Meek Squeaks rubbed her aching shoulders in the garrison station. Few bat ponies were chosen to be one of Luna’s guards and she was one of them. She wasn’t known for her loud voice or large presence, but in speed she could rival Rainbow Dash on a good day. Except for that Rainboom thing. How does the pegasus do that?
Bat wings were different from pegasi wings. The lack of feathers meant they couldn’t fly as high or soar as easily. But when it came to maneuverability the pegasi had nothing. Bat ponies could literally fly rings around the bird-like counterparts.
Meek needed all her maneuvers today. She was on Derpy duty. Ever since the little grey pegasus had won the heart of the Princess of the night, she assigned a guard. The mail pony didn’t seem to mind and went about her normal day as if Meek wasn’t even there.
It was how it was supposed to go. Guards were present but not really interacted with. But Meek had many dangers to face for her charge that day. All of them came from the pegasus themself.
Meek had dived in front of windows to keep Derpy from crashing into them. She had jumped in front of low hanging signs, taking the brunt of the damage meant for her principal. Even trash cans and odd objects seemed to have it in for the mailmare. All the projectiles bounced off the dedicated protector as she dove, spun, and twirled in their path.
Needless to say, she was sore. She took off her armor checking the pains in her body and making sure none of them would lead to the infirmary. Mostly bruising and a few scraps. She sighed, nothing a day off wouldn’t cure. Luckily every guard was required to take the next day off after Derpy duty.
Meek placed her armor in her duffle bag and prepared for the trot home. She walked past the night shift coming in. Most of the night shift were higher ranking guards, they protected Princess Luna herself.
“Hey, Meek, how’d it go?” An elder bat pony snickered knowingly.
Meek could only shrug, she still had trouble talking to other ponies and was teased about it constantly. Even her shrug brought on a wince.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought,” the guard said. “But you’re doing a good job, Meek, the morning Sergeant tells me you’re here for roll call early everyday. Your uniform and armor are clean and you push yourself in every task. Keep it up and you might make Sergeant yourself. “
Meek flashed a small smile. She wasn’t used to praise. She guessed that the others had heard how much she had to protect her vip from buildings.
“Now go home and see that beautiful wife of yours. Congratulations on your wedding by the way.” The guard patted her shoulder but noticed Meek wincing again. “Sorry.”
Meek nodded and headed in the direction of home. It was hard not to prance the whole way. She was so preoccupied with surviving today that she nearly forgot she wasn’t going to the barracks. She was going to her new home. Where her new wife waited patiently for her to return.
Meek still couldn’t believe her luck. She had been assigned to the Eastern part of the kingdom in her patrol rotation when she started. It was a pretty low risk area. Not much made it over those huge mountains. But somepony had to watch them.
Her first day there she had taken the train to the last stop to report for duty and found a beautiful pony the likes of which she had never seen. Off white with olive green scales on her back and a horn that looked like a branch sticking out of her head.
At first she thought Equestria had been invaded by a new species. She prepared herself to interrogate the strange unicorn. But all her words were lost under a tidal wave of speech and explanation. Autumn Blaze was a kirin looking to see more of Equestria and talked a mile a minute about it.
The other guards told Meek that Autumn was the newly appointed kirin ambassador, and should be escorted to Canterlot personally. Meek suspected the other guards couldn’t take her constant babbling and over the top excitement levels. So they pawned the duty on the newest guard.
The bat pony was impressed at Autumn’s endless enthusiasm and sheer joy at every new thing. The more she protected the kirin the closer they became. Soon they were officially dating then engaged. As the guard pony walked home she reddened at the memory of their recent wedding.
The warmth of that thought carried the battered bat home with little delay. She could finally rest in the hooves of her beautiful bride again and bask in the unfiltered joy of her partner. Autumn had normally finished her playwriting by the time the guard came home so they could enjoy each other.
The little home the two bought came into view and Meek’s wings flapped the last few feet. The stiffness and pain shot through her body immediately and she nearly flew into the door herself. Perhaps it was why Derpy flew so badly. All that crashing might lead to more.
Meek whimpered as her hooves touched the ground again only to remind her of their soreness. The door to her new home stood in front of her and all the aches and pains melted to the background. Soon she would be in her new wife’s firehooves.
The door opened with on greased hinges and she said “Honey I’m hom-“
“Dwwwa!”
She had a few moments to prepare herself before a shower of wet mangos bounced off her floofy body and a plastic strainer landed on her large bat-like ear. Autumn spun and reddened immediately.
“Meek! Sorry honey, I’m still not used to you coming in without knocking yet.” She said, rushing over to pick up the soggy fruit. “It startled me. I was just making your favorite meal, today was Derpy duty right? I know you were nervous about it and so many guards complain it’s hard and painful. But was it really that bad? Is Derpy hard to work with? Do ponies attack her a lot? She must be important if she’s in so much danger all the time.”
