//------------------------------// // Parent-Teacher Conference // Story: Our Little Clementine // by MaxBeezy //------------------------------// Matt stands in front of the mirror in his and Applejack’s bedroom, fixing the collar to one of his short sleeved dress shirts that he keeps in his closet, should the need arise to look somewhat presentable to guests and other acquaintances. Today is an interesting day for him; one that he never thought that he would ever be a part of in his entire life, but being a father can change all that. It’s Parent-Teacher Conference Day. The human father adjusts his collar and fastens his buttons for what feel like a long time, while Applejack, who simply had to move her hat to the side, watches him with a bit of amusement. Clementine, on the other hoof, waits around in the living room, watching more episodes of Transformers. “Ya been at that shirt for a while now, sugarcube. Ah think it’s ready.” Applejack breaks the silent atmosphere. “Sorry.” Matt relents, separating himself from the mirror. “I didn’t think I’d ever have a Parent-Teacher Conference…with me as the parent.” “Come here.” Applejack motions for him to kneel down to face her. He does so without any hesitation. Examining his shirt, she notices that he buttoned it up all the way. “If yer ain’t wearin’ a tie…” she uses her teeth to unbutton the top, allowing his neck some room to breathe, “…ya don’t need to button it all the way.” “Thanks.” Matt chuckles at her help, “Guess I’m a bit nervous.” “Nothin’ to be nervous about.” she smiles, “We go to Ms. Cheerliee, and tell her what’s been goin’ on with Clem.” “It’s not that that’s bothering me. It’s the fact that the OTHER parents will be there, too.” Matt grimaces, knowing that he’ll have to face the parents of the fillies that were bullying poor Clementine. Applejack and Matt were told that the parents of the two fillies were Amethyst Star and…to the shock of Applejack…Soarin. The two go a while back, as she asked Soarin out on a date, but was turned down for her supposed less than desirable looks. When she got a bit of a makeover with Cadance, she tried to boast to Soarin in a boost of confidence. Needless to say, the encounter ended with Soarin getting smacked around a little. Never did Matt or Applejack think that not only would Soarin settle down, get married, and have foals, due to rumors circulated by the media that the very notion was the thing that ended Soarin and Spitfire’s well publicized relationship, but that those foals would be the ones to bully Clementine. Applejack thought that this was some kind of sick joke, as her encounters with the former Wonderbolt were fairly well known around Ponyville. However, they learned that it was very real. “You want me to do all the talking?” Matt wonders, aware of her history. “Ya don’t need to.” she puts a hoof on his shoulder, “I’m sure he’s mellowed out. Maybe he’s not aware about what his daughters are doin’. Ah hope so, anyway.” “Me, too. He always seemed so nice on the television.” “Don’t let that fool ya.” Applejack shakes her head, “They gotta act like that for the television. Nothin’ but smoke and mirrors ta me. Like ah said, ah certainly hope that his behavior is a lot less…whatever that was, all those years ago.” “You can say it…” Matt chuckles, “…assholish.” “I’m tryin’ not ta swear in front of Clem.” “But…” Matt looks around, noting the absence of Clementine, “…she’s not here.” “Ya never know. Plus, if ah become too comfortable with swearin’, I’ll start sayin’ it in front of Clem, and that’ll open a whole can of unwanted worms!” Her face scrunches up at the thought of a foul mouth Clementine rampaging through Equestria, needing a giant bar of soap in her mouth to wash away the girth of foul language. “Good point.” Matt nods in agreement, “I’ll be sure to keep the cussing to a minimum, should the parents, or mainly Soarin, prove to be a bunch of jerky jerks.” Hearing the door behind them creak open, they look over to see a nervous Clementine, scratching her hoof on the floor in a timid manner. Matt goes over, picking her up and holding her in his arms like a baby. The nervous frown from her face briefly turns into a smile, but the emotion makes a return moments later. “Ya don’t have ta do this…” Clementine says, “Ah don’t want to be a bother.” “Clementine…” Applejack walks closer to them. Matt kneels down to allow Applejack to meet her at eye level. “This isn’t a bother