//------------------------------// // Chapter 8: Stare (Last Edited: 6/17/2022) // Story: Regression: Isekai of Equestria // by JackofEquestria //------------------------------// June 30, 2020 Unknown Once again, Jack had entered the prison of his nightmares. “What the Hell, Mark!?” yelled Dream Jack as he held up a scratched copy of Halo: Reach. “What do you want?” Mark sighed. "How many times do I have to tell you to put my games back in the case when you take them out?!" Dream Jack asked angrily. “Why does it matter? You’ve played that one a million times,” Mark pointed out. "It matters because it's my game, and now you've all scratched up!" Dream Jack spat. "Buy a new one then," Mark shrugged as if it wasn't any of his concern. "You broke it! You buy a new one!" Dream Jack growled. Mark glared and stuck up his middle finger. "No." Dream Jack clenched his fists. “Don’t do it!” the real Jack pleaded to no effect. "Even if I had the money, I wouldn't buy your stupid game," said Mark. Shrugging and holding up a partially cupped hand, he continued, "maybe you shouldn't leave your games in the X-box, to begin with." “WHO BOUGHT IT!?” Dream Jack roared as he planted his fist into his brother’s face. Now he was in high school again. "Did you hear the rumors?" asked a blond-haired girl. "Yeah, like, Jack murdered Yuri's dog, right?" asked another girl. "I don't know what she was expecting," said a buff dude. "That sperg and his weirdo friends are bad news." Dream Jack sped walked through the hallway, barely able to hold back his tears from the mean-spirited rumors. Again the scene changed. Now he was watching his 14-year-old self hanging out with Shawn and Chase. A glassy-eyed boy with short, well-groomed hair approached them. "Hello, I'm Jeremy King, Jehovah's Witness," he introduced." "Can we help you with something?" Shawn asked. "Yes, actually," Jeremy answered with an artificial smile. "Bryce Durkheim hasn't been attending Kingdom Hall meetings lately. I have a feeling that you might know why." "Bryce hasn't hung out with us in years," Chase denied. "Really?" Jeremy asked, pulling out an iPhone. "Then who's this?" he asked, showing a picture of them and Bryce playing on their 3DS's behind a dumpster. "How did you even get that?" Shawn asked. "That's none of your concern," Jeremy replied, still maintaining his smile. "Now, why hasn't he been attending meetings?" "We're not tellin'," Jack glared. "If Bryce don't want to attend yer cult meetin's, he don't have to!" Jeremy's fake smiled faded and was replaced by a dark glare. "Very well." The scene faded, and now 19-year-old Dream Jack stood at the door to Chase's house. He rang the doorbell, and a petite, freckled girl with dirty-blond hair answered. This was Riley Carney, Chase's younger sister. "Chase is in the living room," Riley said. "Thanks, Riley," said Dream Jack as he walked inside. When he reached the living room, he saw Chase on the couch, bald as a baby from chemotherapy. "Hey, Jack!" said Chase. "How you doing, brother?" "I'm alright," said Dream Jack, awkwardly averting his gaze from Chase's deformed visage. “Want to play Pokémon GO?” asked Chase. "Sure," Dream Jack said, smiling weakly. "Awesome! Help me get up, please," Chase asked, holding out his hands. "I won't be able to walk around very well, but we can still hit all the Pokéstops and gyms by the road." "That's fine," said Dream Jack. "Don't worry, I'll be better in no time," said Chase with a bright smile. Jack’s eyes shot open to find Angel smacking him in the face repeatedly. “Get the fuck off of me!” Jack growled as he slid out of bed. Angel pointed at the door and glared. “What do you want from me?” Jack asked. The bunny continued to point. "Fine, I'm going," Jack grumbled as he pulled on the tattered remains of his outfit. Fluttershy had stitched up his wounds as soon as Scootaloo left. Nevertheless, his body was still sore from last night's fight, and he really just wanted to stay in bed. However, he knew that ignoring Angel wouldn't get him anywhere