Chapter 5: Shattered Dreams
School Daze
by Paleo Prints
Chapter 5: Shattered Dreams
Cheerilee’s Class, 8:01 AM, Monday
Cheerilee watched the students filter in through her door with a mix of anticipation and dread. This is it. In three minutes, comes The Moment. Cheerilee moved her head from side to side in the door; she tried to keep one eye on the halls and the other in the class. She heard a noise of something falling in her room, briefly checked the inside, and then continued watching the hall.
Wow, I am never this unfocused on the first day of class; what is throwing me? Suddenly she saw Screwball follow a group of nervous-looking colts into Miss Ratio’s class. Okay, there’s an answer. The sounds of head custodian Mr. Sweep ringing the bell filled hallway. Cheerilee nodded. She walked to the front of her classroom while letting the lively conversation of the students filter through.
“Yeah, Luster’s got an in at the gem store. She gets the best deals.”
“Did you hear what Sledge did to Hardtack’s wagon? If Hardtack finds out Sledge better not eat in the cafeteria without checking his food.”
“Hey, check out the new teachfilly’s rump.”
Cheerilee gave a deeply purple embarrassed blush as she reached her desk. Well, their minds sure aren’t on education. I just have to retask them. She turned and smiled. Never let them see you falter; they smell blood like a quarry eel. It’s time to make magic.
“Stomp your hooves once if you can hear me.”
Several students turned from their conversations with bemused faces. The vast majority of the class kept their attention elsewhere. One student with a gray coat stomped on the group with an amused look.
“Stomp twice if you can hear me.”
A few of the students joined in now; they seemed to be amused by the novelty. She saw the furrowed brow of Bomber in the back; Bomber was not joining in, but her green coated friend was.
“Stomp three times if you’re listening.”
CLOMP. CLOMP. CLOMP. The class was dead silent in anticipation. They had raised eyebrows and smirks, but the schoolmare had their attention.
Cheerilee smiled to herself. Sometimes it’s so easy, I’m ashamed of myself.
“Good morning class! I’m Cheerilee; I’m your new literature teacher. I came all the way from Cherry Lawn in Ponyville to teach you. Princess Luna herself asked me to be here, and I’m happy to meet you.”
She looked out. The students’ eyes flickered from Cheerilee to other classmates. They’re waiting to see who tests me first. I’ve got to prepare for the inevitable. “So, I’ve tried to find your previous teacher’s plans. Apparently he was deported to Scoltland in a hurry.”
The class gave a slight cheer.
Cheerilee’s smile took on a nervous quality. “Anyway, let’s take roll and we’ll get on…” Her hoof reaching behind her found an empty desktop. She frowned for a brief second, and then brought the smile back on. “Did anyone see where my roll clipboard went?”
Sluice rolled his eyes. Luster giggled nervously with the rest of the class and turned to Bomber. Bomber wore the same anticipatory grin she had from the start of the class. She stared straight into Cheerilee’s eyes like an Applaloosan pieslinger at high noon.
“Gee miss, ‘ow could you ever learn our names, then?” Bomber allowed her smile to widen slightly.
Okay Cheerilee, remain cool. Play the Slight Inconvenience card; they’re waiting for you to flip out. “You know what? I’ll just pass around a sign-in sheet. Anyway, let’s start our assignment.”
A groan came up from the back of the class. Sledge gave a theatrical sigh. “Oh man, I think that clock is slow.” The cuckoo merely glared at him.
“Our curriculum is literature, class. We’re going to read a variety of things with different genres and intents, then write about how they make us feel.” Cheerilee finished and waited for the inevitable.
A purple filly in the front row raised her hoof. “I already know how I feel, Miss! Can I be excused?”
Cheerilee shook her head.
“Well then, I have to go to the bathroom! You gotta let me go to the bathroom, right?” A chorus of agreement sounded out amongst the crowd. Cheerilee silenced them with a raised hoof.
“Once we’re on task in a few minutes I will certainly stamp your pass. Let’s continue.”
Luster turned to Bomber. “She’s not doing badly. Some subs gave up by now.”
Bomber shook her hoof. “We’ll get ‘er.”
Luster frowned. “I dunno; she’s kind of nice so far.” Luster dropped her gaze from the stare Bomber gave her.
“Luster, You just ‘member Little Miss Threatening from yesterday. Focus on yer job.”
While the conversation had gone on, Cheerilee had assigned two students to drag around the textbook cart. She noticed she was losing the back of the room's attention. Bomber was perched over the top of the desk, slightly elevated over the group of students hanging around her. Cheerilee made a mental note as to who the class ringleader was. She holds court like a griffin tribal chieftain.
Sluice started turning his new textbook open with a quizzical eye. “We’ve never even seen this before, Miss.” While he was waiting for an answer, Sledge surreptitiously knocked the book off of his desk. Sluice immediately stood up and reared up to buck Sledge in the face.
He found himself staring eye-to-eye with a fuchsia schoolmare with a stern glare. The entire class was silent. Sluice dropped onto his front hooves. “Miss, you saw what Sledge did!”
Cheerilee smiled. “Sledge, is it?” She turned. “Sledge, would you mind moving two seats over, please? The orange-backed desk should do fine.” I can’t have a fight the first day.
Sledge gave her an incredulous look. “He pushed me first.”
Cheerilee grinned. “Sledge, you are moving to that desk. The only question is how many consequences I give you first. I think your address is on file down the hall, right? Is your house on my way home? I could stop by for a chat with your folks.”
A few of the students made ‘ooh’ sounds with their mouths. Cheerilee trembled inside. This colt is my size; he could buck a desk in half. I have to keep up the mask; can’t let him see fear.
The blue colt shook his purple mane in frustration as he relocated himself.
“I said the orange-backed desk, Sledge.”
He stood up, kicked the desk he was seated with over, then sat down in the orange-backed desk. He pointedly looked away from the teacher as he muttered angrily under his breath.
Cheerilee resisted the temptation to sigh in relief. Can’t let them see a crack in the wall, even if I want to. Fighting back tears of nervousness, she calmly walked to the front of the room. She leaned against her desk, and addressed the class. “So, does anyone recognize anyone on the cover of the book?”
