Only Chapter
The alarm clock woke him up from another restless night of sleep. He just layed there, thinking about his life before getting up and starting his day. Today was a special day, after all; he finally found a job…even though it was one he would never tell any of his friends in case they judged.
Jonathon Wingerman was just your average run-of-the-mill guy. He lived in an apartment in the middle of Los Angeles. He was 29 and single; his only friends he talked to were on Facebook. He went to college to study computer animation, and graduated with decent grades, though nothing too extraordinary. His usual days involved waking up at 6, working from 8 to 5 as a cashier at Costco, then taking a part of his paycheck and drinking at the bar 2 blocks away from his apartment. Go to bed at 11, then start over again. Life was average for Jonathon.
Today was different though. He had finally been given a real job; one that would give decent pay, and hopefully help his career move along nicely. When he first applied to Hasbro, he had hoped to do computer animation for any number of projects: a new Transformer movie, of the new upcoming project Battleship. It nearly felt like he lost his manhood when he was informed that his skill set was just what they were looking for—for the upcoming My Little Pony project.
‘My Little Pony?’ he thought as he cringed. That little girls show? How on earth is this the break I was looking for? Even his parents didn’t sound all that thrilled when he told them over the phone. They were at least happy that he found a job in this market, and they reminded him that this was just a blessing in disguise. But Jonathon knew that his parents wouldn’t be bragging about their son’s new and amazingly awesome job any time soon.
But that was in the past. Today was a new day, and the first day of his new job. He walked over to his bathroom and splashed some cold water on his face. He gave himself a good look in the mirror, and paid special attention to his eyes. His left eye was where it always was; looking off to the right and down a bit. Jonathon had always had his eyes misaligned. The doctor said it was only a mild case of strabismus, and it could be fixed with surgery, but he didn’t have enough money. Neither he nor his parents were very rich, and the condition wasn’t like threatening, so they tried to live with it.
It was easier said than done, though. Ever since elementary school days, he was teased and bullied because of his eyes. He never had a girl like him, his only friends were the nerds who played Dungeons and Dragons because they were nice enough to not judge someone because of their looks. Even as an adult, people looked at him differently. All they saw were the eyes. Usually, a pair of sunglasses would show mercy to Jonathon, but glasses were not allowed at work, and especially not in job interviews. The fact that people were always judging him by his lazy eye sent Jonathon into a mild case of depression. He had been sad for as long as he could remember.
Today wasn’t going to get much better. Now washed and fully dressed in his nice jeans and a plaid button-up shirt, he grabbed his sunglasses and walked out to his new job.
Hasbro Studios was quite far away, so his parents pulled together enough money to get their son a bike. It was nice. A used Shwinn painted white, the gears seemed to be a collection of parts from 3 different bikes, and the rubber on the handles was falling off. But still, a bike was a bike, and this one still worked. Jonathon started biking down the street.
##################################
Jonathon found a bike rack and locked up his bike, although he was sure that no one would ever want to steal it. The Hasbro Studios was HUGE. Living in town, he only saw buildings go up, but this one seemed to spread around the area around it and grow like wildfire. But Jonathon knew that he would not have to traverse the nightmarish maze of buildings too much, all that he would need to do is find his building and stay there.
Building 14. It was still a long way from the entrance, but Jonathon walked in with 5 minutes to spare. Apart from the pony posters plastered along the walls, this place didn’t seem to be that girly. ‘Good,’ he thought. He won’t go home reeking of pony or anything. He approached the secretary’s desk. “Hello, I’m here to check in for my shift?”
“Hello…sir,” even though she tried to hide it, there was a distinctive pause when she looked up and saw his eyes. “Yes, and your name is?”
“Jonathon Wingerman.”
“And which project are you working on?”
“My Little Pony,” He said with a voice full of shame.
“Okay sir, just down the hall on your right, you’ll meet up with Mrs. Faust there.
“Wow… thank you!” He turned and walked down the hall.