at all. This is a serious situation, and we don’t want our little filly feelin’ unsafe at her school.” She brushes a hoof on Clementine’s cheek, “We want ya to be happy, and not be bullied by some spoiled fillies.” “Do you think they’ll be there?” she inquires, “The foals?” “We don’t know, Clem.” Matt shrugs, “But their parents sure will.” Clementine looks up into her father’s eyes, seeing a fire in them that is a rare sight for her to see. He is determined to defend her, and take on the world if he had to. The look in his eyes brings a giggle to Clementine. “Ya gonna give em’ a piece of yer mind?” she asks playfully. “The biggest piece!” Matt bellows, acting like a powerful god of a man, stomping along the hallway with a monstrous roar. “Fear me!” Clementine laughs in his arms, as Applejack follows them out the door, shaking her head, but eliciting a giggle at his rambunctious behavior. “Okay, Mr. Monster…” Applejack pats Matt on the behind, “Let’s go before ah take ya to Skull Island to battle a big monkey.” “King Kong ain’t got nothing on me.” Matt says with confidence, “I can take him on any day of the week!” “Really?” asks Clementine. “No, sweetie.” he then replies in a droll tone, “He’d crush me with his fist. Maybe if I had a bazooka or something.” It’s a late Monday at the Ponyville Schoolhouse. The fillies and colts have already run off with their respective parents, and only Ms. Cheerliee remains inside; grading papers, and waiting for the parents of the fillies causing trouble at the school. It doesn’t take long for Applejack, Matt and Clementine to come into the schoolhouse. Cheerilee looks up with a smile, putting away any ungraded work to the side, and moving away from her desk. “Ah, it’s nice to see you.” Cheerilee says in her signature cheerful tone. “Please, have a seat. Soarin and the others should be here shortly.” The parents and the still nervous filly sit down, with Cheerilee taking notice. “How are you, Clementine?” “I’m okay…just a bit nervous ah guess.” “It’s okay. It’ll all be sorted out. School is meant to be fun.” she smiles and nods. She watches as Applejack keeps Clementine close, rubbing her shoulder with a gentle touch. The doors open again, catching the teacher’s attention. “Ah, they’re here.” Matt and Applejack look over to see Soarin and his wife, Amethyst Star, walking towards the empty chairs by Cheerliee’s desk. Upon sitting down, Soarin glances at the opposing couple, giving them a nod of recognition, and maybe a little friendliness. “Good to see you two…” Cheerilee smiles again, “But…where are your daughters? I thought they were coming, too.” “Sorry.” Soarin says, “Skye and Terra couldn’t be here. They’re at their singing lessons.” “Couldn’t keep them from those.” Amethyst chimes in, “Lessons like that are expensive.” “Right…” Cheerilee nods in understanding, but… “…but I was hoping that they would be here, so that we may resolve this matter with all parties present. However, perhaps when this is over, you may inform your daughters of what happened.” “Of course.” Soarin nods his head, “I’d like to resolve this situation as well.” He glances over at Matt and Applejack, before his eyes fall on Clementine. “Is that her?” he asks with genuine curiosity. “Yeah…” Applejack responds with hesitance, “Her name is Clementine.” “Tell us what’s been going on, Clementine.” Cheerilee says. “Well…um….” Clementine rubs her hooves together in nervousness, trying to piece together what she wants to say. “The fillies…Sky and Terra…they spent the first week askin’ me questions.” “What kind of questions?” “If…if the mah daddy was the human in Equestria. Ah would respond…and they would leave. The next day, another question…like…if mah dad was a pony before bein’ a human…ah would answer again, and they would leave again…and it went on like that.” “I see…” Cheerilee nods and thinks, “Then what happened.” “Well…the next week after that…they brought the other students along, and started makin’ fun of me.” Clementine hangs her head down in sadness, “Sayin’ that mah daddy wasn’t really mah daddy, and that ah was some kind of freak.” “What?” Soarin says in shock, “Our little fillies?” “Impossible.” Amethyst scoffs, “They would never talk like that, much less get a crowd together to bully somepony.” “But, it’s true!” Clementine retorts, “Ah know what ah saw, and they was the ones doin’ this!” “Our fillies are good foals.” Amethyst shakes her head in disagreement, “Whatever