One colt raised his hoof. “This one’s got me brother’s hoofwriting on it. It says to turn to page 76 for a surprise.”
Cheerilee rolled her eyes over the classes giggles. She used one hoof to balance the book toward the class. “I mean the figure on the book, class. We see a large green pony made of water sinking a ship. What’s he wearing?”
Luster threw a hoof in the air over Bomber’s distasteful snort. “Oh, miss! It’s an aquamarine-inlayed crown with peridot set with pearls! That’s a black opal in the tourmaline center!” Luster looked proud of herself as Cheerilee’s eyes widened. “That’s a street value of about fifteen thousand bits, give or take.”
Bomber snorted. “Don’t set yer guard down, luv.”
Cheerilee tried to make sounds come out of her own mouth, failing several times. “Um... Yes! That's definitely accurate." I trust her, at least. " So what does that tell us about that pony?”
Luster looked thoughtful. “He’s bleeding rich?” The class’ laughter started to deflate her excitement. Cheerilee stepped in quickly.
“No, that’s right!” Luster smiled as her teacher continued. “That’s Foamrider, king of the Sea Ponies. He’s sinking the boat because the sailors displeased him. We’re going to read a lot of old legends this year.”
Bomber stood up. “So we’re going to read out loud a buncha sod from dead unicorns that we can’t understand?”
Cheerilee faltered. “I’ll help you with the language.” The class didn’t look hopeful, she noticed. “Let’s get started with page twelve and the story of Roanicus and Artimane.”
The class started flipping through their books. Well, I spent almost a fourth of class getting them settled. I don’t know if I have the stamina to pull a plow like that three times a day, every week. Let’s get them into the story.
Cheerilee’s Class, 9:16 am, Monday
The class was not responding well.
“What does ‘hence’ mean?”
“When the smeg did they even talk like this?
“I’m bored.”
Cheerilee nervously dragged her hooves backward across her desk. THIS is the textbook they bought for this school? I could use this in a Manehattan private school.
“Well, can anyone tell me what the main characters were up to? Railrunner, you were reading last. What’s going on?”
The athletic yellow teen stared at the textbook in incomprehension. “I can read it, miss. Doesn’t mean I get it. Something to do with grapes... I think they’re having a party.”
Cheerilee sighed. “But what fruits are they talking about, class?” This is going nowhere. More than half of the class had settled into side conversations instead of their paired reading groups.
Sluice pawed the page with a seeking hoof. “’The fruits of vengeance’. So, sour grapes?” His smile broke as he saw the teacher’s exasperation.
“Class is almost over! Too bad we’ll never get to the end,” Sledge triumphantly yelled.
Cheerilee huffed. “They end up killing each other and most of their families on Roanicus’ wedding.”
Her eyes were staring at the floor. She suddenly noticed the quiet. Looking up, she saw a field of eyes looking at her silently. Even Sledge was pretending poorly not to listen.
Well, it’s not like we’ll ever get through this normally. “Roanicus spends the night before his own wedding fooling around with his best friend’s wife. His best friend realizes this and poisons the wedding toast, but Roanicus drops his glass back into the punch bowl.”
Cheerilee, low on enthusiasm, started half-heartedly gesturing. She hadn’t noticed that she was commanding the absolute attention of the class. “The poison hurts Artimane’s wife so much that she jumps off the nearby cliff. When Roanicus goes down to check on her, his own bride curses him and jumps off too. She impales him with her horn. Seeing the tragedy, Artimane goes into a rant about love and drinks the poison.”
She was astounded. Even Bomber’s façade was cracked; she was taking in every word.
“That’s what old myths are all about, class; clopping and killing.”
The sounding of the bell broke the silence. Bomber snorted. “Why didn’t it just say so?” She picked up her things as the class started to leave with her.
“Class, please wait! Your homework is to write about how the passage made you…feel.” Cheerilee realized she was standing in an empty class. I’m talking to myself; I may have been doing that most of the morning.
Cheerilee felt emotionally exhausted. She thought she could fall asleep passed out on her desk right now. As the first student looked nervously into her room she summoned a huge smile from untapped reserves of will and made her way to the door. As she walked to the door, she noticed her cart had been tipped over at some point; a large amount of objects were missing. She stifled the scream that threatened to rise from deep inside.
“Welcome to class! I’m your new literature teacher. I’m sure we’ll have a great year.”
Cheerilee’s Class, 11:02 am, Monday
Third block arrived to find Cheerilee exhausted. The first class at least had Bomber keeping students in line. I never realized how preferable organized chaos was to the leaderless kind. She walked to the door while kicking paper wads out of her way. That was like something out of a William Gelding novel; a bunch of spear-wielding colts on an island wondering who gets to be the Generous Meal.
“Welcome to class! I’m your new literature teacher. I’m sure we’ll have a great year.”
The students filtered in quietly. Cheerilee gave each a greeting that mostly went unreturned. The colts and fillies quietly took to their desks. Cheerilee’s mental analysis of her class was stopped by her first friendly voice.
“Me am not supposed to be here!”
The trained and practiced teacher’s smile was replaced with a real grin. “Screwy! It’s good to see you. How’s the day going for you?”
Screwball sat down in the very back desk and turned to her ‘aunt.’ “Me awful in math; me throw least paper of all! Then me fill out everything in Geography and make many friends!”
Cheerilee stared. Oh no. I hope I’m somehow translating that wrong."Well, would you like to sit up closer to me?”
Screwball shook her head. “Nope!” She was tapping the desks with her hooves in anticipation.
Cheerilee shook her head as she walked to the front. Okay, there has to be something weird there. I thought she seemed like a good girl. Cheerilee turned to address her class. Third time’s the charm.
“Stomp your hooves once if you can hear me.”
Cheerilee’s Class, 11:46 am, Monday
Cheerilee sat in her room alone during lunch. Keeping an eye on the cuckoo clock she scavenged the remains of her cart for lunch. After seriously considering crayons she finally admitted her students had stolen everything edible. Oh, well. There’s always the old stand-by. The schoolmare paced over to her empty desk and stopped a moment in confusion.