Apparently, being 5 minutes early was not enough, because there was a lady (Jonathon assumed it was Mrs. Faust) addressing all the workers there in the office; “Okay now folks, we have a lot of work to do to get this show up and running in a month. We have all done a lot of hard work, and I thank you for that, but just one last push and we will have started the show! Let’s do it, people!”
Everyone started walking off to their respective desks. Jonathon decided that if he was ever going to get anywhere here, he would need to talk to people. So he sat down next to a man who looked like he belonged more on the beach than in an office. He had a deep tan and had long black hair, though not long enough to touch his shoulders. He seemed to be Latino, but he couldn’t tell for certain. He also came into work in swim trunks and a “I Heart NY” shirt that seemed a little out of place on the West Coast. He introduced himself, “Hello there, my name is Jonathon.”
‘What’s up dude? Name’s Miguel, but you can call me Migi!” He was in a very chipper mood, and as Jonathon looked around, it seemed contagious. Also, looking around, he noticed that the majority of workers here were male. ‘At least I’m not alone here…’
A man came out from the office to the left of the workers and came up to the front of the computer-filled room. “Okay, men. My name is Mike Kidby. I’m your manager! Now, since you are all here, I assume that you are in the right place. This is the Extra’s room. Our job is to take any group scenes that the main animators send us and populate the shots with background ponies. Any questions?”
Jonathon stood up. “Yes, so all we are doing is animating background ponies?”
“Yes, is there a problem with that?”
Yeah, it’s pointless. “Nope, not at all!” Jonathon said as he sat down, feeling like once again his like would be pointless.
“Okay, man, get to work! We have a deadline, you know!”
##################################
The first few days were spent rushing to get the seasom openers finished. It was a madhouse trying to meet the deadlines, but everyone hoped to have the episodes ready to come out by next Friday. After another hard day’s work, Jonathon and Miguel went to the bar to drink to their victories at work.
“Man, I was a little hesitant at first, but now that I’m here, working on this project is actually kinda fun!” Migi said with a slur in his speech. While Jonathon drank a bottle or two, his friend was downing what could have filled an entire keg.
“Yeah, I guess working on a show for little girls is okay. As long as I get my paycheck. A job’s a job after all!”
“You work on My Little Pony? Guys! Check this out!” A bystander who overheard the conversation called over to his drinking buddies and they all gathered around the two coworkers. “These two work on My Little Pony!”
The next few minutes was a combination of laughing, jokes about Jonathon’s lazy eyes, and how Jonathon and Miguel must have been gay lovers if they worked on that kid’s show. Migi was so drunk he didn’t even register half of what these thugs were saying, but Jonathon was petrified. He knew that he was at least a foot taller than these bozos, and could probably beat the crap out of them, but the second they started teasing him—his eyes, his life, his career—he felt like he was 7 again, and these thug were the schoolyard bullies. He was petrified, and he could do nothing to stop the teasing and ridicule that morally destroyed him.
##################################
The next day at the office was a quiet one for Jonathon. He slipped into his chair without making eye contact with anyone, and started working on programming th background ponies for Pinkie Pie’s huge celebratory party at the end of the second episode. Miguel came up to him and gave him a pat on the back.
“Hey man, sorry about last night. I was so hammered I didn’t know what they were saying. But if I did…” Miguel mimed out punching 3 people at once.
“Thanks.”
“Come on, they were just losers looking to piss somebody off. Don’t let them get to you.”
“But people have always been teasing me. For m eyes, and now because of where I work. It just never stops. Those guys are just like everyone else…”
“I’m starting to feel like this isn’t about last night. What’s wrong, bro?”
“It’s just… everyone judges me. You are seriously the first true friend I have ever had in my life. Ever since I was a kid, I’ve been harassed because of how I look, and it seems like no matter what I do nothing ever changes for me. Why can’t people just stop judging me and accept me for who I am. Like you?”
Miguel looked at his new friend. He was in pain, and even though he couldn’t understand the torment Jonathon was going through, he promised to do everything he could to help make his friend feel better.
“I tell you what; some guys from the Mane 6 animation team invited me to go out to Applebees with them after work today. Why don’t you come along with us?”
