Checking Out

Rainbow Dash flew lazily through the sky as she headed home.  She had to work for almost a whole hour today and she was exhausted and starving.  As she swooped in for a landing by her door, she was deciding between whether to take nap first or have a sandwich.  The rumbling in her tummy decided for her, sandwich wins.

Dash only barely took notice that her door was slightly ajar, she must have forgotten to shut it again.  Except there were also muddy hoof prints on her cloud floors and not in the places that she usually left them.  Dash stalked forward, tracing the steps around her house, ready for a fight.  They lead her upstairs and back again, wound through her kitchen and then back again, and stopped at the couch right next to the front door.

Dash relaxed from fight mode to annoyed as started poking a sleeping Derpy Hooves on her couch.  "Hey, wake up."  Getting no response, Dash flew out her door and came back moments later with a tiny dark cloud.  Positioning it perfectly over Derpy's head, Dash gave the cloud a light kick.  Thunder clapped as a tiny lightning bolt frizzled Derpy's hair.  The grey pegasus leapt into the air and looked around wildly until her swirling eyes settled on Dash.

"Oh um, hi," Derpy waved at Dash and smiled apologetically.

"Hi," Dash scowled.  "Do you mind telling me what you're doing napping in my house."

"Oh yeah, you had a package," Derpy gestured towards a box on the coffee table.  "But you weren't home and your door was unlocked and it had been a long day and you were my last stop on my route and,"

Dash waved a hoof in the air as if to ward the speech away, "Yeah, yeah, I get!  Just go... somewhere else."  Derpy nodded and flew out the door.

"Now it's sandwich time," Dash said happily and strutted into the kitchen humming a rock tune.  All joy left her when she saw her refrigerator door hanging open, its emptiness reflecting her own stomach.  Dash fell to her haunches and raised her forehooves into the air and shouted with all the rage in her heart, "DERPY!"


At the checkout of the local supermarket, a bleary eyed and hungry Rainbow Dash pushed her cart of food to the register.  "Hello sir or madam, will you be paying with cash or credit today," asked the blonde haired earth pony cashier without looking up.

"Um, I'm a girl," said Dash through clenched teeth.  She glared at the cashier's name tag, "And I'll be paying with cash, Ms Quick Check."

The cashier leaned forward and looked over the contents of Dash's cart.  She looked up at Dash who gasped at her deep blue eyes.  "That'll be five bits."

Dash's heart was hammering so hard and her teeth chattered as she dug around in her coin purse.  "Here you go," she mumbled as she tossed the coins to the cashier who expertly caught them in her teeth.  Dash tried very hard not to trip over her own hooves as she started walking away.

After two steps Dash felt a tug on her tail and turned around to see that Quick had grabbed it.  "Excuse me," the earth pony asked, Dash noted a hint of a blush appearing on her cheeks.  "But are you Rainbow Dash?"

Dash's chest puffed out automatically as a grin spread across her face, "Why, you heard of me?"

A hoof shot toward her mouth and her blush deepened, "Who hasn't heard of the Best Young Flyer in Equestria?!  Oh, I'm so sorry about being so rude, it's been a long day.  Let me make it up to you and buy you lunch some time."  She grabbed up a pencil and jotted down her number on a scrap of paper that she held out to Dash in her mouth.

"Well, if you insist," Dash then leaned forward to take the paper from her, making sure her lips brushed the cashier's in the process.  Dash then turned and walked out leaving Quick smiling giddily.

Rainbow waited until she was a block from the store before flying into the air and squealing in delight, "THANK YOU, DERPY!"

"Don't mention it," Derpy called from far away leaving Dash to look around in confusion.