“There aren’t any apples. No one brought an apple.” Also, I’m so hungry I’m talking to myself.
She slumped over her desk. The door clicked behind her. “Red?” She turned around to see a smiling Mr. Trotter levitating a lunch sack.
“First day famine? Everypony from the sticks thinks there’s going to be an apple crop on their desks first day. “
Cheerilee glumly nodded. Trotter sat at a desk and produced two daisy sandwiches. “I thought you might need this.”
I. Hunger.
The earth pony rocked into her donated lunch like a hurricane. “Wow, this is good stuff. Thanks, Mr. Trotter.”
He smiled. “Au contraire. Call me Globe. It’s a special recipe I got from a young mare on my visit to Old Cheval.”
Cheerilee’s eyes went wide. “You’ve been to Fancée?”
Globe Trotter beamed. “But of course, mademoiselle! Lemme tell you about the morning we started there and ended up in the canals of Venieghce by sunset.
The sandwich ran out long before the story did. Celestia, this guy loves talking. She had to give him credit; the stories were mostly interesting. Cheerilee wasn’t bored, just inconvenienced. She had hoped to tidy up her classroom during lunch. Noticing the cuckoo animatedly pointing at the clock, she started for the door. “Whoops; time to pick up the kids from lunch.” She stopped when her hoof stuck to the floor halfway through.
Eeew. Her hoof was stuck to the floor in some kind of gooey mess. “Trotter, my leg is stuck to the floor.”
The mustached stallion telekinetically pulled her off with a flourish. “I will assist, mademoiselle.”
Cheerilee looked at him sternly. “Great. How chivalrous of you. Are you going to clean off all of the candy and gum in my room? You gave out all of it.”
Trotter suddenly looked nervous. “That’s just the price of reaching the kids. Let’s get to the lunchroom!” He galloped out of the room.
Cheerilee shook her head as she walked into the cafeteria. She was greeted by the sight of Red on cafeteria duty. His lab coat was covered in white clumps. Just as she approached her table, she saw a glob of something barely edible hit his safety glasses.
“Excellent shot with the mashed potatoes, Riversift! I expect the essay of trajectory and Neighton’s Laws on my desk by tomorrow.”
Cheerilee shook her head with a smile. How has he not given up by now? She waved to her students as they followed her down the hallway. “So how was lunch, Screwy?”
Screwy bounced on her hooves alongside Cheerilee. “Me ate EVERYTHING.”
Cheerilee sighed to herself.
Cheerilee’s Class, 2:25 pm, Monday
A candy-striped mane was spread across the teacher’s desk. A fuchsia head groggily rose as she blinked the sleep out of her bleary eyes. Ringing. Something’s ringing. Bell!
Whoa. I must have fallen asleep grading. She squinted at the cuckoo clock. Celestia, I slept through my planning period. Better throw it in the cart and start cleaning. If I leave all of this for the custodian I’ll hear about it later.
Cheerilee placed the small stack of papers in her cart. She tipped a desk back over. She noticed that a student had drawn a striking picture of her on notebook paper. Nice anatomy, but I wouldn’t do that for anyone without a ring on my tail.
Another working day has ended. Only rush hour Hay to face. As the minutes drew past Cheerilee became nervous. I’m forgetting something, aren’t I? I always forget something when I pass out. What could be so important?
Screwball!
Cheerilee ran into the hallway, passing students who cheered her on. “Move that rump, teach!” Heedlessly she barreled into the courtyard. She stood on the front step and scanned the sizable crowd. She saw no sign of Screwball.
Clop me, where could she be?
She lay on the steps for minutes on end with no sign of the violet filly. A muscular gray colt passed her down the steps. “G’night, Miss Cheerilee.”
She racked her brain for a name. “Sluice, why haven’t you left school yet?”
He cast a glance backwards. “I had to do some research in the library. See you tomorrow.”
Cheerilee turned toward the door. Maybe she’s back inside. She started to wander the halls. She noticed Principal Placeholder talking to a bulky earth pony stallion. To her trepidation she realized the large green pony had a Hazmat helmet with crossed brooms behind it as a cutie mark. This is it.
“Miss Cheerilee! I was just discussing with Custodian Cleansweep on the state of your room.”
Cheerilee gave a nervous grin. “I hope I left the room okay today.”
The sunglasses-wearing custodian continued chewing something as he slowly shook his head.
Bogus. “Well, hopefully it won’t take too long to clean, right?”
The silent custodian’s impassive stare radiated from his shades. His expression was unchanging stone.
“Well, have you seen Screwball, Mr. Placeholder? I’m thinking of looking for her in the library."
The custodian cocked his head as Placeholder giggled. “I hope you haven’t spent too much time trying to find it; we don’t actually have one.”
This stopped Cheerilee’s thought processes dead.
“I would recommend Red Glare’s classroom. I understand some students use it as a sanctuary from higher class-level predators.”
Cheerilee started walking off; she was distracted by the problems of Screwball and Sluice. As she headed down the corridor she suddenly turned to Placeholder. “Excuse me, sir?”
He turned to her cheerfully. “Yes, Miss?”
“Aren’t you going to ask me how my first day went, sir?”
He smiled. “Not particularly. Good night, Miss!” He trotted back to his office.
Cheerilee was confronted by confusing conversation at the door of the science lab.
“Seriously, your character has good Karma? You can’t wear the Luna armor from Canterlot then.”
“Hey, good Karma gets you Calamity. He’s the best companion in the game. Back me up on this, Crunch.”
The sound of notebook pages shuffling filled the air. “Too true, but he’s got all of those time-consuming family member side-quests with relative low XP pay-off for the ammo investment. I concur with Flip in his moral decisions.”
Cheerilee stood in confusion at the door. Red Glare was sitting at his desk grading. Screwball was sitting with her back to the door. She was talking with three other colts at the back table. She was apparently playing some game involving dice-rolling.
Cheerilee walked over the Red while keeping her eyes on the table.
“What in Equestria are they talking about?”
Red looked up with a surprised smile. “Oh, them! That’s the Luna’s Academy Adventurer’s Guild. They play games in my classroom after school most days. I brought my old gaming books when I moved from South Detrot, so I let the students use them. Right now I think they’re talking about some new game on their crystal ball system.”
