Over Land and Sea

by Wessexbrony

The Aftermath

As the Chelsea players on the big screen lifted the Champions League trophy, Derpy made no attempt to wipe away the tears of joy which were still streaming down her face. The raucous celebrations behind her subsequently contrasted to the following scenes on the big screen, where Big Match, Kick Off and Full Time were going over the events of the game with a fine toothed comb.

"Hey!" Pinkie Pie shouted suddenly, "You know what this calls for? A party!" She then produced her trademark party cannon and fired, producing a stream of blue confetti and causing Blue is the Colour to start playing.

"Come on, Derpy," Twilight said, "This is just as much your party as it is theirs," she indicated the Equestria Blues, who were breaking out into a chorus of "Championes, Championes, ole, ole, ole".

Amidst all of this, Lyra was attempting to juggle getting caught up in the party and making arrangements.

"So, the trophy parade will be on Saturday, will it?" she asked one of the Chelsea supporters, who nodded, "That sounds ideal. If Derpy goes with Rainbow Dash and comes back with Dinky, can you arrange a party before they come back?"

"Sure thing!" Pinkie said, producing a notepad from her mane and writing something in it before Lyra was dragged away by Bon Bon. Meanwhile, Derpy found herself the centre of attention, receiving hugs from practically every pony in town, being plied with soft cider by a half-ecstatic, half-crying Ruby Pinch, and being given an entire plate of Pinkie's "Champions League Final cupcakes".

"You know," Lyra said to Twilight, as the two of them took a breather, "A huge weight is going to be lifted from my mind tomorrow." Twilight raised an eyebrow, but decided not to push the issue further.

"And so, another season comes to an end," Big Match said, as the program concluded, "And what a season it has been, one that will be talked about not just in South West London, but all over the world for a long time to come. We'll be back next season, but from all of us on Sport 1, goodnight, and have a very good summer." The Champions League anthem then played in full as highlights of the competition were shown, whilst in Ponyville, Athens and London, the parties lasted long into the night.

Thursday 24th May

“Look at that…”

I yawned and rolled over, realising that I was still wearing my replica Chelsea shirt from the previous night; just as Rainbow Dash, who was fast asleep, was still wearing hers. Dinky, meanwhile, was looking out of the window, as the sun began to rise over Athens.

“It's too early…” I mumbled.

“It's beautiful.”

“I know you're excited, Dinks, and I appreciate the symbolism and all,” Rainbow Dash yawned, “But it's six o'clock in the morning. Go back to sleep.”

Dinky reluctantly did so.

Derpy looked at the letter that Lyra had given her, written in the exact same writing as the letter that had brought her world crashing down around her almost exactly a year ago.

“Dear Ms Hooves,

Congratulations! With the increasing competitiveness of the Premier League, I never thought another English side would win The Treble.
More importantly, in recent weeks, new information regarding your case has come to light; information which was not only withheld from me at the time, but also over the past year…”

Thursday 3rd May

Autumn walked through the corridors of the Foal Protection Agency as she headed back to her office. She didn't see the point of weekly caseworker meetings, but as head caseworker she felt that she had to set a good example.

As she idly thought about asking Lyra if she wanted to go to The Two Princesses for lunch, she heard a commotion coming from a nearby office.

“That’s what your fellow caseworkers have all said,” came a voice which Autumn didn't recognise, “That a lazy eye and sometimes speaking too quickly doesn't impact on a pony's qualifications as a parent.”

"But she was deemed mentally unfit-"

"I spoke to the psychiatrist," the voice continued, "He told me that he never evaluated her. I checked his records and he was telling the truth."

“Well, there must have been something,” the caseworker said, wilting under the gaze of a blue unicorn stallion wearing a red bowtie and a pair of glasses. “Otherwise no action would have been taken.”

“There was something,” the stallion said, “This letter, which Ms Heartstrings passed to me, was written by one of the foals at Ponyville Primary School, who on Friday overheard your boss boasting about how she'd concocted evidence to make it seem like immediate action needed to be taken…”

“Wait,” Autumn thought, “Concocted evidence? Then that means...that means…Oh, Derpy, Dinky, I am so, so sorry…”

And then, she realised something. All those visitation forms which had gone missing. The attempt to get Ruby taken away.

“Excuse me,” she said, walking into the office, “But, Mr-”

“One Truth, private investigator,” the stallion replied.

“I have information that you might want to hear.”

Some time later, Autumn entered her office as One Truth and Lyra followed her.

“Right,” she said, “This is perhaps the sixth time I’ve tried to get Ms Hooves granted visitation rights. Every one before - even the one I gave directly to the visitation team - has gone missing. None of them has made it back to me to be sent off to London.”

“Right then,” One Truth said, and looked intently at it before his horn lit up and caused the form to briefly glow.

“A tracking spell,” he explained, as Autumn placed the form in the internal post trolley, “Now, we’ve set the bait.”

“So, how long do you reckon it’ll take until you have a watertight case?” Autumn asked.

