//------------------------------// // Aaaand You Goofed // Story: The Bat and the Teacher // by Ximer //------------------------------// I stared into Cheerilee’s eyes, which oddly enough didn’t appear angry or upset. If one were to settle on an expression for the mare, it was one of mild confusion. I assumed a bit of grogginess was still working its way out of her brain, and soon she would have total clarity of the issue at hand. I felt frozen and unable to move as our eyes remained locked. “Um..Che-“ “What the buck!!” Cheerilee’s mind had finally caught up to the situation. “What-why-how!?” The mare was frazzled and I quickly rolled out of bed, confirming my suspicions about last night. I looked down like an idiot and tried to cover myself before Cheerilee could notice. Much to my dismay she did and screamed once more, pegging me in the head with a pillow with enough force to knock me to the floor. I heard the sound of swift hooves fleeing from the room, followed by the slam of a door. As I stood up, I heard sobbing coming from the bathroom. My shoulders drooped with guilt as I slowly made my way towards the crying sounds of my teacher, who had locked herself in her bathroom. “Chee-“ “Please, just go!” I managed to pick up between her sobs. “….I don’t know where my clothes are…” I said. There was no intelligible response from Cheerilee. I sighed and walked away trying to find what I could of my clothes, succeeding for the most part, save for my underwear. It felt awkward leaving Cheerilee in the shape she was in, and this had more than likely ruined any chance of getting help learning from her; not to mention ruining our relationship. To top off the horrible morning, my head was still pounding. I left without another word to the mare, whose sobs had started to dwindle slightly. The pain from my hangover kept the guilt at bay as I started the long walk home. I was amazed Fang hadn’t come looking for me, but given the festivities he probably assumed I was with somepony. I finally made it to the castle, greeted by two guards on either side of the door. One nodded knowingly and motioned for the other to open the doors. I nodded my thanks and kept going, not wanting to talk to anypony at the moment, which thankfully wasn’t a problem as I reached my room without bumping into any of the staff or guest. I found Fang in his usual hanging spot and had the mind to wake him up and ask him to leave, but thought better of it. After all, it wasn’t him who had fucked up, quite literally. I stumbled my way into the shower and proceeded to recline in the tub, opening my mouth to catch the falling water. The receding gross feeling that had permeated throughout my body was quickly being replaced by guilt and anger. I must have been horribly drunk to have even considered going that far with Cheerilee. What made it worse was that if there was some truth to Fang’s statement, then I had possibly ruined something between me and Vesper. I had been considering it, despite how taboo such a relationship with Vesper was. I had to remind myself that I was the only one here of my kind, and come to terms with the fact that I may not see another human ever again. Things that were normally forbidden or frowned upon were often times a social norm. Sometimes, Equestria felt like one big opposite day to me; animals talked, and the sun actually rotated around this planet instead of the other way around. Now, I wanted to crawl in a hole away from everything and never come out again. How could I possibly show my face around town after making a mare cry? Not just any mare, the school teacher, my teacher. I couldn’t show my face around town again after something like that. “You’re awfully noisy today,” Fang said causing me to jerk up out of the tub. “You smell too…” “Why are you up?” I asked sinking back down before I used my foot to shut off the flow of water. “Kind of hard not to be when you slammed not one, but two doors,” Fang replied drowsily. “Well, go back to sleep, I’m fine,” I said shortly. “Uh huh, fucked last night and woke up next to a stranger huh?” Fang asked rhetorically. “How did-“ “Like I said, you smell,” Fang shrugged before rubbing one of his eyes. “Oh god,” I hung my head in shame as I realized what he meant. “I walked past some town ponies…the guards…” “Yep…hope you had fun at least,” Fang said, comforting as ever. “I don’t even remember it,” I sighed. “I ruined something nice that I had with her…she was my friend.” “She’ll be back,” Fang said with a roll of his eyes. “Why would she ever want to talk to me again?” I asked. “How can you be so nonchalant about stuff like this?” “I just know how mares work….I couldn’t call myself a stallion if I didn’t,” Fang smirked. “See, I know something you don’t know about a good two thirds of the population of Ponyville right now.” “What would that be?” “It’s season for more than half of the mares here, I can smell it, those average Joe Blows at the