“She’s more a danger to herself,” sighed the guard as she picked the strainer off her ear and set it back in the sink. “I had to keep her safe from all the crashing she usually does.”
“A bit clumsy huh? I would know anything about that,” the beautiful wife said with a wink. She wasn’t to Derpy’s level but she had her moments. Meek loved them all.
“Anyway, sit down,” Autumn ordered and pulled out a chair from the table. “The mangos are done and just need to be rinsed off and I made chow hay fun, your favorite kirin dish. Not sure how well they go together, so it’s kind of an experiment.”
Meek was nearly overcome with joy as Autumn smiled brightly. She sat dutifully and ate her wife’s cooking. She happily wolfed down the large pieces of mango and added a few bites of hay fun. They didn’t go together at all but after her day the bat mare was just happy to have food in her mouth. Mangos were a favorite of hers and most bat ponies. The delicious fruit was eagerly sought and any chance to eat it was worth the odd flavor the hay fun added.
“Well,” Autumn said, putting her strange eating sticks down. “It’s not perfect yet. Maybe I can make the mangos into a type of sauce or add some nuts. I’m glad it’s edible though.”
Meek nodded happily until the movement caused her shoulders to flex. The spikes of pain returned and she grimaced. Her wings twitched in surprise, sending lighting strikes through her back.
“Meek? Are you… oh! You’re hurt! Did you break something? Do you need a doctor? I could grab the nurse that lives next door. She can patch you up!”
Meek quickly shook her head and immediately regretted it. “It’s only muscle pain, Autumn, they’re just sore.”
“Well I know a kirin cure for that.” Autumn was up in a blur of motion. Meek tried not to shudder. Kirin medicine was strange and seemed so foreign to her. They didn’t have doctors and nurses like she was used to. Lots of their cures involved gross plants or strange fire based practices. Something to do with cups, she remembered.
“Lay down and I’ll get my needles.” Meek cringed which hurt worse. Needles?! What was Autumn planning?! What cure needed needles?! She slunk slowly to the couch and tried to come up with a nice sounding reason to refuse.
The happy kirin returned with a large black bag and a scroll. She arranged the pillows on the couch for her bat’s comfort and soothed the pained look on the guard pony’s face.
“I’ll start with a massage, honey. That way you can relax before I realign your chi.” Autumn’s voice was soft and soothing. It sent strange tingles down Meek’s spine but didn’t hurt. She stroked the winged mare’s back gently, letting all the tension release from the tired muscles.
“What’s chi?” asked the calmed patient. Her relaxation made the question come out as a squeak rather than her normal tone. It was how she got her name.
“It’s the energy in your body,” whispered the kirin. Her hooves slowly drifted to Meek’s stiff shoulders and wing bases. They pressed the tightened fibers into jelly-like wads as they passed down her sides. “You have energy channels in your body that help direct where you need the most care. A lot of ponies don’t have the right chi balance because of bad foods, habits or even thoughts. This will help bring your chi back to where it’s supposed to go. It lets the body heal itself.”
The guard shut her eyes, letting the soft voice and hooves guide her into a safe place of bliss. Things felt far away and less important. She was deep within mind letting any worries and cares melt away by the kirin’s warming hooves. They pulsed with small bursts of heat, filling the muscles with a nice message of relaxation. Meek could let go and she was in the safest hooves in the world.
A small poke at her flank reminded her that the world was still there. It didn’t hurt, it just was a strange place for a poke to be at that moment. Another followed and the bat guard idly wondered if the world really needed her back. Then a sharp jab caused her flanks to tighten and the world exploded back into her mind.
“Whoops!” The soft kirin voice turned a little louder and startled. “That’s not liver 1, I think it’s here.”
Another poke and the guard's forehooves pulled in and her wings fanned out, nearly knocking over the struggling wife. Autumn quickly pulled the needle and the wings and forehooves relaxed. Meek turned her head and saw needles sticking out of her flanks in all directions. How did she miss those? Autumn had a chart rolled out and was tracing a small line with her hoof.
“Ok, where’s my acupuncture for beginners book? I was reading it this morning.” The kirin began to search the living room. Beginners? This morning?! The guard looked around for an escape plan that didn’t involve burying the needles deeper in herself. As much as she loved and trusted her wife, sometimes her overzealous nature made her forget things. Like don’t start acupuncture until she knows what she’s doing.
“Oh here it is,” the voice cried in triumph. A needle found its way much lower on Meek’s hindquarters then she wanted but her body became instant jelly. A soothing warm feeling filled her being and she knew that her body was just a vessel that held her. The true connection the couple had was to their spirits and they could never lose that.