and slowly made his way downstairs. He found Fluttershy waiting for him at the table. An omelet and a glass of cranberry juice were situated by his seat. “What’s up, Fluttershy?” asked Jack. "You need to get some new clothes before school today," Fluttershy said sweetly. "I've asked Rarity, and she says she can make something for you now." "That's a relief," said Jack. "I can't exactly go walking around like this." He held out his arms, displaying how utterly ruined his clothes were. "Eat up," Fluttershy said encouragingly. "You'll need a proper diet if you want those wounds to heal quickly." When Jack finished eating, he and Fluttershy left for Carousel Boutique. Carousel Boutique 15 minutes later “Sweetie Belle, could you get the scarlet thread for me?” asked Rarity. “Sure, Rarity!” Sweetie Belle exclaimed as she grabbed a red spool and scampered over to Rarity. "Here it is." "That's crimson, Sweetie Belle," Rarity complained. "I said I needed scarlet." “What’s the difference?” asked Sweetie Belle with a bewildered frown. "Scarlet is much brighter," Rarity explained. “Got it!” said Sweetie Belle as she left in search of the correct color. As Sweetie Belle exited the room, there was a knock on the door. “I’ll be right there!” said Rarity. When she opened the door and spotted Jack's shredded clothing, she let out a horrified gasp. “It’s worse than I thought! We must fix this immediately!” She grabbed Jack and placed him in a changing room. Wasting no time, she levitated a measuring tape over to her and began taking his measurements. “Hey, let go of me!” Jack demanded, squirming at every movement. "Stop struggling, darling. This is for your own good," said Rarity as she rolled up the measuring tape. "Three feet eleven inches tall, 27-inch barrel, 28-inch croup, and 3 ½ inch shoulder," she listed before rushing to the back room. "Rarity, I've got the scarlet thread," said Sweetie Belle as she entered the room. "Oh, hey, Jack!" “Heey, uh Sugar Belle, right?” asked Jack, grinning awkwardly. "No, it's Sweetie Belle," the filly sulked. "My bad, I'm terrible with names," Jack said quickly. "I promise I'll remember from now on." "That's ok. So why are you here today?" Sweetie Belle asked. "Well, as you can see, I need some new clothes," answered Jack. “Oh, so that means the customer Rarity has been talking about all morning must be you,” Sweetie Belle reasoned inductively. "I would assume so," said Jack. There was an awkward pause before Sweetie Belle asked, “Is it true that you were attacked by an ursa?" “Where did you hear that?” asked Jack. "According to Rarity, the entire town has been talking about it!" said Sweetie Belle. "They say you saved one of our classmates and knocked the ursa back faster than it takes to blink!" "I'd say that story is largely exaggerated," chuckled Jack. "As you can see, I barely got out alive," he said, pointing out his wounds. "I just held the thing off long enough for Scootaloo to escape, and then it threw me across the Town Square. After that, Scootaloo had to save me because I couldn't move." “That’s still really cool!” said Sweetie Belle. They talked for another hour before Rarity came out with a scarlet T-shirt and cerulean pants. Realizing she still had the spool in her hoof Sweetie Belle quickly gave it to Rarity. "I'm so sorry, Rarity. I completely forgot to give you the spool you asked for." "Sweetie Belle, that's vermillion. I asked for scarlet," Rarity scolded. "Don't worry too much about it. I found the correct color, and now look at this beautiful outfit!" "It's kinda flashy," Jack said, looking at the bright outfit. "You don't like it?" asked Rarity, her voice cracking a little. “No, no, no, it’s fine. I didn’t mean to imply…” Jack started, waving his arms frantically. “Wonderful!” Rarity beamed as she gave Jack the outfit. Once Jack was dressed, Fluttershy said it was time to go. "My goodness Fluttershy, you're absolutely right," said Rarity. "Sweetie Belle, it's time for you to go to school!" “Bye, Rarity!” said Sweetie Belle as she