Jonathon thought about it, and agreed. He needed a night to forget what happened yesterday.
##################################
“So Jon, you coming?”
“Almost, have to finish this last group of ponies before I can clock out. You go ahead without me, I’ll drop by Applebees as soon as this is done!”
Miguel shook his head. “I don’t know how this can be taking you so long. It’s just fixing up some scenes from episode one, I finished my part hours ago!”
“Well, I’m sorry that I can’t work as fast as you,” sighed Jon, as the people I the office were calling him now, “but for me, it takes time to program each of the ponies!”
Miguel was stunned silent. “You mean… you… animate EACH of the ponies?”
“Yeah, isn’t that what everyone does?”
“Maybe on the Mane 6 team, but we’re background! Do what we all do; cut and paste!”
Jon was shocked to hear this from his friend. He always thought he was a fast worker because he worked hard, not because he took the easy way out. “But won’t we get caught if we do that?”
“Come on, it’s not like anyone will notice. I mean it’s just some background ponies…” Migi whispered as he walked out of the office, leaving Jonathon alone in the workspace.
‘So, just cut and paste the program? I guess it won’t be that big of a deal,’ Jon thought. All he was doing was filling up the background with ponies for the first episode. From what he understood, Pinkie Pie was supposed to be throwing a welcome party for Twilight Sparkle in a library, and his job was to make the library looked packed. ‘No one will notice,’ he thought as he copied 3 of the ponies he just finished animating. ‘I mean, they’ll only be there for like a second, so what if they look the same?’ he thought as he finished the scene in record time. He saved the project, sent it to the manager Mike Kidby, and checked out. He ran to Applebees to have a decent time with some coworkers.
##################################
Weeks passed by and Jon’s job got exponentially easier, now that he utilized Miguel’s ‘cut-and-paste’ technique. He also found his job much more enjoyable. He found that the people on his floor were very friendly, and even though they only noticed his eyes at first, they slowly looked past that and extended their friendship to him. Jon could not remember a time that he was happier than here, working on the job.
The show itself was proving to be a phenomenon in itself. In only 8 weeks time, there was already a subgroup of watchers of the show—they named themselves “Bronies”—who were adult and teenage men who watched the show. He didn’t blame them either. Jon too found the show entertaining, and the animation was splendid (if he didn’t say so himself). Things were going great… until Migi introducd him to a site called Equestria Daily.
“Dude, look!” He has something on his computer, but there was a large crowd gathered around the monitor watching the exact same thing. They were all snickering as Jon forced his way through the crowd and behind his friend.
“Weren’t you the one in charge of populating the library scene in episode one?”
“Yeah, the one where Pinkie Pie throws a party for Twilight? That was me.”
Everyone around him busted up laughing. Even Migi couldn’t help but give a hearty chuckle.
“What is it? What’s going on?”
“Dude, you’re a legend now! I didn’t think you had the balls to do something like this, I gotta give you props!” called out Dave from the crowd.
“You are my hero!” came the voice of Justin in between laughter.
“Okay, what is going on???” Jon was so confused, and it seemed that everyone was laughing at him; something he did not appreciate.
“You mean you don’t know? You didn’t do it on purpose?”
“DO WHAT???”
Miguel played the video cut from the website. Jon recognized it as the sme scene he animated so long ago, the one that everyone suddenly seemed fascinated with. He paused it and pointed at one of the background ponies. “You’re saying you didn’t do that?”
Jon bent down to the monitor and looked at the pony Miguel was pointing out. She was grey with blonde hair. She didn’t have a cutie mark that he could see. But she did have bright yellow eyes—that were crossed in an unnatural way.
Jon’s jaw dropped. How could this happen? Was it an error in the programming? No, he would have noticed that in his moderation of the scene. Was it… the copying and pasting. He must have been so hasty to finish that he screwed up some part of the animation coding when he made that pony, and he didn’t even notice it. But now it was too late, and everyone seemed to know about it.
“I swear, this was not on purpose!”
