MLP Short Shories #2

Thestral Face (Drama/Slice Of Life/Thriller)

Nightmare Night has an interesting effect on ponies.
For Flash Sentry, he seems to lose some common sense.
=Bat Ponies Are Scary=

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Bat Ponies Are Scary
Author's Note:
I probably could have done better.
Meh.
Flash Sentry was groaning loudly.
As was tradition.
"You know, whining about it isn't going to change things." His partner replied neutrally, the other pegasi having his head skyward in thought.
"Are you sure? Didn't Sky Song do the same thing last year?" Flash insisted, having to raise his voice slightly over the crowd of ponies that the duo were navigating through, the unusual swell of bodies a different sight than what was normally expected this time of day.
"I think he actually had to get his stomach pumped. Something about his daughter wanted to be a candy maker or something. Guess it didn't work out too well." Despite Standout not attempting to sound humorous, the dry way he spoke caused Flash to grin for a moment despite his mood, lightening the atmosphere around the two.
"Still got out of it though, didn't he?" The orange pegasus smirked, raising an eyebrow at his partner.
"Supposedly his last words had been 'worth it' before the medics carried him off." Standout's eyes briefly flicked toward Flash, their blank look almost questioning.
Almost.
"You planning on something similar?" He asked, the pegasus moving just a tad closer to the other pony as the crowd around them became just a somewhat thicker, the throng almost constricting before a side street up ahead relieved some of the flow.
Flash looked up, his eyes immediately landing on the dozens of banners and streamers that crisscrossed the rooftops above them, the dark black patches of color standing out well with brighter oranges and reds that intermixed to form various depictions of spooky faces and images that set imaginations of fillies and colts alike running wild.
Honestly, if he was being truthful, Flash didn't hate Nightmare Night.
He hated Arbor day.
With a passion.
But that was a different story.
No, Flash Sentry didn't have a problem with Nightmare Night per say. Honestly, when you got right down to it, it was a rather nice shift down from the normal stoic and straightforward atmosphere the royal guard usually had, the stallions stationed at the front gates even supplied with a fat helping of candy for any foals that happened to pass by.
Because, really, it wasn't like foals were going to pass by the castle gates.
For candy.
Supplied by the crown.
That wasn't a healthy alternative some ponies had decided to give out.
Because really, that's what children wanted.
Truly.
Reports indicated even one year a colt was seen dragging off a chocolate bar by his teeth, the candy several times larger than the young pony was.
And there was also simply slanderous rumors going around that the guards charged with giving out the candy were happening to stick their hooves in the candy jar.
Simply outrageous.
No, if anything, Nightmare Night was a rare occasion for the normally prim and proper city to let lose for a few days, the crown, the guard, the aristocratic, hell even the nobility joined in on the festivities.
With the holiday having remote influence in the larger cities and more appreciated in the smaller backwater towns of Equestria, it quickly grew in popularity following the recent return of Princess Luna, the alicorn all but declaring it her own.
This in turn, seemed to cause a wave of new interest in the celebration, more and more ponies going out of their way to set the mood in their towns, a sort of unspoken rivalry beginning to pop up from house to house, street to street, and city to city.
So of course, Canterlot had to get in on the action.
From immaculate trimmed lawns turned into spooky graveyards to hedgerows covered in the thickest spider webs, Nightmare Night was the one holiday were the nobility actually wanted people to visit them.
And it was in no way another excuse to one up each other in those petty contests that only rich ponies like them cared about.
Really, the holiday was for the children! Perish the thought.
On that note, Flash made a mental note to visit that guy Fancy Pants' house after his shift. He always gave out the best stuff, though his joke about how brave he looked in that guard armor lost its humor after about five seconds.
Two years ago.
And that was what brought Flash full circle to the reason he was in his mood in the first place.
His shift tomorrow night.
On Nightmare Night.
At night.
The night many claimed that if you ended up surviving, you would be remembered for forever immortal.
Or so the legends say.
"I'm thinking of bruising my wing. Think that will get me out?" Flash replied, the deep tan pony next to him humming in thought.
"Unlikely. I heard last year they had a guy with two broken forelegs managing the mess hall. Cast and all."
Flash grimaced.
"I heard the same thing, though I thought it was the hind?" His partner could only shrug, his disinterested look cast forward as he walked.
"Wanna trade with me? I'll make it up to you?" The orange pegasus grinned sheepishly at Standout, who immediately turned a piercing stare at his co-patriot, his grey eyes peering into Flash's soul.
The private began to sweat underneath his golden armor as the gaze seemed to see all the misdeeds the pony had done.
That time he stole a jar of pickles from the store.
