Once upon a time in the magical land of Equestria, there lived a pony in the mean streets of Manehatten. He wasn't very important. His brother on the other hoof has over 300 confirmed kills. He is trained in gorilla warfare and the top sniper in the entire Equestrian military forces. He can kill you in over seven hundred ways, and that’s just with his bare hooves. Not only is he extensively trained in unarmed combat, but he has access to the entire arsenal of the Equestrian Marine Corps and he will use it to its full extent to wipe your miserable flank off the face of the kingdom, And his brother was also an alicorn to add insult to injury, with a black and red coat and mane. Badass brands covering his body with a cutie mark that should really be called a man badge.
Compared to a pony like that, he was nothing. A mud pony blank flank that does afraid of everything, even the girl of his dreams.
Bab seed had just returned from the boonies called Ponyville after the bullying got really bad, leaving him to pick up the pieces that everypony just seemed to love to break all over again. He wanted her to come back soon and to not come back to even more bullying and pain and distress. But he was a weak pony, a coward and in the end, a bully himself.
He brushed it off at first as a classic teasing of the girl you liked, it was normal for a colt to do that, right? Everypony was just helping them along, daring him for greater feats of increasingly doubtful expressions of love.
And now there he was in the classroom, right next to her. He wanted nothing but to just look at her, smiling everytime she would blow on her bangs or swish her tail over her flank. Every moment he looked he'd hope she'd look back, and for once when she did, she'd smile at him. But the way the filly looked at him...
She was scared, always scared. She puts on a brave face, laughing off the pranks he's forced to pull, silently taking the insults and jeers he throws and even the bits he steals to give to the big ponies. The act was very nearly fooling every pony else, seemingly beginning to bore them and likely pretty soon move me along to hurt somepony else. But when her eyes look to me as I look at her, the fear in those eyes are undeniable.
He... I...
She hates me and I like to think we have an understanding in that way. Because I hate me too.
The bell rang and instinctively I looked to the clock. And then behind him at the ponies keeping an eye on me. And then to the door, where within a few moments the big ponies would be there waiting for me.
I looked to Bab Seed silently coaxing her to hurry up and leave like everypony but she stayed, focused on her notebook, Distracting herself from the reality of the situation.
I understood her intent completely but what she was doing wouldn't help her any.
Yes, staying in the classroom meant no pony could touch you because of the teacher in the room. Yes, looking busy would make it seem like nopony could approach you. Yes, distracting yourself to thoughts of what is sure to come could save you a few seconds of relief.
But it won't stop what is coming.
I look to the doors and find the big ponies waiting there. If there was a window of opportunity for Babs to escape, that window is gone.
"W-What are you doin'?" I said nervously, friendly and I like to think kindly.
She froze at my voice. For a moment her body froze in terror, but slowly they relaxed carrying on scrawling on her book with her mouth as if she didn't hear me.
I looked to the door and the ponies were there, more and more of them now gesturing me to get on with it. They didn't care if I did it in front of the teacher. What becomes of me meant nothing, so long as they had their sport.
"Babs?" I said, the word coaxing her to stop. Her shoulders lifted up and down as she breathed purposefully. Up and down. Up and down. Her hooves were pressed on the desk as if readying to get up.
After a few moments she turned her head towards me and gave me a glaring stare. It had impact, as if it zapped you with the pure intensity of it. But only at first. It faltered quickly as weeks and weeks of conditioning had her fear to even look at me.
"Are they going to do something to me?" Babs said eventually, in whisper so weak that no one would hear her but me.
"No. I will." I said without hesitation. A cold frankness I never thought I was capable of.
Babs took out her school bag and rummaged through it. She took out a red velvet cape emblazoned with a rearing filly within a shield of arms. As if complying with a prisoner's final request, I helped her put it on.
She looked wonderful. Like a hero right out of a comic book. Babs took her notebook and put it into her bag. I had no doubt that the big ponies would take the chance to hurt her with it by ripping it in front of her eyes and reading what she's been writing into it.
That cloak she clung to so tightly as if it were a pony's arms holding her in embrace... She looked so small while trying to be so brave.
"I'm telling. I'm going to tell on all of you!"
The teacher looked up from his desk and looked straight towards me.