Cheerilee raised a skeptical eyebrow. “You encourage that sort of thing?”
Red shook his head nervously. “Oh, in here they have to play board games. Proper strategy and math learned after school! I don’t encourage crystal ball games here.”
A white earth pony with a script and quill cutie mark turned to the teachers. “Hey, back me up here Mr. Glare! You played a fillyfooling unicorn techy girl with good Karma to max level, right?”
Cheerilee gave Red a look. The science stallion quickly ushered her to the table. “What kind of manners is that, Quest? Say hello to your new literature teacher!”
Cheerilee walked over to the table. I think these guys are in the same class with Screwy; I don’t remember them talking nearly as much as this in class, though.
“Miss Cheerilee, you’ve already been introduced to Quest Talltale. Meet his companions in adventure.” Red pointed at a light blue Pegasus with glasses and a slim orange unicorn pony who was scribbling in a calculation-covered notebook. “This is Flip Turnpage and Crunch Tallymark!”
Screwy waved to her ‘aunt.’ “Hey! These aren’t me new friends!”
Cheerilee gave a small smile. “Glad to hear it. I’ll go get my cart and we’ll go home.”
Red walked with her back to the classroom. “So, how’d the day go? You’re still alive, must be positive.” His smile drew a smaller one from her.
“First hour is chaos ruled by might alone, second hour is chaos let free. The third block kids are somewhat behaved; they just aren’t very equipped for grade level work. My Ponyville students read on a higher reading level then some of these students.” She sighed. “They’re not dumb or bad, just…slow.”
Red nodded. “The best teachers get the hardest kids.”
Cheerilee smiled at the compliment. “Also, sometimes they apparently get mashed potatoes on their safety goggles.” She walked into the classroom and came out pulling her cart. “Let’s get Screwball out of that ‘club’ so I’ll be out of your mane.”
Red grabbed the cart reigns and pulled it ahead of her. “Don’t be ridiculous! I’m sure they’d love to have you at the Seaponies and Sepulchers game.” He gave a conspiratorial wink. “I hear a certain young earth filly is having quite a time as a mighty warrior of the waves.”
Cheerilee rolled her eyes. “Red, she’s special. She’s very special in a lot of ways, and easy to hurt right now. I need her to learn to relate to others in her age group in real life. I don’t think fantasy games could help her in…”
Cheerilee and Red’s conversation ended when they reentered the lab. Screwy was standing on her back hooves while gesturing wildly.
“You shall not end my advance, foul Clam-men! I am Pearlshield, Servant of Foamrider and keeper of the Obsidian Trident! If thou bar my way I shall pierce your treacherous bodies as easily as I now slay thy chieftain!”
Screwball threw a small piece of plastic across the table. Crunch barely glanced at it before going back to his calculations. “She rolled a seventeen. She’s got you there, Quest.”
The pale earth pony youth readjusted his glasses and tipped over a small figure on a gridded battlefield. “Um, okay then. I guess the rest of the Clam-men flee from her righteous advance, escaping in terror to their dank holes.”
“Sweet!” The blue pegasus took a mouthful of candy off the table. “Crunch and I start searching all the bodies for gold.”
“Verily my allies,” Screwball yelled as she stuck a dramatic pose. “The forces of Gentlewave Castle carry this day!” She then noticed the still, speechless form of Cheerilee standing in the doorway. “Oh, me have to stay. Hello everypony!”
Quest peered over his cardboard screen at the retreating filly. “Um, will we see you again?” He gave a hopeful smile.
“Game was awful. Me hate everyone here. Me never come here again.” She looked at him quizzically. “Next day is Wednesday?” The confused Quest nodded, causing Screwy to squee loudly and bounce twice as high over to Cheerilee.
“Me not ready to go home yet!” Cheerilee could only stare at her ‘niece’ as her brain tried to sort the avalanche of new information.
Cheerilee walked through her front door after kicking a veritable chest-high wall of glass bottles over. That must be for the last tenant; who would order fifteen bottles of chocolate a day? She pushed her battle-damaged cart to the side of the room. Gradually she slumped on the cushions on the side of the room. She blinked away bleariness, and saw an expectant Screwball looking at her. “Screwball, I’m…really tired. Could you do something on your own right now?”
Just like mother, just like daughter. All I need is Dad to walk in after work and pass out. Buck this.
She stood up and addressed the disappointed filly. “Okay, we’re not starting that here. Screwy, could you bring in the pots from the back? We have a bunch of seeds to plant. I can’t stand living without a garden. After that I’ll help you with your homework.”
Cheerilee started scrounging for tools in her scattered, unpacked belongings. “Be careful with the pots. They’re fragile.” She suddenly tensed as she heard a loud clattering behind her. Turning around she was amazing to see twenty-seven pots organized at different table levels, some hanging by the ceiling. Screwball bounced up and down, awaiting approval.
What actually happens when we turn our backs on her? I should ask Red to set up an experiment. “Okay, that’ll work. I don’t think I had anything to put on that table anyway.” Cheerilee stopped in her tracks. Between two of the pots was her globe.
She stood there gaping for several seconds. Screwy walked over to the schoolmare. “Me knew it wasn’t important to Cheerilee. Me wanted to make sure you kept it safe.”
Cheerilee started blinking the moisture away as she put her hooves silently around the teen. Screwball accepted the hug nervously. “Me did sad-bad wrong, right?”
Cheerilee quaked as she smiled. “I’m just very happy. I’m not sad at all.”
Screwball grinned. ThaT MakE PerfeCT SeNSe.
Cheerilee’s Class, 6:01 AM, Tuesday
Cheerilee moved into her classroom with purpose. Everything is going to go right today. She had already triumphed over the unexpected, having opened her front door into a six-foot wall of chocolate milk bottles. I swear I heard someone chuckling at that.
She turned to Screwball and gave a conspiratorial whisper. “Okay, Screwy. You can stay and help for a while. You have to go into the yard before Placeholder gets to work.” Screwball saluted. “This’ll be between you and me.” Cheerilee suspiciously looked at the cuckoo; the bird rolled his eyes and whistled while shrugging in ignorance. The schoolmare smiled.
