//------------------------------//
// Chapter 2 
// Story: The Night Shift 
// by totallynotabrony 
//------------------------------//

	“All right class, settle down.  It’s time to begin today’s lesson.”  Cheerilee was at her customary position at the front of the classroom.  The young fillies and colts were generally a well-behaved bunch, and grew quiet at the sound of her voice.
“Today’s lesson will be a little different than usual,” said Cheerilee.  “We’re going to take a break from science and math and learn about mythology.  Do any of you know what that means?”
“Oh!” said a filly with thick glasses, raising a hoof.  Cheerilee called on her. 
“It’s a whole bunch of old stories about monsters and heroes and adventure and stuff!” the young pony answered.
Cheerilee nodded.  “Very good, Twist.  Mythology was created by ponies long ago.  They can be about history, or just told for entertainment.  Another important use for mythology is to tell stories that describe both good and bad qualities for a pony to have.  Heroes did great things, while monsters did things that you shouldn’t.”
The teacher pulled back a page on her display board at the front of the room.  “As you can see, there are many monsters in mythology.  Hydra, cockatrice, manticore…”  Cheerilee continued reading through the list of creatures.
Twist’s hoof went up again. 
“Yes Twist?”
“You skipped one, Mrs. Cheerilee,” said the filly.
“So I did,” said Cheerilee.  “Vampire.”
“Wait,” said Apple Bloom.  “A lot of those things, like hydras and manticores actually exist.  Does that mean vampires are real, too?”
“No, silly,” said Scootaloo.  “Have you ever seen a vampire?”
“What does a vampire look like?” asked Sweetie Belle.
“Haven’t any of you ever read the Moonlight Saga?” asked Silver Spoon.  “They’re dreamy.”
“Getting back on track,” said Cheerilee.  “Many of our stories today are based on mythological principles.  Your homework is to find one story that has ties to mythology.”
The rest of the lesson was spent discussing the meaning behind some of the more popular mythological stories.  When the little ponies were dismissed for the day, Cheerilee sat at her desk for a while longer, her mind occupied.
The mythology lesson was usually one of her favorites to teach every year, but it was suddenly hitting a little too close to home.  She felt like a monster already, and didn’t need a chart to tell her that she was one.
The schoolteacher packed up her things and made her way home.  She passed street vendors selling their wares in the marketplace.  Everypony looked so happy and normal.  Cheerilee was slowly growing used to feeling like a stranger in her hometown.
She checked the mailbox before going inside her home.  The pile of junkmail was dumped on the kitchen table for Cheerilee to pick through it later.
Opening her saddlebags, the mare pulled out the day’s papers to grade.  It was strange how such a mundane task had recently become one of her favorite parts of the day.  With her mind stuck in the paperwork, Cheerilee couldn’t think about how much she disliked the way her life was going.
All pleasant things must come to an end, however.  The sun was beginning to set as Cheerilee finished up the last paper.  She glanced out the window and sighed.  It was time to go out.  The streets were nearly deserted as Cheerilee exited her front door.  Nopony noticed her slipping away to the Everfree Forest.
It was lucky that the Forest occupied a broad swath of land near Ponyville.  Cheerilee had been spreading out her hunting territory to keep too many animals from disappearing from one area.
It was exceedingly strange to think about a young schoolteacher out in the Everfree Forest at night looking for something to kill.  That was why Cheerilee let her instincts take over when she was on the hunt.
She’d carefully learned to manage herself, however.  These days, she rarely had any episodes where she was overcome with bloodlust and lost control.  It had happened a few times when she was still new, and it terrified her.  What if she hurt somepony?  Or worse, turned them?
This night, Cheerilee circled around to the north.  She wasn’t sure what kind of animal she might run across.  She wasn’t desperately hungry, so there was time to be choosy.
Just like a buffet, she thought.  No, on second thought, that's a terrible analogy.
Cheerilee browsed through her choices as she walked.  A squirrel had its life spared.  A rabbit was not stalked.  The pony's green eyes probed the darkness, searching for the right target.
A flitting shape in the underbrush made her crouch down.  A red-coated fox sniffed the air, trying to decide if the noise it had just heard was a threat or a meal.
While the small canine was not Cheerilee’s ideal choice, she decided that it would do.  Her muscles coiled, and she sprang from her hiding place more powerfully than a mare of her stature should have been able.
The fox got lucky, for a moment.  It saw the pony coming with enough time to sidestep her attack.  Cheerilee hit the ground and changed directions, dashing after her prey.  Despite the animal’s shorter legs, it could sprint like lightening.
The undergrowth that the fox passed under and through tore at Cheerilee’s sides.  She ignored the gripping vegetation and poured her energy into running down her quarry.  
The fox had unsuccessfully tried flight, and now turned to fight.  It was woefully outclassed, however.  Cheerilee’s fangs tore through the red coat and deep into the flesh, taking a life in an instant.
She stood still for a moment to compose herself, the limp creature hanging from her mouth.  She gently laid the fox on the ground and began drinking.  There was no easy way to extract the blood from an animal, and the best method Cheerilee had found was a combination of sucking and licking up the spills.
When she was sated, Cheerilee dug a shallow trench and rolled the fox’s body into it, covering it with dirt.  There was no need to litter the forest with dead creatures.  Somepony might get suspicious.
She wiped her mouth with a fallen leaf to make sure she was presentable when she walked back into town.  It was unlikely anypony would be out so late, but better safe than sorry.
Valiant was lying flat on his back outside the library when Cheerilee walked by.  He was snoring slightly and smelled of the strange drink he called alcohol.
He would be an easy target.  It would take far less effort to end his life than the fox, and Cheerilee would probably enjoy it more, too.
She stood for a moment, looking at his supine form.  Valiant was the pony that had made her this way.  He had tracked down Prince Blueblood and killed him in order to be turned back.  While Valiant was no longer a vampire, Cheerilee often wondered if killing him would cure her affliction.
Valliant’s nose twitched with some irritation and he slapped at it with a hoof.  He only seemed to succeed in knocking himself out of his slumber.
He sat up and looked at her blearily.
“Jesus, what are you doing here?” Valiant asked.  “Quit staring at me.  It’s creepy.”  He got up and tottered towards the library door.
Cheerilee shook her head.  Killing animals for food was one thing.  Taking the life of a pony, even a buckhead like Valiant, was another.
The mare made her way home.  The pile of mail was still waiting.  Cheerilee sorted through it and found a plain envelope that she hadn’t noticed before.
At her kitchen table, Cheerilee opened the strange letter.  Since talking with Princess Luna, she had been waiting for more information on the night job that she had agreed to.  The note was what she had been hoping for—and dreading.

Cheerilee,
This is the beginning of your new job.  Do not take it lightly.  You may be ordered to do things that seem unpleasant, yet you must do them.  Many of these tasks have zero tolerance for error.
You are now in service to Equestria.  From this moment, there is no going back.

There was a page attached detailing exactly what was expected of her.
Cheerilee gulped.  She had been slightly unsure of the assignment before, but the letter cleared that up.  One way or another, she was now committed.