you think you saw, you’re probably mistaken.” “You callin’ mah filly a liar?” Applejack growls. “Well…I’m not DENYING that there’s any bullying going on with your daughter, but it’s certainly NOT Sky and Terra.” “Mah daughter is an honest pony. What’s IMPOSSIBLE…Amethyst...is that she could be mistaken about this kind of thing.” “Let’s calm down.” Cheerilee attempts to cool the situation, “Obviously, this situation has caused some distress for little Clementine.” “There’s more…” Clementine whimpers, “They…they made me believe everythin’ that they said. They made me hate mah daddy.” Her eyes tear up, “They smiled and laughed when ah yelled at him! They wanted me ta do that!” “Please…” Amethyst lets out a condescending ‘psht’ sound, voicing her annoyance at the accusation, “I refuse to believe the words of a little filly.” “Even when she’s the daughter of the Element of Honesty?” Matt puts his hat into the ring. “Like the Element of Honesty hasn’t lied before.” Amethyst looks at Applejack with a sneering expression. “How about ya back off?” Applejack grumbles out of anger. “Amethyst, please…” Soarin surprisingly tries to keep things level headed, “If this is something that our little fillies are doing…” “Of course they’re not doing it!” Amethyst yells, “This filly here is just looking for attention!” she points an accusatory hoof at Clementine, “Isn’t it enough that she’s some kind of hybrid?! Or that her father is some weird looking human from another dimension or some crap?! Now, here she is, accusing our daughters of something they obviously aren’t doing!” Matt stands from his chair, catching the attention of everypony in the room. He is looking at Amethyst dead in the eyes. His expression says everything to her. She gulps in fright, and he slowly begins to approach her. “What are you doing?” she asks, “Get away from me.” “You’re the cause of this, aren’t you?” Matt calmly asks. “Fillies wouldn’t just ask one question and go away. They would ask all kinds of questions; that’s how they are. They’re curious like that.” “What are you saying?” Soarin wonders, “That…Amethyst somehow did this?” “That’s exactly what I’m saying.” Matt replies. “That’s such crap!” Amethyst yells, “Why would I make my fillies do that?” “I don’t know….” Matt shrugs, “Why WOULD you tell your fillies to ask my daughter one question a day, and have them report the answer to you, so you can give them another question, and THEN when you’re done, tell them to bully her?” “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Amethyst pouts, “Sky and Terra are good little fillies.” she gives a look to Soarin, “Don’t just sit and do nothing! He’s threatening me by standing there!” “Hey, Matt…I think…” Soarin puts a calming hoof on Matt’s chest. It doesn’t work. “I helped defeat King Sombra, I hit Lord Tirek with a chair, kicked the god of chaos in the stomach, and later on, knocked him out twice with a casted leg. What makes you think you are any threat to me?” Matt practically growls his words of truth. Soarin backs off immediately. “What did Clementine ever do to you, huh?” Matt prods, “What did this innocent little girl ever do to deserve being bullied by you and your daughters.” Matt suddenly turns to Soarin with a calm voice, “Soarin, I’m sorry. AJ and I thought you were causing trouble again. We were wrong, so I apologize.” “Um…that’s cool…I guess…” Soarin doesn’t know how to react. “You know what?’ Amethyst stands, “Fine! I did it! I told my fillies to ask those questions! I told them to bully her! It was me! I couldn’t stand having that THING in our classrooms! She isn’t one of us! She may look like a pony, but she ISN’T a pony! She’s…she’s a…MONSTER!” Clementine cowers behind an enraged Applejack, who is trying to keep calm in all of this. Matt, on the other hand, doesn’t hide his emotion very well. He looks over at Clementine, whimpering, fighting tears as she is clutched to her mother. He takes a deep breath before turning back to Amethyst and Soarin. The pause is long as it is suspenseful for everypony in the room. Slowly, he walks over to two desks in the front row. He glances downwards to see names inscribed on them. Terra and Sky. “These are their desks?” Matt politely asks Cheerliee. “Yes.” Cheerilee responds, unsure as to where this is going. Matt nods. Suddenly, he grabs their desks, drags them across the room, and throws them out the door onto the dirt outside. Before anypony could