“With the evidence you gave, it can be moved forward to three weeks from today. But,” he continued, "This has to be kept quiet. Belladonna will likely scarper if she finds out."

“That’s the day after the Champions League Final…” Lyra tailed off, as the radio reported on the previous night’s match.

“Chelsea are dreaming of the treble after last night’s win in the Nou Camp…” Breaking News said, as the radio then repeated Kick Off’s commentary.

“Free kick to Chelsea in Frank Lampard territory. A pivotal moment in this semi final second leg. Half an hour to go, it’s one-all on the night, four-two to Chelsea on aggregate. It’s Lampard to take...oh, superb free kick! Frank Lampard has surely put Chelsea into the Champions League Final!”

Thursday 24th May

“There were scenes of jubilation last night as Chelsea lifted the European Cup for the first time in their history to complete the treble. A late goal from Didier Drogba won the match after Eidur Gudjohnsen had cancelled out Gilardino's header in the first half…”

Autumn heard a knock at the door to her office, and opened it to find One Truth flanked by two constables.

“Let’s go.” he said.

Autumn nodded, and, joined by Lyra, headed down the corridor.

“Don’t you know to kno-” Belladonna began, before being cut off by one of the constables.

“Belladonna Nightshade, I am arresting you on suspicion of misconduct in a public office and perverting the course of justice. You do not have to say anything, but it may harm your defence if you do not mention anything…”

Autumn waited until the constable had finished before making her announcement.

“And one more thing,” she said, as the two constables led Belladonna out of her office, “You’re sacked.”

“...the pony responsible was arrested and her employment terminated this morning, and I will shortly be taking steps to ensure that such a state of affairs does not happen again. I cannot begin to express how sorry I am for what you and your daughter had to go through.

Yours sincerely,

Autumn Scamper

Acting Director (previously head caseworker)

Equestrian Foal Protection Agency

“Hello, Lyra,” I said, as she greeted me on the other end of the line, shortly after we’d arrived back from the airport.

“I was ringing to arrange the handover,” Lyra said, “Obviously with the result of the match last night - I’d ask if you enjoyed it, but that’s probably academic.”

“The handover? Well, how does Saturday sound?” I asked, “That’s when the trophy parade is; so if Derpy was to accompany Rainbow Dash, Dinky would be able to go back with them without having to go through the embassy.”

“That sounds fine by me.” Lyra answered.

Friday 25th May

“Two of The Treble, please,” I said, as we were served at Goalato. The ice cream duly arrived, with one flavour in each of the three containers which were shaped like the Premier League trophy, the FA Cup and the Champions League Trophy respectively.

“I’m actually going to miss this place,” Dinky said, digging a spoonful of honeycomb crunch out of the miniature FA Cup.

“Given the popularity of football in Equestria, it won’t surprise me if they start opening up over there,” I replied. “Mind you, they’re looking at Wembley and Old Trafford first.”

In Ponyville, Derpy finished putting fresh sheets on a bed that had been untouched for almost a year. One more day...

Saturday 26th May

It was safe to say that there was a carnival atmosphere on Eel Brook Common. A big screen showed every goal Chelsea had scored that season, while numerous humans and ponies waited for the open-topped buses to pass. There was even a zeppelin hovering in the air.

After what seemed like an eternity, a huge roar went up from further down the road, getting louder and louder as the buses approached, passing by as the first team players and Jose Mourinho waved, with the trophies being held aloft for all to see.

Some time later, back at the flat, Lyra’s mobile phone went off, and she looked at it.

“We’re good to go,” she said.

“Well,” I said, as I knelt down to give Dinky one last hug, “It looks like you really are going home.”

“Thank you so much for looking after my Muffin,” Derpy said, as she then gave me a hug.

“See you next season.” That was Rainbow Dash.

Dinky barely had time to register the fact that she had returned to Ponyville, or that a massive party had been arranged to celebrate her return, before she was literally bowled over by Ruby Pinch - she was certain that Ruby was crying - before being mobbed by the rest of her classmates, giving her an impression of what Ballack and Drogba must have experienced after their heroics against Galatasaray and winning goal against Milan respectively.

I circled the date that the next Premier League season would start on the calendar, before walking over to the window and looking out over the London skyline, lit up against the night sky. Whilst I did so, I thought about the events of the past season, and the unicorn who was now back in Ponyville.

Would I miss her? Absolutely, but she should never have been in London to begin with. Lyra had told me everything, and how the former director of the Foal Protection Agency was now facing trial and a long stretch inside if found guilty.

The ringing of the telephone shook me from my thoughts, making me realise that I’d been humming the theme from the film Local Hero for the past minute. I walked over and picked it up.

When played in its entirety, the UEFA Champions League Anthem contains the words “un grand reunion”. And that night, in Ponyville, a grey pegasus and her daughter enjoyed a grand reunion of their own. The two of them fell asleep cuddled up to each other, knowing that they were together again, and that was how it would stay.

Comments

[Bronycommander]

A wonderful Ending! Great Work!

[Curtis Wildcat]

Admittedly I'm not much of a football fan, but I still enjoyed the story. Nice job all around!