front doors can smell it, that big red bastard I saw last night can smell it,” Fang chuckled. “…oh god…” I whimpered. “Did you really think a mare would just climb into bed with you just because you were both drunk?” Fang tried his best to subdue a laugh at my circumstances. “Nah, there’s got to be some type of spark there, or you’re both just wasting your time. Pony mares aren’t like minotaurs or griffons that way; I thought you were being taught all of this stuff by an earth pony?” “That’s the one I slept with,” I said, my embarrassment growing by the second. “We were trying to be mature about things and keep stuff like that on a need to know basis.” “Well now you know,” Fang winked. “So, how do you think Vesper will take it? I mean, you can’t just leave the mare that you banged like some heartless animal, and thestrals aren’t keen on sharing their mates, which Vesper has pegged you as.” “It’s too early in the morning for this shit right now,” I huffed. “And you woke me up,” Fang said. “It’s early for me too and now I may have to save you, or your teacher when Vesper gets back.” “Can’t I just puss out and kill myself?” I asked as I got out of the tub. “No,” Fang yawned. “What kind of story would that be? ‘Oh no, I’ve gone and made a mess of things, and now I want to run away’” “Fine, what would you do?” I huffed. “Iunno,” Fang shrugged. “But I’d be figuring out that pretty soon.” With that Fang left me to wallow in my guilt and shattered life status. I used my foot to turn on the shower again, turning the water up a bit as I slowly stripped out of my clothes that I had the sudden urge to burn after knowing what had happened last night. “Fuck…season…” I felt my mind spin as I realized the ‘other’ consequences of last night might be. “…fuck me sideways, heat season? Wow Ben, you’re a complete dumbass, great job! Not only did you fuck your teacher, you might have made some unholy abomination last night!” I sat in the shower of shame for what felt like an hour or two before I took a deep breath and sighed. Benjamin, you have to adult now, whether you want to or not. The pesky voice of reason had finally started to speak up. It was right though; I did need to stop being a baby about this whole ordeal. --- “So tired…” Vesper mumbled to herself. The bat pony had been traversing the woods in search of the fruit that she felt confident would help her walk alongside Benjamin during the day. That goal was the only thing keeping her on her hooves now, especially since the sun was up over the permanent darkness the forest provided, her mental clock assured her for that. Vesper’s body was screaming at her to stop, but her will continued to push her forward along the long abandoned path to the tree she sought. She was so focused on her mission that she didn’t even notice the unearthed root in her path, causing her to trip in a mud puddle. The mare sighed as she struggled to pick herself back up, but her muscles were refusing her commands. They twitched weakly, registering the signals sent to them, but doing little in response. Vesper felt her eyes grow heavy as she lay in the mud, a part of her wondering if all of this was worth it. Would Benjamin would even say yes to her advances after seeming to be completely oblivious to her interest in him. Slowly, her eyes fluttered shut and she began to drift off, completely oblivious to the creatures from the darkness looming over her. There was a reason why only the strongest of thestrals were sent to the tree, and were never sent alone; that being the shades that lurked behind every tree and under every rock. The bat ponies before her had always traveled in pairs. When resting, the ponies would take shifts keeping a look out for the cursed denizens of the forest. As the shades crept about the sleeping mare, her mind buzzed with images of her love. Vesper could see him sitting in his room, alone, until her turned to her and smiled. His smile alone filled her heart with joy and renewed her determination. Vesper’s eyes shot open, forcing the shades to retreat. Through otherworldly eyes, they watched as their target rose from the puddle she had fallen in. Mane caked in dry mud, she pressed onward, her second wind taking over her tired muscles, unaware of how close to death her brief nap had brought her. As she continued on her path, it eventually brought her to an old cabin. It was in very bad shape from the elements and she would have assumed it was abandoned, if not for the faint glow of what she could only assume was a candle in one of the faded windows. The sight left her a bit baffled, as she had assumed that this forest was uninhabitable by ponies. It was supposed to be abandoned; save for the shifting shadows that she occasionally caught a glimpse of from the corner of her eye. She had also seen a few hallucinations that resulted from the forest getting darker, even though her eyes were adapted to the darkness, she found herself relying