react, he rushes up to the two parents, getting right in their faces like he’s going to raise a serious smackdown on either one of them. “You may find this hard to believe…” Matt attempts to keep it together, “…but I’m rather tolerant of many things. What I AM NOT tolerant of, is anypony calling my daughter a monster! So, how about you…” Matt jabs a finger at Amethyst’s shoulder, “…apologize to her, now?!” “Hey! Don’t touch me!” Amethyst recoils, “That’s assault!” she looks to Soarin and Cheerilee, “He assaulted me! Call the cops!” “That wasn’t assault! You want me to assault you? I got about…” he looks around the room, counting the number of chairs in the classroom, “TWELVE chairs I can assault you and your husband with!” “Hey!” Soarin scoffs, eye darting about, “What did I do?” “YOU didn’t pay attention to your wife telling your daughters to bully my little girl!” “He’s threatening us!” Amethyst screams, “Ms. Cheerilee, do something!” “I agree with Matt.” Cheerilee raises her muzzle up at them, “You should apologize. And…judging by how he looks…” she sees Matt’s expression of rage, almost seeing steam coming out of his nose and ears. “…I’d say you got about twenty seconds.” “I will NOT apologize to such a rude and ugly ogre!” “I’m gonna forget about yer comment about mah husband…” Applejack puts herself in the fray, “…and tell you to apologize ta Clementine, lest ya want a face buckin’!” “How thuggish!” Amethyst gasps, “I expected such rude behavior from this creature, but certainly not from you! How dare you say such a thing? You two are awful parents, and should have your filly taken away!” “That’s it!” Matt kicks a desk over, picking up a chair for some over-the-top assault. Amethyst and Soarin speed out of the schoolhouse, with Matt following them outside, before stopping at the door, yelling at them like an old man yelling at kids on his lawn. “YOU BETTER APOLOGIZE TO MY DAUGHTER SOON, OR I’LL BANISH YOU TO THE MOON WITH MY FOOT UP YOUR ASS! IT’LL BE UNPLEASANT TOO! LIKE, ON YOUR WAY TO THE MOON, YOU GUYS WILL BE LIKE ‘OH MY! THERE’S A FOOT UP MY ASS!’ BECAUSE THAT’S HOW HARD I KICKED YOU! I KICKED YOU SO HARD, THAT IT FEELS LIKE THERE’S A FOOT UP YOUR ASS!” They were out of sight halfway through his rant about ass kickings, but it felt good just to let it out, anyway. He calmly picks up the fillies desks and brings them back inside. After placing them in their correct positions, he sits back down to a shocked Cheerliee, Applejack and Clementine. Matt looks down at Clementine, who’s shocked expression soon curls into a smile. “Well…” Matt turns back to Cheerilee, “I think that went okay.” Matt, Applejack and Clementine walk back home. It was a quiet trek back to the house, with nopony and no one saying a word to one another. Clementine glances up at her parents with worry, afraid that they’re going to start arguing over her father’s little outburst. She hopes nothing happens; after all, her mom did make a physical threat of her own, but she cannot deny her dad took it to the next level. Upon entering the house, Applejack leans down to Clementine. “Clem, ah need ya to go to your room for a bit.” Applejack says in a motherly tone. “Ah don’t want ya two fightin.” Clementine hangs her head down. “We’re not gonna fight.” Applejack shakes her head, “Just havin’ a conversation, is all.” Clementine alternates her gaze between the friendly faces of her parents. She can’t see any kind of tension, but they did get pretty good at hiding it when things got a bit extreme. With no other choice, she nods, going to her room. Once she is gone, Applejack turns to Matt. “Sit down.” she says, not in a troublesome tone, but in a concerned one. Matt sits down on the couch, with Applejack sitting right next to him. “We can’t keep doin’ this, Matt.” “I’m sorry.” He says in a sincere tone, “Hearing her say that…it just…” “Ah know. Ah was mad just as much as you, but not everythin’ can be solved with threatenin’ and chair hittin’.” “Actually, a good 90% of conflict can be solved with that.” “I’m bein’ serious, right now.” Applejack says sternly, “Ah know it can be temptin’ to joke, but ah want ta have an actual conversation, here.” “Okay, okay…” Matt focuses his attention on her, “Sorry. It’s hard enough taking care of one kid.” “Ah didn’t say ya were a kid.” Applejack snickers, before getting back to serious mode, “But foals at Clementine’s age are awful impressionable. If you or ah don’t stop actin’ like this, it will make her think that that kind of reaction is appropriate. Ah don’t mean to sound like a nag…” “No, I totally get it.” Matt puts a hand on her shoulder, giving it a gentle and loving rub with his thumb. “You’re absolutely right. I was out of line, and lost my proverbial….” he looks over at Clementine’s closed door, before whispering “…proverbial shit.” He then goes back to room tone, “It’s definitely something I have to work on.” “Ah mean…I’m not saying ya need ta be a pacifist or anythin’, because like ya said, there is a time for it, but not with classroom conflicts.” “I suppose the big challenge is figuring out which times need a butt whooping.” “Exactly.” She nods. As she thinks about Matt’s behavior, a blush adorns her cheeks. “Truth be told, I’m also a little embarrassed.” “Sorry that I embarrass you sometimes.” Matt profusely apologizes. “Naw, ya don’t embarrass me, sugarcube. “ she grins, “It’s just that…when you were like that…ah was sort of…diggin’ it.” “Wait…” Matt pieces it together, “You were…turned on?” “Ah guess that’s what ya call it. Ah kinda got the case of the vapors, back there.” “Vapors…” Matt laughs, “You sound so old fashioned when you say that.” “You like it. Don’t lie.” “I’m not. It’s super sexy.” Matt giggles, inching closer to her. “Well, now I’m all conflicted. Should I stop, because it’s bad for Clementine? Or should I keep going, because it gives ya da vapors?” “Only when the time is right, honey.” she puts a hoof on his chest. “If ya did it all the time, it would lose its luster.” “Okay, ‘only when the time is right’ it is.” He wraps an arm around Applejack, bringing her in closer. “You know, there isn’t anything I wouldn’t do to make sure you and Clem are happy.” “Really?” “Absolutely. It kind of reminds me of a song I like to sing to you.” “Oh…” Applejack grimaces, knowing what he is about to do. “Matt, that’s okay. Ah don’t need ya ta sing.” “Come on. You love my terrible singing.” “Ah do, it’s so adorable, but we can’t. Ya know how ah get when ya sing.” “Ain’t no mountain high….ain’t no valley low…” Matt begins to sing a song that he started singing to Applejack shortly after Clementine was born. “Ain’t no river wild enough, baby.” “Oh, Sweet Celestia.” she sighs, “Ya don’t have the best singin’ voice…but…oh mah…” “If ya need me call me, no matter where you are, no matter how far.” he gets closer to her muzzle, kissing her on the nose ever so softly. “Don’t worry baby. Just call my name, I’ll be there in a hurry, ya don’t have to worry. Because baby there….” He suddenly scoops Applejack in his arms, eliciting a surprised yelp from the farmpony. “Ain’t no mountain high enough…” Applejack laughs as he swings her around the room, “…ain’t no valley low enough…ain’t no RIVER wild enough…” he sets her back down on the couch, with him nearly on top of her, “…to keep me from gettin’ to you, babe.” He gives her a passionate kiss. “Oh, Matt.” she tackles him onto his back, and the two commence a wild lip lock, with their hands and hooves travelling each other’s bodies in a dance of out of control passion. “Mommy? Daddy?” A dance that is soon interrupted by Clementine opening her door and calling out to them. Applejack and Matt immediately sit back up on the couch, straightening each other out to prevent Clementine from noticing what they were doing seconds prior. “Hey, Clem.” Matt smiles. “Are ya two mad at each other?” “Of course not.” Applejack assures her. “You father and ah still love each other…” she looks into Matt’s eyes, “…very much. “ “Ya sure?” “Yeah…we’re pretty sure, Clem.” Matt nods. “Sorry for scaring you like that.” “Nah, ah wasn’t scared. I liked that ya showed them the what for.” “Yes, well…” Matt rubs the back of his head, “That’s not something that should be done all the time. I kind of overreacted.” “Right. “ Applejack nods, “We just hope that ya understand that that kind of reaction shouldn’t be used all the time. Hopefully…not used at all.” “Okay…” Clementine understands, “Ah just don’t want ya guys ta be upset with each other.” “We’re not.” Matt says, “Everything is good.” He stands from the couch. “So, now that we got that out of the way…who’s hungry?” “Me!” Clementine raises her hoof in excitement, “I’m starvin’!” “Good, cause I’m in the mood to go out to eat.” he turns to Applejack, “What do you think?” “Lead the way.” Applejack giggles. “As you command, milady.” he points to the door, “Onwards, to food!”