> Mute Kitten
>  by Comrade Bagel Muffin
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> Learning to Meow
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Midnight, a deep blue unicorn with a purple mane, yawned as her pipbuck's alarm woke her from her second mid afternoon nap, which like the other nine scheduled naps, was tied for most important nap of the day. She looked over her schedule, she was free for the next seven days, and given her filly was out trying to find out why her body pillows hadn't come in yet, she really didn't have anything else to focus on except the task at hoof. A young mare had wondered into their stable and all the normal methods to helping her weren't going anywhere. The poor thing was one of slaves that had the misfortune of being sent to Fillydelphia. She was so hurt the poor thing didn't even talk, she just used her notebook to communicate.
Fortunately Midnight had, after a couple of well planned naps come up with a genius idea, while the mare, Omnituens or Omni for short didn't talk she did occasionally make noises little squees of excitement, or groans of sadness or exasperation. These were small and normally didn't even evolve her opening her mouth, but it was break in the trauma that might be exploited. So the idea was to get her to make a noise that would require her to open her mouth and move her lips. It was to this end that the mare had been given kitty ears, small soft kitty paw slippers and even a kitty tail. Okay so not all of this was necessarily for Omni, but the mare was humoring the overmare.
"Good afternoon Omni," Midnight said looking over at were omni was sleeping. Omni had opted that if it was worth trying it was worth giving it her all so she had a pony sized cat bed to sleep in. "Did the rest help you?" Omni just looked at her with the same unsearchable aloofness of a cat looking at a door unsure of whether or not it will go out or stay in. "Maybe a bit to in character."
Omni smiled an walked over to her on her knees. she made a soft happy squee noise nuzzling one of Midnight's hindlegs. Midnight leaned down and scratched behind her ear getting the closest thing to a purr that a pony was able to do.
"Not that getting into character is a bad thing." She smiled. "Though if you were this good of an actor a dog would have been better you'd likely have been barking by now." She scratched behind Omni's ear. In response the white unicorn pushed up against her. "Could you try giving me a meow or nyaa?" Midnight asked Omni continued to do her best imitation of a purr, but nothing else. "It's okay foal steps." Midnight opened the drawer of her desk and pulled out a small laser pointer floating it onto her desk, followed by several other cat toys. To say that she was prepared for cat pet play wouldn't be an understatement, though clearly it was necessary. Because here was a pony playing a cat so naturally it was reasonable. Yep nothing weird about this.
Omni watched with wide eyes at the myriad of things being put on the table. "Let's see if some play will help you learn again how to speak." Midnight smiled at Omni. "You make noises so cat noises are okay." Omni nodded, but Midnight knew that just because she gave her permission, didn't mean the years of programming and abuse were going to be overridden, still though if she could make noises with her throat she might be convinced to make noises with her mouth, and animal noises weren't words. She just had to get her feeling safe enough to try. She picked up the laser pointer and pointed it at the ground were the kittycorn would see it and turned it on.
Omni's eyes narrowed in and she jumped away from Midnight and pounced on the little red dot. Midnight moved the red dot to the wall Omni pounced again following the light on the ground, stomping on it with her kitty-pawed slippers. Midnight smirked moving the the light, and quickly cut it off as Omni stomped on it with both of her forehooves shacking her flank she lifter her paws. Her head cocked to the side as the light was gone.
Midnight jingled a small ball with a bell in it, and Omni's head jerked up in full alertness. Midnight rolled the ball. Omni jumped chasing the ball bouncing it with her hooves as she tried grasp it. She chased the ball around the room with a near endless amount of amusement form it until she finally got it. She picked it up in her mouth and proudly walked back to Midnight and dropped the ball in her lap like a cat bringing it's owner a dead mouse.
"Good kitty!" Midnight scratched behind Omni's ears and squeezed her cheeks together. "You are you're the good kitty yes you are." Omni again did her best imitation of a purr before rolling on her back and put her hooves to her face like a cat begging for belly rubs. Midnight indulges her and give her some belly rubs. Omni softly bites her hoof. "I got a treat for the good kitty do you want one?" She asked. Omni purred extra loudly.
"Here you go." She pulled a strange cube out of her drawer. Or Stable's chef came up with this after seeing Luna in a dream in his first post-breakfast nap. It's created to taste like the best thing you've ever had. Go get it girl." She tosses the little cube. Omni runs after it, pounces on it and quickly eats it off the floor. Her eyes grow wide the Overmare was right it was the best thing she'd ever had. She looks back at Midnight with big pleading eyes. "You want more?" Omni purrs and rubs up against her. "Okay for a trick can you meow?"
"Nyaa!" Omni says with her pawed hooves up to her face. Midnight gasps.
"Good girl!" She gives Omni another treat.