Last Delivery of the Night
"Last run of the day, kid. Think you can handle it?" Mr. Boxer asked as he set the mailbag in front of Derpy. She gave a silent nod as a reply. Mr. Boxer placed a hoof on the mailbag, looking at her with a small frown, "The weather team said this area was due for some harsh winds tonight. I don't want any of my workers getting hurt. We can leave these packages for tomorrow if ya don't think can handle it
Derpy gave a strict salute, her eyes becoming a little unfocused in the process. "You can count on me, Mister Box." Her stance earned her a slight smile from Mr. Boxer, as she knew it would. He was a strict boss, but he had a soft spot for the gray mare. She would be the only one in history to get away with calling him Mister Box.
The light brown colt chuckled as he tossed her the mailbag. "Just get it done quick. I don't want you in that mess when it gets bad." He watched her fasten the bag around her and take off. "Be safe out there, kid
~~~***~~~
As Derpy took to the air, she pulled the first package out of the mailbag. The package was addressed to Carousel Boutique, who was owned by the famous fashionista, Rarity. Derpy recalled how she had made her a beautiful dress for the gala when Rarity saw her previous dress consisted of nothing but paper bags and cardboard. No matter how Derpy tried to pay for the dress, Rarity would have none of it. She was a nice pony
She made her descent as Carousel Boutique came into view. As she made her drop, she was met with sharp winds. She dismissed the slight discomfort and knocked on the boutiques door.
Rarity appeared as the door was hastily opened. "My apologies, but the boutique is closed due to...Derpy?" Rarity spoke, surprised by her presence
"Due to me?" Derpy questioned with a soft chuckle, "I just brought ya a package. No reason to close down shop on my behalf."
Rarity took the package, placing it inside, without concern. It wasn't her main focus right now. "Darling, you can't still be delivering mail, can you?" Rarity's concern was clearly audible. "There is a storm coming. I simply can't let you go on in the cold like that. One moment, please." with that, the door was closed, only to open a second later. Rarity had returned with a small package of her own. "It's not much, but it should keep you warm."
The bright-eyed mare opened the package, revealing a hoof stitched scarf. Its color was a soft shade of purple. Only a few shades lighter than Rarity's mane
"It complements your coat nicely, if I do say so myself." Rarity beamed proudly
"It's beautiful, and so warm." Derpy's speech slowly returned to her. She thought about asking how much she would need to pay for the scarf, but knowing Raritiy's past acts of generosity, combined with her expression, she knew she would have none of it. "Thank you, Rarity."
Rarity gave a smile, obviously pleased with the bubbly mare's take on the scarf. "Think nothing of it dear. Do be careful on the rest of your trip." With that, Rarity had reentered her shop, leaving Derpy to admire her scarf one last time before taking off to finish her deliveries
~~~***~~~
Derpy sifted through her mailbag, fumbling around until she pulled out the latest issue of Wonderbolts Monthly. She did not need to look at the address to know this was going to the one and only Rainbow Dash. She had always looked up to the rainbow maned pegasus. From pulling off a sonic rainboom, to protecting the very fate of Equestira, this pony was one to be admired. Her thoughts of praise were swiftly interrupted, as the rising storm made itself known with a sudden arrival of harsh winds. The mail mare was at the mercy of the storm until she could get her bearings.
Rainbow's cloud house could be seen in the distance. Derpy set her focus on the clouds near the house and locked her wings, letting the force of the wind lift her until she was at an angle she could work with. She then released her wings and began pumping them hard to cut against the wind and project her towards her destination. It was a graceful performance, excluding the hard face first collision with the clouds. She looked up to see Rainbow Dash looking at her in complete wonderment. "Wow, Derpy, you cut through that storm like it was nothing. But how about we discuss it inside until this storm dies down?"
The interior of Rainbow's house held a soothing atmosphere. A direct rival to the storm that was raging outside. She could never figure out how the clouds didn't blow away. The knowledge of cloud production was definitely not her strong suit. Derpy set the issue of The Wonderbolts Monthly on a nearby cloud table, only to be immediately snatched up by the cyan Pegasus.
"Finally, the newest issue is out." Rainbow spoke, as she eagerly flipped through the pages of the magazine. "I'm still waiting to hear form them ya know?" Her eager expression lowered slightly into a slightly more solemn look, as Derpy took the nearest seat she could find. "Spitfire said I did some impressive moves, but that was a few months ago. What if that wasn't enough?"
Derpy sat silently, as Rainbow let her thoughts swarm through her mind. Mixed emotions of sorrow and frustration were apparent on her face. She looked up at Derpy, giving an shameful frown. "Sorry, I don't usually talk about this stuff, so I guess it kind of slipped out."