rushed out the door. "Come on, Jack," said Fluttershy. "Got it," Jack responded. Ponyville School 20 minutes later When Jack and Sweetie Belle walked into the school building, the room went silent. One could hear a pin falling from a desk. “Jack!” shouted Apple Bloom and Scootaloo at the same time. "Why is it that every time I walk into class, someone always seems to yell my name?" Jack asked, feigning annoyance. “Are ya alright?” asked Apple Bloom. "You got hurt real bad last night," pointed out Scootaloo. "I'm fine, you guys, really," said Jack. It was at that point that the two fillies finally noticed each other. “And just how do you know Jack?” Applebloom asked, squinting at Scootaloo. “Uh, well…” Scootaloo gulped. “The whole stalking Rainbow Dash thing must be pretty embarrassing for her," thought Jack. "She helped me get home after I got hurt last night.” “Wha…” Scootaloo started before realizing. “Oh, um, yeah, that’s right, but he saved me first.” "Oh, well, Ah'm glad yer both all right then," Applebloom said, blushing from her embarrassing outburst. “By the way, are those new clothes?” she asked Jack. “That’s right!” Sweetie Belle chimed in. “My sister Rarity made them.” “And Why is your sister making his clothes?" Applebloom and Scootaloo asked at the same time, narrowing their eyes at the unicorn filly. "Because my only outfit was destroyed last night, duh," said Jack. "You guys are acting weird. I'm gonna go take a seat." "Oh look, the ape has acquired another fan-filly," sneered Diamond Tiara. “Yeah, like, they so like him," added Silver Spoon. "Gross!" "A smelly farm peasant, a flightless pegasus, and now a magicless unicorn," Diamond Tiara snickered. "Very funny, you two," Jack replied sarcastically as he took his seat. Diamond Tiara was about to say something else when Cheerilee walked in. "Hello, class," she said. "As most of you have probably heard, the town was attacked by an ursa minor last night. Two foals from your class were responsible for the incident and have been suspended for the next two weeks. So, I'll be needing one of you to bring Snips and Snails their test grades after class ends," she announced as she handed back the tests. “100% as always," gloated Diamond Tiara. “She only got that grade because Cheerilee is afraid of her father," thought Jack, rolling his eyes. Silver Spoon received 90%, Sweetie Belle received 95%, Scootaloo received 70%, and Apple Bloom received 85%. Finally, Jack was handed his sheet. 100%. “No surprise there, a 21-year-old taking a second-grade test, any less than 100% would just be embarrassing," thought Jack. "Next week, we will begin reading Ponyville Fables and Stables. Class is dismissed. See you next Monday," said Cheerilee. The class quickly cleared out, with Jack being among the first out of the building. As usual, Fluttershy was there waiting for him. "Hey, Fluttershy. I'm going to go over to Apple Bloom's now," said Jack. "I think it might be better if we just went home," Fluttershy said softly. “Why?” asked Jack. "W-well, I-I'd feel better if you were at home," Fluttershy said before quietly adding. "Where I can see you." “Is this because of last night?" wondered Jack. "Whatever, I’m getting sick of all this overprotective bullshit," Jack decided before saying. "Listen, Fluttershy, I know you're worried about me after the ursa attack and all, but I'm not a child. You know that," said Jack. "I'll be fine," he said, dismissively waving as he starting to walk off. "Wait," said Fluttershy. "I'll be fine, Fluttershy!" Jack responded. "Wait," Fluttershy said, slightly louder. "I'll be home by 6:00," Jack said, holding up his hand. “WAIT!” Fluttershy shouted as she flew in front of Jack. Jack stopped dead in his tracks. Try as he might, he couldn’t move. All he could do was stare into Fluttershy’s eyes and obey. "Let's go home," Fluttershy said firmly. "Yes, ma'am," Jack said. "What the hell is this?” When they arrived at the Cottage, Jack was sent to his room, his mind demanding resistance, his body unable to comply.