The starting line

by The_very_TraveledWolf

The end of the begining

Welcome back my friend, I suppose you've been wondering how this story ends. Now I can tell it to you.

(Flashback Transition, Between chapter events will be told in a different story.)

Alarms blared at the secret base of Equestria's monster hunters. Derpy Flash was looking at a series of gauges as other ponies of zipped around the series of interconnected rooms. Some of them we pushing buttons, others were digging through files, all of them were confused by what was happening. Derpy began trying to run diagnostic tests on the equipment.

A sudden slam stopped the panic, as the ponies looked towards the source and saw princess Celestia in the doorway. "The strongest one has escaped Tartarus!" she exclaimed. the others looked at their ruler in shock

"How?" said the voice of one just entering from a room labeled storage. Derpy knew it was one of the friends she had here named Sweetie Drops.

"It has gotten stronger somehow agent Drops." the white alicorn said finally catching her breath. "I didn't come here to help you track that thing though. I've come to shutter this operation..."

"Why? Shouldn't we need this place now more than ever?" asked Derpy.

"My goal has always been the safety of my subjects. It is now to dangerous for me to ask all of you to keep doing this. Cut the power and meet me one at time in my office, that is your final order for this assignment." Celestia said and walked away.

It was now Derpy Flash's turn to enter the office she watched her coworkers exit holding strange briefcases. When the gray pegasus entered the room it was dimly lit by only a few small candles. "Come over and have a seat old friend. It has been too long since we spoke in private." as she followed princess Celestia's instructions the solar alicorn watched. When the pegasus sat down Celestia said "Welcome, I'm sure you have questions, but before you ask me anything let me tell you why I called you here. I'm going to give you your real orders.

Elsewhere in a farming town known as Ponyville, a brown earth pony stallion named Doctor Hooves was going shopping. He wandered throughout the town with a cart, adding an unusually large amount of groceries into a pile of various antiques and seed packets. This sight earned some odd glances because 'the doctor' was not a farmer or a collector, and there was no reason to hoard food. That brown earth stallion was the towns clock repair pony, it was odd to see him around town, because it seemed he only left his home to pick up shipments and buy a few meals fit for a single pony. "What'cha doin' there Mr. Doctor!?" said a bouncy pink earth pony named Pinkie Pie.

"Just picking up some supplies for something I'm going to be doing Pinkie." Doctor Hooves said.

"Oooohhhh... in the past, present, or future Mr. Doctor!?" Pinkie said with a smile.

"Uuuhhhh... the present I guess, unless you consider when I get home the future... which I mean... you could very well say that... but..." he said nervously before pinkie interrupted him.

"Okie-dokie-Loki" she said in a sing-song voice before bouncing away.

"Whew that was close. Great whickering stallions that mare is so weird." breathing a sigh of relief, the doctor started walking home.

Back with Derpy and Celestia their important conversation was just beginning. "What do you mean by sending us on reconnaissance mission princess?" the gray pegasus asked.

"I'm saying your going undercover to monitor the situation. Only monitor don't engage an enemy unless your life is in danger, do I make myself clear?" said the white alicorn.

"Yes your majesty." Derpy replied.

"Now with that out of the way let's move on. I will be sending you to a town called Ponyville. It's a nice town where I will be sending only my most important agents. You will move there under an assumed name of your choice. The crown has already made arrangements for your stay, along with a fake job for you to work at." said the princess.

"Thank you Celestia. I choose to go by the name Muffins if that is alright." derpy said seemingly quickly.

"Of course Derpy, I will see to it, just remember it. For you to blend in you will also need to act different compared to your usual self. Try not to act in a suspicious manner and please be safe." Celestia said handing Derpy a freshly printed piece of paper.

"Thank you princess ,I will be on my way now." Derpy said as she stood up.

"Don't forget to grab a briefcase full of field gear on your way out. Remember 'Muffins' you are a true friend." Celestia called.

Looking at the paper Derpy saw an address and a job listed. 'Official postal employee huh... I guess it wont be too hard.' Derpy sighed and folded the paper she knew her clumsiness would lead to problems with this job she would just have to increase the number of them. Muffins would have to act as clumsy as the cross-eyed mare looked. She boarded a train as a different pony, one setting off for a new job in a new town that would not know who she was.

The train ground to a halt at Ponyville station and the passengers departed the cars. Muffins started walking to the post office making sure to stumble a few times so the townsponies would get the message that she was uncoordinated. Falling through the post office door the grey pegasus let out a cheerful "Hello!"

"Welcome mam, how can I help you today?" said the pony at the counter.

"I'm here to pick up my schedule. I just started here and I'm so excited to be working here!" replied muffins.

"I see... you must be the new hire. Muffins wasn't it" The postal worker was clearly suspicious of the clumsy mare that had finally came up to the counter.

"YUP that's me! I sure do love muffins!" She made sure to give the worker a goofy grin and tilt her head.

" Okay then, you will start in two weeks. After the postmaster decides your route. We will deliver your hours to you." the postal worked said clearly annoyed.

"Okay.." Muffins said putting her head down and walking out the door. 'I hate having to do that just for a reputation. Everypony knows postal workers don't use a regular hourly system. I feel bad for annoying that nice stallion, but maybe a muffin will make me feel better.'

Muffins wandered the town for several minutes before spotting a bakery called Sugarcube corner. She stepped through the door and walked straight to the counter. A light blue earth pony mare with a pink mane was standing a the register. "Welcome to Sugarcube corner, would you like to try our special apple tart today?"

"No tanks, I'll just take a chocolate chip muffin please!" A pink earth pony dashed up the stairs behind the business's employee area but neither of the conversing mares seemed to care.