Methodically they cleared up the clutter on the desks from yesterday. Neglected school supplies went into an empty box marked ‘Use Me.’ She went to work on her chalkboard as Screwball started organizing the desks in record times.
Thank Celestia I have a free morning. Tuesday’s usually a department meeting in bigger schools; luckily enough I am the whole reading department.
Cheerilee’s Class, 7:54 AM, Tuesday
With two hours of work and planning behind her, Cheerilee waited for the bell with trepidation.
I can't seem to face up to the facts. I'm tense and nervous and I can't relax. She pushed open her classroom door and stood in the hallways. These are the students I have from now on. I just have to get used to it.
From her place in the hallway she saw her three co-workers at their doors. Goldy and Globe smiled at her; Red gave her a hoofs-up. She noticed Red’s coat was giving off greenish smoke. I wonder what Screwy’s going to be mixing up today?
The bell rang. Cheerilee tensed herself to go through the gauntlet.
Her first block class walked into the room and immediately began socializing. Cheerilee was gratified to get greetings from some of the students. As she walked to her desk, she addressed her pupils.
“Remember, you have something to do! There’s always something to write on the board when you come in. You start the class on your own, not the bell and not the teacher.”
The students blinked in amusement at the ‘Do Now’ written across the board. ‘What kind of stories do you like?’
She saw that about half the class started, while some looked pensive. She paced the perimeter of the class, working to keep students on task. “Luster, please start your work.”
The green teen looked abashed. “I ain’t got no supplies, Miss.”
Cheerilee smiled and gestured toward the bin of free materials. Luster went over and scavenged supplies. Bomber rolled her eyes.
Let’s try this. “Bomber, get to work please. Let’s have another good day.”
Bomber snorted and continued to scrutinize her classmates. “I got nothing either, Miss.”
Cheerilee smiled. “There’s plenty of stuff left over from yesterday.”
“I know, miss.” She didn’t move.
Cheerilee turned. “Luster, could you bring enough for Bomber?” Luster turned back, meeting Bomber’s deadly gaze. Bomber shook her head.
Luster sat down. “Um, there weren’t ‘nough for two, Miss.”
Cheerilee calmly walked over to the bin, took out pencil and paper, and placed them in front of Bomber. “Here you go!”
Bomber turned to her. “You're talkin' a lot, but you're not sayin' anything.”
The schoolmare was about to continue the conversation, but decided to circulate elsewhere in the room. I have thirty-five students; I can’t spend all my time on her.
Minutes later, most of the students had written a sentence on their paper. Cheerilee smiled gratefully. “Let’s see what you have, class! Sledge, you wrote your name. That’s an improvement. Nailkicker, you like fighting?”
“Hoy, miss! Have a go if yer hard enough!” The rest of the class laughed.
Cheerilee grinned. “Friday’s story’s going to rock you then.” As she moved on, black-coated Nailkicker looked confused. He usually got an angry reaction from teachers with that line.
“Luster, you want descriptions of clothing. Lamplight likes romance stories, Sluice like things that happen in different places. Bomber, what do you like?”
Bomber gave a look of disbelief. “Stuff that matters. We readin’ stuff by ancient dead stallions again today? Ye ruined the endin’, after all.”
Cheerilee smiled. That’s at least on-topic. “Today we’re reading something closer to home. It’s called ‘The Manticore’s Paw.’ Nailkicker immediately raised his hoof.
“Hoy, Miss! ‘Ow many ponies does it eat in this one?”
Cheerilee giggled. ‘The paw isn’t attached to the manticore anymore in this story.”
Nailkicker looked disappointed. “No one bites it then.”
His schoolmare clicked her tongue. “There’s a young worker who gets it pretty nastily in this one.”
The class’ mood was changing. Even Sledge was starting to slow down his obscene scribbles. Sluice gave Cheerilee an inscrutable stare. “Miss Cheerilee, how does he get offed?”
Cheerilee grinned. “Let’s get into formation. I want everyone in a circle. We’ll put two back-to-back students in the center, and they’ll read to everyone. We’ll switch out every so often, so stay with us in the book everyone! This is a story about a magically preserved manticore paw. It grants three wishes, but they may not turn out the way you want.”
An hour later the class had made less progress than Cheerilee hoped. Most of them were admittedly paying attention. Every time two new readers were chosen the class commented on how they loved or hated each other; several pairs had refused to read together. Keeping the momentum was like pulling a train single-hoofed. Whether it was breaking up scuffles or stopping two lovebirds from nuzzling each other, the distractions kept coming.
Cheerilee sighed. “Okay, Sluice. Where did we leave off?”
Sluice responded without looking up. “The couple had just wished for money, Miss. Then their son fell into the taffy-pulling machine in the candy factory he worked in.”
Sledge snickered. “That’s totally sweet.”
Sluice gave a look of warning, and then continued. “How does that get them the money, miss?”
Cheerilee paced slowly around the circle. “Do you know that most companies pay the families of workers who die in accidents?” She looked back after the silence continued. Sluice was staring at the book hard enough to set it on fire, but his lips weren’t moving at all.
Did I say something? The rest of the class looked at her with nervousness and reproach. The tension was only broken by the bell. Surprisingly, there wasn’t an immediate rush to the door. “Okay, then. Move your seat back if you have time. Remember your homework. What would you wish for if you had a manticore’s paw? I want eight lines by tomorrow morning.”
The class silently filled out. As Cheerilee stood by the door, she noticed that Sledge was smiling to himself as he approached Luster and Sluice; Luster was apparently trying to keep Sluice’s spirits up. Oh, Celestia. I should’ve chosen another story.
The day dragged along with effort. By the time her planning period came, the fuchsia pony was exhausted. She sardonically noted that first block got farther than any other class. She started wearily cleaning up the paper wads and doddles, curious as to what her “artist” was inspired to draw today. She examined her new portrait before consigning it to the bin. I haven’t done that since college.