“Doesn’t matter, man! They’re already giving her a name, those crazy fans!”
“Yeah, she’s now called Derpy!”
Once again, everyone in the viscinity laughed. Everyone except Jonathon. He was mortified. What if his manager found out about this? Would he get in trouble?
Just as he was thinking this very thought, two men opened the door and walked in. Even if no one knew their names, everyone knew who they were; they worked for Royce Long, one of the episode moderators. These two men were his interns. But everyone in the studio knew that when Mr. Long’s interns came around, it was serious. The two men walked up to Jonathon and asked, “Are you the animator responsible for the 16:40 to 17:40 block in the first episode?”
“Y-yes?”
“Come with us. Mr. Long would like to have a word with you.”
Everyone in the room was quiet as the two men escorted Jon out and walked him to the elevator. The entire way to his office was dead quiet. Jon didn’t know what to do, it was honestly just an accident.
He walked into the office, and Mr. Long was sitting at his desk. A slender figure in a pinstripe suit, Royce looked just like the business type. Even though he was shorter than most of his employees, he still had a way of striking fear with his presence. This as a no-nonsense man if Jon ever saw one.
“Mr… Wingerman, is it? Please sit down.”
Jon sat in the chair opposite of Mr. Long. He knew what was comng.
“So, you thought it would be funny, didn’t you?”
“No, not at all. It was just an accident!”
“Just an accident, I see… then how was it that you didn’t notice it when you double checked the animation coding?”
Jon didn’t know what to say. He didn’t want to say that he was in a hurry to get to Applebees, so he just stayed quiet.
“Don’t know? Hmm… well, here’s what I think; you thought it would be funny to model a pony after you, with no thought to the consequences this show could experience. Do you realize what you have done to this company?”
Model after himself? The eyes! Why was it that the only thing even Mr. Long noticed was his eyes?
“Excuse me, could you please not say that? It’s very hurtful that you bring up my eyes?”
“Offensive? OFFFENSIVE??? You’re sick little joke has probably offended our entire viewing audience. How could you have been this retarded to think this joke would go by unnoticed? Then again, I can’t expect too much from someone like you.”
It took Jon all his strength to fight his emotions. Half of him wanted to cry like he used to back in grade school when he found himself in this situation, the other half of him wanted to punch Mr. Long in the face and walk out. However, he did neither. Mr. Long took a deep breath, and continued;
“We will be discussing your employment over the weekend. We will inform you of our decision on Monday. But my advice; pack your stuff, cross-eye!”
The walk back to the animation room was a long and quiet one. One small mistake, one error in the programming… and now Jon was going to lose his job. When he walked into the room, everyone got quiet and looked at Jon. He simply walked to his desk and began working. He didn’t know what to work on, so he just opened up a Word Program and started typing gibberish to look busy.
“How did it go?” Miguel asked. Though he was trying to brighten the situation, even Miguel was worried about his friend. Jon was silent. No one talked more than they needed to that day.
After work, Jon skipped out on the bar and biked straight home. He walked up to his apartment, ate leftover pizza from the fridge, and went to bed.
##################################
That weekend was the longest weekend Jon had ever experienced. When he finally got to the studio, he found his spot in front of the computer and stared blankly at the monitor. He sat there for what felt like hours until he heard it;
“Jonathon Wingerman, please report to Mr. Long’s office. Jonathon Wingerman, to Mr. Ling’s office. Thank you.” The intercom turned off with a click. Everyone watched as Jon got up and began the grim march up the stairs and into Mr. Long’s office. ‘This is it,’ he thought. ‘It was a good run I guess, time to look for another job.’
When he opened the door, there were at least 7 or 8 people all along the walls of the office. Some were interns; others were members of the Board. Some Jon recognized as animators for the Mane 6 group, the ones he had Applebees with all those months ago. But as he looked around the room, Mr. Long was not to be found.
Instead, behind the desk there was a lady. She looked to be about 40 years old, with dark red hair that looked like it was dyed. He nearly freaked out when he saw that the person sitting behind the desk was none other than Lauren Faust, creator of the show. ‘Oh, no, she’s come all the way here just to fire me. This is going to suck.’