more and more on her echolocation, but this dim light made her pause in her quest. As Vesper pushed open the door, she heard a light chuckle, which caused her to leap into the air on her already tired wings. It sounded feminine, and was accompanied by soft hoof steps and disarmed the combat ready bat pony slightly. “My, my, it’s been a long time since I saw another muzzle here,” an old mare said. The light Vesper had seen was coming from and ebony colored horn, that matched her coat. Her eyes were a faded light blue that seemed to be glazed over. Her mane was grey but contained patches of black, much like her coat. “Who…are you?” Vesper asked quietly. “I’ve gone by many names, but you may call me Mother Midnight,” Midnight replied. “And to whom am I speaking?” “Vesper” “Vesper…Vesper…ah yes, Vesper,” Mother Midnight nodded with a smile knowingly. “I was wondering if you would come or not.” “Y-you knew I was coming?” Vesper asked in disbelief. “I’ve never met you before…have you been watching me?” “I watch all of my kin from under the moon,” Midnight said motioning for Vesper to follow her into her house. Vesper hesitantly followed the unicorn, a part of her still on edge and leery of the mare. While she wasn’t sensing any malicious intent from her, she hadn’t dropped her guard completely. A part of her was still expecting some sort of attack from the aged mare, after having dealt with a few public disturbances involving the elderly back in Canterlot. “So, how have my woods been treating you?” Midnight asked as if she were talking about the weather, and not an abandoned forest of death. “Uh…it’s nice,” Vesper smiled nervously. “A bit scary at times.” “And you seek the tree in the middle, yes?” Midnight asked. “Why else would you come, unless your aim was to visit me?” “It’s the former, I’m afraid,” Vesper replied. “But I am surprised to find some pony all the way out here…how have you been living in a place like this?” “I find the privacy peaceful, but enough about me lets-“ Midnight stopped when she heard Vesper’s stomach growl. “Goodness, when was the last time you ate something?” “Uh…a day or two?” Vesper answered sheepishly. “I’m fine, really.” “Nonsense, you need something in you,” Midnight said retreating into the house. Vesper heard what sounded like several doors being opened, accompanied by the clanking of pots and pans from what she could only assume was the kitchen. Not long after the noise stopped the elderly mare returned, carrying what looked like two bowls of soup. “Ma’am, you really shouldn’t have-“ “I don’t celebrate having company over often, if that wasn’t obvious already,” Midnight stopped her, offering her a bowl. Vesper’s nose twitched as she caught a whiff of the sweet aroma coming from the bowl being offered. Her stomach sounded it’s approval, temporarily overriding her self-control. Her stomach won out and she tried to take the bowl as calmly as she could, only to tilt the bowl towards her open mouth. “My goodness, somepony was hungry,” Midnight chuckled as she slowly sipped on her bowl. “Heh, sorry,” Vesper grinned sheepishly. ---- “Are certain of this, Wraith?” asked the stallion’s father. “On my life, Tenebris,” Wraith replied. “Though I wish it were an elaborate lie.” Tenebris sighed as he clacked his hooves together in thought. His own daughter, whom he had cherished as a foal had fallen, just as he predicted. Some stallion of light had seduced her to the point that she shunned her heritage. Their blood line was strong and influential with the inner workings of their tribe. “It’s one thing for other thestrals to leave home to fall for stallions of the day,” Tenebris lamented. “It’s an insult for my daughter to leave home and reverse her very nature for one. Especially when it reflects poorly on those in The Moon’s Circle.” “She’s our family…however misguided she may be,” Wraith countered. “If given the chance-“ “You would stick up for a black sheep?” Tenebris asked. “You know the ponies will seek to cause her harm and misfortune if they can. We’ve both seen it time and time again, you should know first-hoof what happens to those that try to mingle with our line...and what it takes to redeem one’s self.” Wraith felt a chill travel down his spine as his father brought up his past. “That was a long time ago. Is it wrong to ask a chance for my sister?” Tenebris closed his eyes with a heavy sigh, his head rocking side to side every so often. His daughter had left to server Luna, which he had let slid, neither giving her his blessing or curse. His reputation was at risk now, with her romance interest involving a day walker. Perhaps her brother was right though, her status as a guard would complicate things as well. “Fine,” Tenebris relented. “But, this is all on you, since you pressed the issue. I’d start by finding out who it is that lured our daughter into the light. Oh, and one more thing, make sure our little plan goes off without a hitch.”