Her grading was interrupted by the sounds of argument in the hallways. Cheerilee nervously cantered over to the door. I hope it’s not a fight. She hated the idea of watching students hurt each other, but she knew the penalties for a teacher getting involved were pretty harsh.
She was greeted by the sight of a huge yellow stallion physically assaulting her student. It was the pony with the singing canary cutie mark she had seen in the market one day. He had a grizzled beard, a mining hat, and Sluice’s ear in his mouth. He was dragging Sluice down the halls while Placeholder watched impotently from his door.
“Hold it right there, sir!” Cheerilee galloped to her student. “We’re charged with our students’ safety; I can’t allow you to do that!”
The yellow miner released the gray youth and snorted. “I don’t remember charging you with anything. I’m Lookout Hardpick; this is my son, and I’m taking him home.” The young colt next to him was blinking back angry tears through a black eye.
Cheerilee gritted her teeth. “I don’t know why you’re hurting your son in my hallway, but you stop now.”
Lookout snorted. “Sorry, I need a better introduction. I’m Foreman Hardpick; I run the community mine and the town finances. I pay your salary, little lady. Now I’m taking my son to a more proper place.”
The schoolmare paced around the angry parent. “I’m sorry, My Lord Lookout, but we still have rules here.” She saw Sluice’s eyes go wide at the sarcasm his father was receiving.
Lookout stamped on the ground. “Rules, you say? Some young buckhead gives my son a black eye and you yell about at me about rules? This entire place is a disgrace! My son shouldn’t have even been wasting his time here today.” He pointed a hoof at the schoolmare. “Believe me, when the contract comes up in council this year I’ll be shutting down this inept babysitting service. When walls are kicked down and these young ponies start learning a trade this town will be a better place. Sluice, we’re leaving.”
Sluice had wandered off during the angry discussion. The grey colt had just finished talking to Red, who had poked his head out of the science lab. Sluice passed a few papers to Red out of his schoolbag. Once his mouth was free, he nodded. “Yes, sir. I’m coming.”
Cheerilee just stood motionless as the ponies walked out of the building. Placeholder gave Lookout a respectful nod as he passed; the foreman rolled his eyes and gave a disrespectful snort as he passed. This seemed to please the principal, who walked down the hall past the stunned Cheerilee.
“He’ll get this place closed in a hurry; we’re in good hooves.”
The schoolmare just stayed there stunned as the bell rang and the students hurried to their escape.
Red Glare walked his cart home under Luna’s beautiful tapestry. Oh, you can see the nebula in Orion tonight. His stargazing was interrupted by a collision with another stallion.
“Sorry, sir. Didn’t mean to. Yes, should watch where I’m going. Nope, I’m okay, just looking at high activity stellar nurseries.” As Red shuffled his possession back into his cart, he found a group of papers on the ground.
Oh, Luna, I forgot about those! I must have had those under the sedimentary rocks and the eohippus model. I need to drop those off at Cheerilee’s house; that’ll pick up her night.
Red trotted down the street as fast as his jury-rigged cart could stand. Okay, the Princess would’ve got her a place at Miss Bungalow’s. That’s just a few streets over. After weaving in and out of cart traffic the red stallion found himself at a familiar homestead. The old mare was walking the perimeter of the complex. “Miss Bungalow, have you seen my new co-worker around?”
The aged pony looked at Red appraisingly. “Why, hello Mr. Glare! I hope you haven’t come to move back into your old apartment. We’ve only recently got the smells and stains cleared.”
He scratched his mane nervously. “Not at all! Just looking for Ms. Cheerilee. Help me find her, and I’ll be out of your mane.”
She gave him a disapproving look. “Now see here, Red. You know the rules about mares and stallions after hours.”
Red started waving his hooves in an embarrassed manner. “No, not that, never thought of that, well I did but not here and we’d need a few dates and you’re looking at me like that and I’m shutting up.” He took a long, deep breath. “Look, I just need to give her some papers from work. I’ll stand in the door, I promise.”
She nodded and cocked her head toward the side alley. “It’s the door with all the trash, dearie.”
Red paced down the alley. That doesn’t sound like Cheerilee. Trashy? He stopped at an apartment that looked like an explosion at a bottling factory. Unopened bottles of chocolate milk lay scattered everywhere. Several were cracked as if they fell from a great height. They lined the window-sill; a few were sticking out of the soil in a planter.
Merciful Princesses! He looked at the bottles. Dr. Ocsid’s Chocolate Milk Delivery? Never heard of the joint. They must deal in bulk. Red applied a scientific mind towards analyzing the scene. From the fall it looks like they would’ve completely covered up the door with room to spare; that’s a terrible way to deliver milk. Would’ve crashed everywhere as soon as the door opened. He smiled. Maybe that’s for the best; she’d never keep her figure drinking all this milk. I’d find another company anyway; this is pure chaos.
He suddenly remembered the errand that brought him here. Red stepped over piles of broken glass to knock on the door. He was met by darkness and silence. By the fourth knock he noticed the note left nailed to the door. He peered close to read it in the darkness.
Oh, no. He gritted his teeth. This is not going to happen.
The two figures walked across the wooden platform. The younger one leaned pensively against the schedule board. The adult of the pair walked up to the ticket booth. A dark blue pony with a checklist for a cutie mark regarded her impassively.
“We got the midnight train left, miss. Where are you going to?”
The exhausted small town mare from Ponyville passed her bits across the counter.
“Anywhere.”
Next Chapter: Even Rocky had a Montage!
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Oh Celestia.... Even I know the song that you're referencing at the end! Dont know the name..but I think it was by Journey.
Hold on, I'll check my cd's. Yeah, it's by Journey. The title of the song is worn of the disc though.
Alright lets get the awkward part out of the way first...
And sorry of any of those were false alarms, not having English as my native language sometimes makes me miss out on some of the more advanced stuff and mistake it for a.... well... mistake.
"I -CAN- all the way from Cherry Lawn in Ponyville to teach you." -can- was supposed to be -came- ?
“That’s what old myths are all about all about, class; clopping and killing.” one too many 'all abouts'
"It was the pony with the singing canary cutie mark she had -SCENE- in the market one day." you meant -seen-, right?