“So… you’re the man behind Derpy…”
Jonathon hung his head. “Yes, I am.”
“Before I continue, I have to ask; was it really done on purpose, or was it a legitimate accident?”
“I swear, it was an accident, and I’m sorry that it happened, if you just give me one more—“
“Sorry? Do you realize what you’ve done?”
“I know, and it’s horrible. It’ll never happen again, I promise!”
“You don’t know, do you?” Lauren asked as she looked at Jon in confusion.
“Know what?”
“Jim, could you bring it in?” asked Lauren to one of the men standing along the wall. He left the room for a second and came back with a huge mailbag full of papers. Jim had no idea what was happening now. “Go ahead Jon, take a look!”
Jonathon hesitantly pulled out one of the papers. It was a children’s drawing of the grey-and yellow pony with crossed eyes. Underneath the picture was the words “I love Derpy!”
Jon grabbed another piece of paper. This one was a letter from a brony, describing how Derpy had brought a smile to his face when he first saw her.
Letter after letter, picture after picture, Jonathon was more and more amazed at what he was seeing. After he had seen enough letters, he looked up to Lauren, who continued; “Accident or not, you created a unique character, and all our viewers—particularly the brony community—have latched on to her, given her a name, a backstory, and a personality. This bag we have here? We have 15 more just like them in the mail room downstairs, full of letters and pictures of fans who love Derpy. And I don’t know about you or Mr. Long, but I think this is amazing!”
Jon was at a loss for words. He couldn’t believe what he was haring or seeing. This cross-eyed pony, made by a freak accident, now a fan favorite? She had to be joking, there had to have been a hidden camera… but here, right next to him, was the bag full of letters from fans, fans who loved Derpy.
“So, am I fired?”
“No, of course you aren’t fired. The board and I talked with Mr. Long, and decided that he would be better suited for another project in Hasbro… and I’m sorry about the rather offensive words he shared with you. But you are not fired! As you said, it was an accident, and after all, who else is going to animate Derpy with you gone?”
##################################
The next few hours Jon spent talking with Lauren Faust about the future of Derpy. Although the fans loved her, she was still a little hesitant of making her a main character so quickly. They shared ideas until they decided to make here into somewhat of a “Where’s Waldo”-type game, where Derpy would make seemingly unimportant cameos in all the episodes until they figured out where to go with Derpy.
When Jon walked into the office again, everyone was once again quiet. All work stopped as all eyes stared at the tall man who they thought they would never see again.
“What’s everyone so serious about? It’s not like I lost my job!”
“So you aren’t fired?” asked Miguel.
“Nope!”
Everyone in the office cheered and ran up to their coworker. Over the months working on the show, all of the coworkers grew really close, and Jon was so glad that he would not have to leave all of his friends. The room quickly turned into a celebration for Jon’s renewed employment.
##################################
Over the next year, life had gone very well for Jonathon Wingerman. With the introduction of Hasbro’s new Monopoly movie project, a lot of the animators working on My Little Pony had been reassigned, and the senior animators remaining were moved up to animate for the Mane 6. Among this group were Jon and Migi. Also, with the reallocation of Mr. Long, his positioned was filled by a Mrs. Fulgham. Unlike her predecessor, she was very kind and compassionate, and people in the studio began to refer to her as the real-life Pinkie Pie, because she was always so happy and seemed to make everyone around her happy as well.
Outside of his job, though, Jon found that he was no longer depressed. He had friends, and had much more confidence than he ever had in his entire life. He also noticed that people were no longer fixated on his eyes. Was it perhaps that this change in his personality somehow changed other’s perception of him? He didn’t care, he had friends, even love interests (he had been on quite a few dates with the secretary that worked in the front of the studio), and he was happy.