“Oh, I don’t think you’re supposed to be drilling like that,” Autumn mumbled and began to pull the needles back out. “I’ll get it right next time. Just need to practice more. I hope you don’t mind, it will eventually feel really good and relaxing once I figure it out.”
Eventually the bat pony’s limbs regained feeling and she gasped a bit as her breathing rhythm returned to normal. As scary as the idea seemed she knew the kirin was trying hard for her. She would have to just be patient. And make sure none of those points stopped her heart.
“Well, you look a little more relaxed but think you could do with a nice warm bath. Best thing for aching muscles. I’ll run it and get it warm for you.” Autumn turned and left the bat to wonder what was going to happen next.
She slowly sat up but felt the world spin slightly. The couch seemed to be a better place to stay. Had Derpy somehow infected her with her bad luck? Was Autumn always like this or was she trying too hard? Maybe once she could move properly she could reassure her mate that this much work wasn’t necessary.
Meek slowly felt the room return to its normal orientation and stay still. She sat up slowly and tested her legs and wings. They all worked normally and most of the soreness was gone. Her wife had done what she set out to do. The guard was about to tell her when the singsong voice of the kirin rang out from the bathroom.
“Meeeek, it’s ready!”
The bat pony slowly got up and walked towards the beautiful mare’s voice. The tub was much larger than pony tubs normally were. Kirin had a love of washing then soaking in deep water to relax. Autumn was no exception and composed many new songs and plays while letting the steam bring ideas to the surface.
“Climb in, honey, and I’ll give you a nice relaxing scrub.” The kirin offered her hoof to get the guard mare into the enormous well-like tub.
The water was warm and soothing. Meek closed her eyes once again when a brush on a stick started to brush her fur. She relented and opened her wings, letting the bristles remove all the dust and gunk that collected from bouncing off buildings. It found little crevices in her wings that rarely got scrubbed and itched them in a way that made her hind leg thump against the tub’s wall.
“Somepony likes that,” Autumn teased while pressing a little harder and faster on those spots.
“So… good…” Meek sighed. Soon the scrubbing session ended and the brush disappeared. The bat pony couldn’t move any more, and let the worry release into the heated well.
“Want some company?” The words cut through the relaxation like a stiff cold breeze while lying in the sun. It wasn’t unpleasant but definitely got the bat pony’s attention.
“Sure,” the bather squeaked.
Meek offered a hoof to her kirin to bring her in. Fate had other plans as Autumn stepped on the discarded soapy brush. All the speed that Meek had was no match for gravity. The kirin uttered a “wha?!” then plummeted in slow motion. The bat tried to grab her but it was too late. Her flanks hit the ground hard and a resounding “ouch” filled the room.
The guard was on her hooves in second but she felt the air dry out quickly. Her training kicked in and escaping into the tub was the only option. She dove as a plume of fire erupted over her head. The water enveloped most of her body as flames and obscenities filled the room.
Meek wrapped her hooves over her head and held her breath. She felt intense heat, especially her ears, and the water began to bubble. Luckily the magical nirik suppression system turned on and dosed the bathroom in cool, calming water. The warmth subsided and slowly Meek peaked out.
The cold water pelted her fur and stung her ear tips. At least magical rain didn’t flood the bathroom or ruin furniture. It was installed in every room in the house and cleans the materials it touches, leaving behind the scent of sandalwood which Autumn found relaxing.
The system finally shut off, leaving a soggy kirin looking sheepishly at the ground. Meek’s heart nearly broke at the sight of her face. Autumn has tears falling from her eyes and running down her reddened cheeks. The bat was quick to wrap her in dripping wings.
“I’m sorry, Meek, I just wanted to help you relax and now the tips of your ears are smoking. I thought I could help on your first hard day since we got married but… I screwed it all up.” The kirin leaned into her bat’s neck. “I mean, mangos and chow hay fun are your favorite but maybe I shouldn’t put them together next time. I mean they’re both good but not together.”
Meek nodded and was about to speak when Autumn continued. “And I should probably learn more about acupuncture before I try it, but how am I going to learn? Oh I could find a teacher or something first. I guess that will work, I could learn it on your late nights. And well the fire thing wasn’t fully my fault, I got too excited about getting the tub with you I didn’t pay attention. I guess I should pay more attention. But we know the nirik suppression system works and everything is clean and smells like sand Lewis. Ahh so soothing. I think I could help clean the house this way, just a little anger and boom the house clean and smells nice and-“
Meek couldn’t wait any longer. Her wife had fixed all her problems but now she needed to slow down. Luckily she knew a bat pony cure. She stopped the tulmet of words with a kiss. The world of sound stopped as the young couple engaged in the most relaxing and uplifting form of support. Each other.