That time he had spilled armor polish in the barracks and in his attempt to clean it up blamed it on the janitor.
The ninety year old two weeks from retirement janitor.
That time he was worst pony.
Standout's look couldn't have lasted more than a few moments, the other pony returning his attention back ahead and giving Flash a small breather before he decided to speak.
"They put super-glue inside all the morning shifts helmets." Standout stated blankly.
Flash blinked.
'That doesn't sound so bad."
"They added extra strength itching powder to the glue. The screams could be heard halfway across the castle. The sergeant on duty found most of the recruits curled up on the floor, passed out."
The color on Flash's face drained instantly.
"And no one had pranked them beforehand? I thought we weren't supposed to fire the first shot!"
"Guess they're upping their 'low key' pranks." Standout shrugged.
"Celestia why."
And this, was the reason Flash had been groaning. Because, come Nightmare Night and the days preceding and proceeding it, the night guard went on an all out prank war with the day guards.
Originally, it had started out as a simple exercise in relieving tensions between thestrals and other ponies after the bad blood with the whole nightmare moon incident.
It had worked out pretty well in theory, everyone throws a couple of light hearted pranks at one another and everyone gets a few laughs out of it.
It was supposed to be that way.
Instead, it turned into a slaughter.
Figuratively of course.
During the first year, the pranks had barely occurred on the first day, no worse than missing toilet paper in bathroom stalls with a note saying 'Where is your princess now?". Simple things. Nothing overly excessive.
Then someone had got the brilliant idea to place a whoopee cushion underneath the night guard captains' seat at the mess hall. One would think the laid back, snarky, and smooth talking mare could take a joke or two right?
Ha ha-WRONG.
They should have known something was up when the mare let the whoopee cushion complete its long exhale, the entire time the remaining day guard from the earlier shift trying to hold back their laugher.
And failing.
They should have known when her blank expression didn't change throughout the event, even when she pushed away from the table with a metallic screech, her metal stool scraping against the floor.
They should have known when the other thestrals around her didn't say a word as she calmly exited the mess hall, leaving behind the snickering day guard stallions.
Well, they knew next morning.
They found all their armor covered in glitter.
Pink glitter.
With little flowery cut outs.
That wouldn't come off.
It took the new captain weeks to find a cleaner that would remove it all. Oh Celestia those weeks. Flash shivered.
Now, it was an unspoken rule to leave the night guard alone, and hopefully, hopefully, they would keep their pranks at a minimum.
So far this year, that looked to be a mute point.
But that wasn't the worst part out of all the mess. No.
You see, the night guard needed a little bit of extra help in running the palace during Nightmare Night, often because Princess Luna would bring a large entourage of thestrals to the city she was visiting that year, leaving gaps in the ranks.
Gaps that, Princess Celestia, bless her soul, was more than happy to fill with her own ranks.
Some say it's blessing to be hoof picked by the princess.
Others say it's a curse.
Some take a shot because of it.
Flash was planning on hitting the whole bottle.
Because, low and behold, he had been hoof-picked to be on duty with the rest of the night guard.
A night guard made up of thestrals.
Prank pulling thestrals.
The prognosis was not good.
Flash gulped and felt a hard lump go down his throat.
"Heh. Well. I don't know about you, but I'm going down fighting." He didn't stammer at all during that.
Not at all.
"I'll speak at your funeral."
Standout was an ass.
The pegasus felt an unusual feeling of challenge rise up inside him, his mouth moving before his brain could catch up.
"Yeah? Wanna bet I make it through the night untouched?" Flash challenged, sporting a grin. His partner only raised an eyebrow at him.
"Untouched? You're crazy."
The heat built again, and Flash Stalwart Sentry didn't earn his name for nothing. Well, technically he didn't earn it, but semantics.
"I bet you a full round of drinks I can make it out of the castle without so much a hair out of place." He smugly grinned at Standout, who seemed to mull it over.
"And if you come out wearing the princess' socks, I get drinks?" The private momentarily lost his fire, knowing that the other pony consumed an alcohol at a much higher strength and cost than himself, meaning he would be risking more than he would get in return.
Still, backing out now would make him look like a bitch.
And aint nopony callin Flash Sentry a bitch.
"Deal." Flash stopped, jutting out his right hoof at his partner, who after a moment, shook it worryingly.
The two continued walking in silence for a few moments after that, the crowd's background noise keeping things from becoming too awkward.
Eventually, Standout looked over to him.
"So. How are ya gonna do it?"
Flash puffed out his chest, smiling broadly.
"You let me worry about that."
And in truth, Flash was worrying about it.
A lot.
Because this entire thing could end in two ways.
Either come morning he left the castle unscathed.
Or he'd be dead.
Either way, he wasn't paying for drinks.
So basically a win win.