Somehow, it all seemed to come from Derpy. He knew it was crazy, but almost everything seemed to be caused by this crossed-eyed pony. Because of her, his career was growing more and more successful very day. If it wasn’t for her, he would still be only a background animator. The amount of fan mail for this klutzy and well-meaning mare showed Jon that people did not judge her by what she looked like and that she didn’t let some physical trait define her. Once he noticed this and tried to transcend his physicality that defined him for most of his life, he found that people no longer jodged him, nor made fun of him. He felt like a new person.
He also saw a lot of himself in Derpy. He wasn’t so much a klutz, but he saw Derpy as a pony who always tries her best for her friends and won’t let anything stop her, especially not herself. He almost felt like he was going crazy, but Derpy was slowly becoming part of who he was, and he loved the derp-faced pony just as much as any of his friends.
His shining moment was also Derpy’s; Episode 14 of the second episode. Derpy’s first speaking role. At last, after all the waiting, Derpy had been accepted into the show as a character. They tried to keep the pony as true to her character as possible, as described by the fans, and they thought they did an amazing job. Initially, the fans agreed too. All of them seemed to love the new addition to the My Little Pony cast.
Weeks passed after this episode aired, and Jonathon found himself once again in the weekly animator meeting. After Lauren Faust finished her work on My Little Pony, Mrs. Fulgham took it upon herself to “rally the troops”, as it were, so she started having weekly meetings to share ideas and discuss the upcoming week.
“Okay, everyone! Welcome to yet another meeting! Please, quiet down so we can begin and start working!”
Once everyone came in and sat down, Mrs. Fulgham began. They discussed the last week, what happened that was good or bad, and how to improve for this week. “Okay, now as you know, we have yet another episode this Saturday to animate. We need everything finished by Wednesday so the voice actors have enough time to record. Mane 6 team, I’m counting on you!”
Miguel gave her a thumbs up for the group. He had unofficially taken on the role of leader in the group of animators. Nobody else had a problem with it, and he was very good with planning and organizing.
“Okay, now I hate to end this meeting with a bad note, but this is something everyone must be aware of. Everyone knows the character Derpy Hooves.” The group nodded in agreement. “We have recently received much fan mail and petitions that are attacking Derpy. They tell us that the character is offensive to those that are mentally challenged, and that if we continue to use Derpy in our show that we are encouraging prejudices against the mentally challenged.”
The entire room was in uproar at this news. For them, Derpy had become a character of the show, as important as Rarity of Rainbow Dash, even though she was only a background pony. Jon, however, remained quiet. The pony he created, the one that inspired and helped him change his life for himself… was mocking the mentally challenged? The mere thought baffled him. ‘How could people think that? She’s just a klutz with derpy eyes. Like me, and I’m not offended. How can people want her gone?’
When the room quieted down, Mrs. Fulgham continued, “Now, we don’t know how many of our fans feel this way, and the Board still has yet to discuss the fate of Derpy in our show. But don’t let this news affect your work! Derpy or no Derpy, we still have a show to make, go let’s get to it folks!”
Everyone left the meeting room and got to work. But Jon was still worried about his favorite pony, and her fate. What if she was cancelled? The pony had given him so much, he couldn’t let his creation just die. But what could he do? There was a group out there who wanted Derpy out of the show, and even if he didn’t agree with them, they were the viewers that supported the show and they could not upset the viewers. So he just hoped that the controversy would fade away and his precious mare would be safe.
##################################
“I just can’t believe she’s gone now.” Jon was sitting in the bar with Miguel after the worst day at work by far. He had hoped that this whole controversy would go by and be forgotten. But these people were persistent, if nothing else. They pushed and pushed until the board had no choice but to cut Derpy. They couldn’t risk a children’s show being labeled as a judgmental show that poked fun at those who were mentally challenged.
Jon was distraught when he heard. All day his coworkers and friends came up to him and tried to console him, but no amount of pity could make him feel better. The greatest fruit of his labors, the pony that changed everyone’s life—including his—was gone. She disappeared in the blink of an eye, and was replaced with a look-alike whose voice and eyes were “normal”. He felt like someone close to him had died in a tragic accident.