Now, sorry for the grammar Nazi thing, really dislike pointing stuff out like this
Now that that's dealt with, may I say how great the fic is and that I enjoy every single bit of it?
And that your Screwball characterization is simply fascinating
42690
Nope, you're right on all accounts and fixes have been made. Thanks!
Don't think you can hid that "hot for teacher" reference from me!
Holy... A Journy referance and a Talking Heads one... This is vastlly becomeing one of my favorate fics!
FOR THOSE WHO DONT UNDERSTAND THE REFERENCE:
Just a small town girl
Livin' in a lonely world
She took the midnight train goin' anywhere
Just a city boy
Born and raised in south Detroit
He took the midnight train goin' anywhere
A singer in a smoky room
A smell of wine and cheap perfume
For a smile they can share the night
It goes on and on and on and on
Strangers waiting
Up and down the boulevard
Their shadows searching in the night
Streetlight people
Living just to find emotion
Hiding somewhere in the night
Working hard to get my fill
[- From :http://www.elyrics.net/read/j/journey-lyrics/don_t-stop-believin_-lyrics.html -]
Everybody wants a thrill
Payin' anything to roll the dice just one more time
Some will win, some will lose
Some were born to sing the blues
Oh, the movie never ends
It goes on and on and on and on
Strangers waiting
Up and down the boulevard
Their shadows searching in the night
Streetlight people
Living just to find emotion
Hiding somewhere in the night
Don't stop believin'
Hold on to that feelin'
Streetlight people
Don't stop believin'
Hold on
Streetlight people
Don't stop believin'
Hold on to that feelin'
Streetlight people
o and great chapter, this is easily my fave oc fic
Dr. Ocsid? I see what you did there.
aaarg, I only know the title of 2 of the songs, and one of them is for chapter 6 which isnt released yet
, why is it contest always have to be about something I don't know anything about, next time let's try video game references, ok? 
(interesting fic btw, enjoyin the read thus far)
42938
Don't forget, if something looks like a song lyric throw it into Google; you may find out its lyrics!
Fallout Equestria references to the max. :D
You rule.
Loving this story so far. It had me laughing the whole time but when I hit the Fallout: Equestria reference I nearly died. Calamity is the best companion. And a good karma fillyfooling techy unicorn?
So much win. Glare is hilarious and kind of adorable too with his well meaning destructiveness. Can't wait for the next update.
-ahem- SPOILER ALERT BELOW!
Dr. Oscid...DISCORD! Granted its so obvious maybed I shouldn;t spoiler mark.
Probably won't get most of the song refs, but definitely spotted the Fallout: Equestria refs this chapter!
And seriously...Placeholder: Buck to the head, tossed in closet, preferably a basement one...
No Cheerile, don't give up!
Dont stop believin Cheerilee!
Hold on to the feelin that you can get through to them!
The Luna Armor that your referencing is Luna's skeleton that the Alicorn was wearing near Luna's room isn't it? I dont think that there was any armor in Fallout 3 that was alignment dependent. BTW I love that you made Little Pip the Lone Wanderer in here. I still cant believe that Kkat gave FOE:Puppy Smiles a small blessing by making the Rock of Destiny official.
42961
You sure about that?
43128
Yeah, I tried to think what would be the vilest piece of equipment a 13-year-old playing Fallout Equestria would wear and had to go to the Canterlot chapter.
Oh, and to Sebiale and everyone who liked the sisters; not only am I hoping to have them make another appearance, I streamed out over 1000 words and whole scenes for a Celestia fic ; that WILL happen at some point.
By the way, so far best message I got had seven song references. That's the current number to beat! I know the chapter headers are easy, but remember that the story has plenty in it!
Bow nownow nownownownow, Bow nownow nownownownow ping ping. PRESSURE! PRESSIN' DOWN ON ME, PRESSIN' DOWN ON YOU!
These puns are hilarious. keep doing this
HAHA! I see what you did there with the the milk delivery service, quite clever.
Is its headquarters in Canterlots Statue garden?
42842
Damn, somepony beat me to it.
I started reading this because I found picture for this story on Equestria Daily funny. Now I want more.
BTW, I had a similar idea after Lesson 0, with Twilight getting reassigned as a teacher in magic kindergarten and dealing with 20 or so equivalents to CMC who can't control their magic to boot.
There is a book "everything I need to know I learned at the kindergarten" IRL that would make a good basis for some stories.
Oh, and I liked Fallout Equestria references.
Please, make a refrence to Another Brick in The Wall Pt. 2 by Pink Floyd.
It would fit this story so well.
Oh my gosh! I am totally digging this story- Every last bit of it! I'm so excited to read the rest!
As a future educator (of English, no less!), I'm sitting here going OH GOD, CHEERILEE, GIRL, I FEEL YOU and sobbing quietly in hysterics into a dramatic kerchief. She's my favorite, and you write her spectacularly!
...Er, Sorry. I'm a bit of an ~*emotional reader*~. Absolutely positively lookin' forward to the rest of this!
Thanks so, so much!
43961
A lot of the stuff is based on what goes on in my school. REMEMBER THAT READING SETUP= two alternating students reading sitting back-to-back while the class follows (individually or in pairs). My Language Arts friend showed it to me and it worked great when I covered "They're Made Out of Meat" in my astrophysics elective. 
Glad to hear it Shel.
Mesaage me if you ever need teaching advice!
1. The Fallout Equestria references are great! (also is Red Glare a reference to Red Eye or just a coincidence?)
2. "I haven't done that since collage" nearly shit my pants at that part you magnificent bastard, keep up the good work.
44084
I admit its a coincidence, but I picked Red Glare for the "rockets bursting" reference.
43167
Did I lose points for guesses that were just me trying too hard?
now I'm wondering how many I got right
44175
I'm keeping the tally quiet until I announce a winner. Remember, everyone, current high score is seven!
If you want to win, you have to find the hidden references inside the chapters, not just their titles. Good luck!
No, you don;t lose points for wrong answers!
Well, I caught the "Hot For Teacher" refrence.
37949
I'd like to cash that one in right now. One ticket for Cheerilee to see a Sonic Rainboom from her train, preferably when the train reaches the darkest point on its trip.