"Here is your muffin mam." the shopkeeper said as the gray pegasus set her bits on the countertop.

Finishing her muffin the cross-eyed pegasus made her way to the house she had been given. When she arrived and pushed the door open the inside was completely blacked-out, almost no light made its way through the opening Muffins had made. "Surprise!" came a mares voice as light flicked on abruptly revealing most of the town was in the house.

The pegasus's eyes derped and she scrunched her muzzle, trying not to act defensive she said "Oh my..". A banner that said welcome to Ponyville on it hung and the room was lined with streamers and balloons. The centerpiece of this scene was a tower of muffins of every flavor surrounded by punch bowls and cider. The partygoers had shared some laughs at the reveal and the gray pegasus immediately sauntered over to the stack of her favorite treat. Grabbing one of every flavor and a bottle of cider, Muffins sat on a nearby couch.

"I see you were surprised! Every new pony gets one of my signature welcome parties when they first move here! I'm Pinkie Pie and I love meeting new ponies so I can be their friend! I know every pony in Ponyville, so when somepony new comes to town I celebrate!" the energetic pink mare explained to the pegasus. Derpy never had a surprise party before

"It's a great party pinkie!" she said barely keeping up with the strange party pony.

Muffins was exhasted by the party, she had flopped down in her new bed as soon as it had ended. All the dancing and common party games had continued well into sunset. The disguised agent could now see why this place was Celestia's favorite place outside of Canterlot. Wandering only for a moment what Equestria's ruler would be doing now that the agents were scattered, the pegasus shut her eyes and fell asleep.

Doctor Hooves didn't go to the party. He was busy and didn't really care to socialize. "So, have you finished that magic inductor yet Cog?" he asked a brown and ginger unicorn stallion

"Yes I have Doc, and please call me Lightweight. You've known me for years at this point, and besides Cog is too confusing while were working on this." The unicorn passed the part to the doctor

"Well that is true, but are you sure this thing wont blow up or something?" the Doctor said as he squinted at the machine.

"No Doctor it functions perfectly. I know you are afraid of me for that incident... But I assure you that you can trust me." The doctor didn't reply and continued to hammer a sheet of metal. "With that in place the automatic spell caster is done." lightweight said as he pushed a device to Doctor Hooves' work area.

The sun shining through a window woke muffins from her slumber. It had been a week since she came to this town and she still hadn't done much. 'With this place already having all my stuff set up for me it has been so boring around here. I can't just keep bothering the townsponies but I have to do something.' the cross-eyed mare left her home and went to the other end of town. A cloud house was one of the few structures and a cottage wasn't too far away. 'Whoever lives here must enjoy solitude.' she mused. "Derpy!?" a scratchy voice called from behind. Her cover was blown now, she knew that voice all too well. It was the overly competitive star of her flight school class Rainbow Dash. "I didn't know you moved out here too Derps, Fluts and I have been living here for a while. If I knew you were the one pinkie was having that party for I would have stopped by." 'Great she's here too'

"It's so nice to see you Rainbow, I was just learning the layout of the town." Derpy said looking side to side.

"I'm pretty busy right now Derps, we can catch up another day. It has been far to long since we spoke but I have to manage the weather right now. Come see me and Fluttershy sometime, we could always let you join us for one of our weekly picnics." Rainbow dash was clearly distracted by something in the distance.

"I will think about it."Derpy replied before Rainbow Dash flew off.

Muffins had started her route for the mail yesterday. She had gotten the list along with a uniform in the mail the day after her run in with her old classmate. Throughout her stops some of the townsponies had called her Ditsy. The gray pegasus didn't bother correcting them. Name confusion would lead to them thinking Rainbow was just using a nickname, and the mailmare would no longer have to try and avoid her. Making her last drop off muffins flew to the post office. "Look who decided to show up, Ditsy the clumsy mare!" said Derpy's least favorite coworker.

"Starshower I don't want to talk right now." Muffins rolled her eyes as best as she could.

"Fine go burn your oven tryin to make muffins, or whatever you do when your not dropping an packages!" Starshower said sticking her nose in the air and trotting out the door. Derpy flew out the door and straight to the town clock tower, she needed some familiar comfort and alone time that stuck up mare had gone too far.

At the clock tower Derpy cried herself to sleep listening to the rhythmic ticking of the mechanism. Waking up she didn't know how much time had passed, but when she opened her eyes she saw a brown earth pony stallion poking her forehead. "Who are you!" the gray pegasus jumped back.

"My name is Doctor Hooves. I found you sleeping in my thinking spot, so I was just trying to wake you. I wasn't watching a mare sleep... not that I wouldn't want to... but I'm not Implying that I did... great whickering stallions this is so awkward... I said that aloud didn't I?" the stallion said getting more and more nervous.

"You're funny Mister Doctor, I like you! My name is Muffins, I like muffins!" Derpy said with a goofy grin.

"You mean you don't find me weird? Nopony has ever had a conversation with me when I say something stupid like that." he said looking up in thought.

"That wasn't very stupid Doc, you tried your best. I for one am flattered that you would even think like that around me. My eyes lead to ponies wanting to avoid me, or they think I need help, or they make fun of me. I never had another pony not mention it when they first meet me." The two ponies laughed and sat down conversing as the giant gears of the clock spun nearby.

(Transition Back)

So there you have it, the story of Derpy and how she met the Doctor. As for their adventure it has only just begun. Another story ends, another one begins as they say.

Author's Note:

Thank you for reading my first story. The sequel will be released soon, so until then good night.