He came to the bar with Miguel to try and drown his sorrow in alcohol, but Miguel was worried about his friend. He knew that for Jon, Derpy was more than just a collection of pixels, or even a fictional character; she was an ideal. For Jon, Derpy was the idea that someone who is clumsy, or who is different from most people, can transcend their shortcomings and become something greater. And for someone who had lived their entire life being defined by a physical shortcoming, to see their hero so unceremoniously vanish was traumatizing.
“Jon…” Silence. “Look, Jon. I know that you’re sad about Derpy being…well, cancelled. But it’s okay, man…”
“You don’t know… you can’t know.”
“Sorry?”
“Maybe to you she was just a character, but she was something special to me! She inspired me, she was my greatest work. And now because of some group of people who don’t even know her, she’s gone. And there’s nothing I can do now, but go back and work. She’s dead.”
“Just because she was cancelled does not mean that she’s dead! Do you remember the first day I met you? I remember what you were like; you were quiet, shy, and were afraid of other people. I know that you have had a rough childhood because of your eyes, and that it had affected you even until today. I tried to do what I could to help, but every time I invited you out with the group, or brought you to an office party, it was a struggle to get you there.
“Then you started becoming more confident. People started to notice the new you, and you made friends with everyone. Now, you are one of the most confident guys I know, and it all comes from Derpy. I know she means a lot to you, and she gave you confidence that even you didn’t know you had. But even if she’s gone now, look at what she’s done for you. You are a completely different person than the Jonathon I first met about 2 years ago. The inspiration she gave you is still there, I know it is. No amount of cancellation can ever remove what she has done for you. Now, you can sit here and cry about your loss, or you can take what she has given you and live your life the way that she inspired you to. And I know that if you live like that, then really Derpy isn’t gone; she won’t be because she’ll still be there with you in spirit.”
Jon looked up at his friend. He felt like what Miguel was saying was right; The change that this fictional character had on his life, the inspiration she gave him, was still there. In that sense, she would never really be gone. He still had his life which he turned around, all the friends he made, and a lifetime to keep improving and keep trying his hardest.
The next day, Jon walked in to the studio. People were still a little upset by the cancellation of the pony the bronies created, but Jon wasn’t affected by it. He just smiled and worked. Derpy wasn’t really gone, after all.
##################################
A few months passed, and Jon went to visit his parents. It was about a 40 minute drive out to their house, but he hadn’t seen them in a long time. Besides, it was his birthday and he wanted to celebrate it with his family. His parents knew that he worked as an animator for My Little Pony, and they tried to follow the show. They also knew that one of the characters, Derpy, was a creation of their sons. They also knew that the character was cancelled and removed from the show.
“Hello, Jonathon! Happy birthday!” his mom said as he walked in. She remembered the last time she saw her son, and how sad he seemed. But now their son walked with a bounce in his step. He seemed so much more happy than the last time they saw him. Even his dad noticed it. They didn’t know what it was, but they were glad that their son was so happy.
“Hey Mom, hey Dad! I love you guys! I’ve missed you so much!”
“We missed you too, son! But we know you’re a busy one with your job!”
“Thanks Dad! I’m just glad I had enough time to come out here and spend the day with you two.”
The three walked into the kitchen, where Jonathon’s mom baked a cake. Also laying on the table was an envelope. “Here you go, son!” his dad said as he grabbed the envelope and handed it to Jon. “I know you’ve wanted this for a while, so your mom and I saved up for you!”
Jon opened the envelope. Inside was a large sum of money. His mom explained, “We talked to the doctor, and that’s all the money you would need to have your operation done to straighten your eyes! Just like you always wanted!”
Jon looked at the money. Here it was, just like he always wanted. But suddenly, he realized that he didn’t want it anymore. “Thank you, mom…dad… but I can’t accept this. I don’t need the surgery anymore.”
He gave the money back to his slightly confused parents and looked up. He thought that is there was a heaven where all the cancelled cartoon characters lived, that Derpy was up there, looking down and seeing all the lives she touched and all the change she brought to the world. Even if it wasn’t true, it was a nice thought.