AND THEN THE MONTAGE BEGINS.
midnight train goin' aaaaaaaaanyyyyyyyyyyywheeeeeeeeere
And here's to hoping the "Artist" will be a recurring thing
Seriously, I laughed the hardest at those
Hello,
This is really nice ! I was amazed at how you have depicted, somewhat, a teacher mindset. It all seems just right, the passion, the ambition and the optimism; and wondered how you could do it this well.
Then, I learned you are a teacher.. But honestly, that's still very nice and could even inspire me in my choice between research or education. Even though, mathematics have less fun way of teaching than literature.. Compared to those you describe here.
My only disappointment is that the shipping isn't CheriTwi.. Anyway, I really enjoy this and eagerly wait for the next chapters, thank you !
Klice
P.s. I feel so bad for all the mistakes I could have made in this text; now that I know you're a teacher.. hehe
P.p.s. Sorry if I somewhat pollute the comments with this, but I didn't find a way to PM you :D
49764
He teaches science, not grammar, and mine isn't so wonderful either. I have been advising him to get a few grammar nazi pre-readers. But we take no offense to being advised of errors and will fix them asap! Also, next chapter should be up within a day or two.
I haven’t done that since college.
Go on
Anyhoof great story, I love all the little referances, subplots, and puns.
You sir win a Internet
Dr. Oscid.
Well played.
Just a small town mare
I see what you did there
Livin' in a lonely world
She took the midnight train goin anywhere
Take my bits sir!
I'm loving this story, but the end of this chapter made Cheerilee seem really weak to me. One bad encounter with a parent and all her resolve just evaporates? I'd have preferred to see her absorb a lot more abuse before she cracked, like if Lookout sent a pack of cronies to complain about Cheerilee and she failed to get any support from the rest of the parents, suggesting that nobody cared.
Dr. Oscid's Chocolate Milk Delivery? Merciful darigolds! I don't know why I'm in the habit of reading all unfamiliar names backwards (probably has something to do with Harry Potter) but that's a thinly-disguised concern!
Loving this story!
Can't wait to read more!
Dr. Oscid's ..... Discord's :D
Hey, you've got another future English teacher lookin' through your archives, here. (And I'm seriously wishing I had the courage to present this to my professors as some sort of suggested reading supplement to the coursework. Your stuff really is excellent.)
I've got a question about Cheerilee's "back-to-back reading" thing. In the prehistoric comments above, you mentioned that you've used that yourself. What's the benefit to it? Beyond putting two students on the spot in front of their peers, I'm don't really get how it would help 'em learn. It seems a lot like round-robin reading, which, according to my professors at least, isn't an optimal way to get students invested in the reading. What am I missing?
Hrm. Maybe I should be writing this as a PM, since it's been a few months since the last comment on this chapter... nahhhh.
I know that reference!
SHE TOOK THE MIDNIGHT TRAIN GOING ANYWHERE!
Journey Moments FTW?
As always, Paleo, your stories have me giggling nigh constantly. The fact that your writing is as heavily laden with references as my own makes me feel a lot better about my fiction as well. Good show.
And if I had to guess, I would have imagined that Screwball would have given anything to throw the dice just one more timedl.dropbox.com/u/31471793/FiMFiction/discord.png .
“Excellent shot with the mashed potatoes, Riversift! I expect the essay of trajectory and Neighton’s Laws on my desk by tomorrow.”
That reminds me of my Physics teacher so much, I don't even know why though. My physics teacher is 58, gets incredibly angry if we don't put the effort in, makes loads of raunchy and racist jokes and has stopped 3 armed robberies, one involving chasing a man with knife down a street before tackling him to the ground. How this relates to Red Glare, I don't know, but it just does.
If I have this right, the references (the ones that I did catch) were Don't Stop Believing, Fallout: Equestria board game and The Monkey's Paw.
Don't stop Believing! ... Sorry, just had to.
Ah, the wonders of mythology. And the wonders of getting a room full of rowdy teenagers to pay attention.
Wait wait wait. What I'm getting is something about that alicorn wearing Luna's skull and armor. Somebody please tell me I'm wrong and it makes more sense.
And no way the Luna armor is worth not having "Deadshot" Calamity in your party.
I'm sure none of your students are that bad. Unenthused about learning, yes, but surely not killers?
Is this a standard trick in the secret Teacher Operations Manual? I distinctly remember my primary school teacher (successfully) getting our attention with a similar method...
Well I guess miner ponies do know their shiny rocks. Somepony has been paying attention in geology class!
(Or was that dragon cuisine studies?
)
Errr...
(Nice to see they have a solid foundation in home economics though.)
You just got to know how to get their attention.
Reminds me of the "Literature of Middle Europe" class I took. The teacher decided that the best way to keep the attention of us rowdy students was to have us read the choicest ribald and bawdy literature 14 century Europe had to offer. It certainly worked. Stories that use the phrase "she had two tits like a pile of cow manure" and have an entire chapter dedicated to serious discussion as to what is the best material to wipe your arse with (live goose naturally) are quite memorable.
Seriously though, 4-chan has nothing on our 1300's great-grandparents.
Best middle European history class ever.
In my mind Screwball is bellowing this out Brian Blessed style.
Blimey.
Given the gruesome fulfilment of the first wish and the hazardous work the Old Canterlotians engage in this may end up too close to home.
We have all done stupid things we have come to regret. It is especially easy at that age when you are curious and surrounded by a group of openly minded friends... Funny how those things always seemed like such a good idea at the time, but in hindsight were unmitigated disasters.
The espresso Jello shots did not work out for me either.
I think the gig's up Red XD.
I really love Screwball in this chapter. I'm glad she made friends, and her Seaponies and Sepulchures scene was awesome XD.
I had more to say, but I lost it when the site went down :P.
Ouch.
I know Cheerilee's gritting her teeth and pushing through here, and I should probably take her as a role models, but still: ouch.
Good character development.
Gee Discord, give it a break already!
I just knew this line sounded odd coming from Cheerilee. Thankyou Google.
Red, run man, you've got to stop her! This school needs Cheerilee!