"Look around you, Rainbow." Derpy spoke softly. Rainbow looked on, confused as to what the mare was getting at. The bright eyed mare gestured towards the walls of her house. They were aligned with awards and achievements Rainbow had accomplished over the years. The center piece was a framed photo of Rainbow Dash with the Wonderbolts after she had won the competition. "If they turned down a skilled, brave, wonderful pony like you, Rainbow..." Derpy's golden eyes fought to stay centered as she searched for the words, "I think it would be their loss."
The cyan pegasus was moved to say the least. She never pegged Derpy Hooves to be able to motivate someone. "You really think so?" was all she could think to ask.
"I know so!" came the bubbly reply of the gray pegasus. "I wish I could be as brave as you are, Rainbow Dash." Her gaze falling a little in embarrassment.
Rainbow gave a slight smile. It was her time to motivate. "Derpy, I'm not the one braving a massive storm to deliver people's mail, now am I?" Rainbow gave a bigger smile. "Now that's bravery, Derpy." The gray mare looked up with her eyes aglow. It was seldom she was given compliments. Rainbow Dash was the last pony she'd expect to hear anything positive from, especially given her history with town hall.
Rainbow took a few steps closer. "You know, Derpy, I have difficulty breaking through the cone barrier just before the sonic rainboom. I bet if I pulled those moves you did earlier, I could pull the rainboom off, no problem." She lifted a hoof up to Derpy, offering a hoof bump. "How about we do some wind resistance training together sometime?"
Derpy took a moment to realize the Rainbow's offer. She broke into her bubbly smile as she hoof bumped Rainbow Dash. "You got it, Rainbow!" The two shared a laugh as the storm outside fell to a calm. "I think it's ok for me to go now. Thanks for everything!" She fastened her mailbag and headed towards the door. "It's good to have a friend like you." A silent nod was Rainbow's reply as Derpy headed back into the open air.
~~~***~~~
As the natural light faded from the sky, artificial light began to illuminate the streets of Ponyville below. The once raging storm was now a soft drizzle. Flying in the light rain was a personal favorite for Derpy Hooves. She calmly flew to her final delivery, doing a few loops along the way. She always saved this delivery for last. It was a place she knew by heart.
It was the little home of Caramel, a light brown earth pony with 3 horseshoes for a cutie mark. He and Derpy had been friends since the last winter wrap up. Derpy was there to cheer him up during the grass seed incident.
Derpy gave his door a light knock, waiting to be greeted by the earth pony. The door was flung open as Caramel had seemed to trip over seemingly nothing. A light giggle was Derpy's reaction to Caramel's common display of his clumsiness. She always found it cute. It was something she could relate to.
"H-hiya Derpy. What brings you out here?" A light blush apparent on his face. Luckily, he could blame it on the clumsiness this time. The blush grew a bit brighter however, as he was offered her hoof.
"I came to deliver your letter, silly!" She spoke as she helped him up, a light blush of her own was now forming.
"You've been delivering letters in that storm?" Caramel now looking worried and a tad confused. "Weren't you scared at all?"
"No way! I can't be scared when it comes to my duty. I want to make sure everypony gets their mail. It's worth it to see such nice ponies like Rarity, who gave me this really neat scarf and Rainbow Dash, Who told me I was really brave. And, of course... you." Her gaze fell a little to the side at the last part of her explanation.
The two stood there in the calm remnants of the storm. Words sat on their tongues, not ready to be spoken, yet somehow already known. "You're scarf is really pretty." was Caramel's poor attempt to break the silence. It only served to brighten his blush.
Derpy smiled and handed him his letter. It gave him a chance to really look at her eyes. They were almost as bright as her smile. "Thanks. I'll see you around, Bright Eyes."
Derpy Took a few steps back and spread her wings once more. "See ya around, silly."
~~~***~~~
Derpy's wings ached as she reached her home. The ache in her wings was a small price to pay to have a job like hers. She reflected on her encounters today. It was a blessing to live in a place where such kindness can be given to someone who could be the subject of so much ridicule.
The best part of her day could be heard opening the door to greet her, "Mommy!" was the shout of little Dinky Hooves, rushing towards her mother, "You're home!"
"Hello, my little muffin." Derpy warmly greeted her daughter with a soft nuzzle.
"How was your day, mommy? Did you give your special letter to Mister Caramel? And where did you get the pretty scarf?" Dinky questioned, as she lead the way back to the house.
The door closed behind them as the rain began to fall just a little softer. It was just another eventful day for Ponyville's best mail mare.