at me. “You know, my initial response to whatever you were going to say was going to be ‘If I were you, I’d just stay out of other ponies’ business.’ I still kind of stand by that, as this really isn’t any of your business, but I will say this: if you really think you can find a solution to her problem and it works, I’d be more than happy to give her back her old job with the pay raise.”

He held out his hoof, and our deal was sealed with a solid shake. I made my way out as we finished, but stopped in my tracks as he spoke again.

“You know, I realize what I said may have upset you a little, but I like ponies that don’t have ‘impossible’ in their vocabulary. Good on you, kid.”

I turned to him with a grin, tipping my hat. “I’m going to do it. Just you wait.”

Comments

[Booster Spice]

Aint see this variation used before, personally, except for a HiE loneson maintenance man, so its intresting to see an actual repair group. Which, thinking about how many disasters Ponyville tends to get through, even before taking the CMC into account, must be able to keep them busy.

The goggles are an instresting idea, but tricky. If her eyes were fixed displaced relative, then a planar camera style offset might work? If they are ratio displaced though, You might be quicker using a combination of mechanoptical and magical effects, for sight tracking and ajusting optics accordingly. ?

Definitely following. Thank you.

[SleeplessScribe]

3427719 The goggles *spoiler spoiler spoiler* You'll see what happens as I write more