Anon, The Cuddle Slut: Origins

Avon took a walk around Ponyville. It was for the best really, after all Twilight suggested. You know, after pulling him from the window sill. He assured her he wasn’t actually going to jump but given prior engagements, it was a chance she wasn’t willing to take. And so, a princess mandated stroll it was. Spike offered to join, but Avon declined. He wanted to ruminate on his recent decisions and the situations that got him to this point.

Firstly, and most importantly of all, no drinking. Avon thought to himself. Momma was right to steer me away from that shit. He casually admired the town around him as he walked. He briefly reminisced on when he first came here and everyone had gave him worried, curious stares. Now, for the most part, he was greeted with smiles and waves, like anyone else. He smiled back, offering a smaller, less pronounced wave.

Avon looked behind, to the newest addition to the town: The School of Friendship. It was a recent edition to the town, still under construction. The word around town is that Princess Twilight Sparkle was opening a facility with the intent of spreading friendship to other races around the world. When Avon first heard it, the concept was more than a little concerning. Did this imply that not only was the concept of friendship not innate in pony society, but less so in all the other animal societies? Did this mean that dragons, yaks, and the like we’re generally seen as incapable of making friends?

It was a discussion he had with Spike the few days they got to link up. Spike had used his heritage as a dragon as an example. He told Avon about how Spike’s species had an inherent greed and penchant for isolating themselves, being overall aggressive and prideful. However, Avon questioned if these were really natural traits or if ponies only believed that dragons were naturally aggressive and greedy. For days, the two discussed and had yet to reach a conclusion between the two. With Avon’s knowledge of his people’s history and Spike’s lack of knowledge for his, it was a nice academic exercise for the both of them either way.

One thing the two did conclude was that the Storm King’s sudden invasion of Equestria was the catalyst for the school’s creation. However, Spike went a little further to suggest that Avon’s very arrival to Ponyville was also pivotal to the decision. After all, here was a creature, argued Spike, who appeared suddenly and without reason to their world. When he first arrived, he pushed everyone away and rejected friendship. However, after being given a set of objectives to complete and time to complete them, he slowly grew into a more trusting and more approachable person. Now, that same human that was isolated serves as a wealth of knowledge to a world that was once unknown and distant. In conclusion, argued Spike, Avon had unknowingly served as the test bed for the idea of educating creatures in friendship through similar methods to that of public education.

That damned drake. Avon shook his head with a smile. He was so damn proud of himself when he told me that. Maybe dragons do have an inflated sense of pride! Avon chuckled to himself, reminiscing about that conversation. He caught sight of a schoolhouse ahead of him, coincidentally as he was thinking about the other school. With his thoughts now firmly cemented in education and away from the previous night, he continued his walk towards the school. Who knew what he might find there, if anything at all. It just seemed like as good a place as any to walk toward.

Avon stood at the schoolhouse’s steps, admiring its emptiness. It was a weekend back at home, so he suspected that maybe it was the same here. Or, perhaps the school day had just simply ended. Either way, he didn’t see any of the fillies and colts on the playground nor did he hear anything in the building proper. Curiosity getting the best of him, he slowly peeked his head in.

The single classroom was empty, save for one: Mrs. Cheerilee. She sat at her desk, a pen in her mouth, writing something down. Avon took a guess that she was grading work, although he also guessed that it was very uncomfortable given how she had to do it.

Earth ponies sure drew the short stick. Avon sympathized. He leaned against the door frame, passively watching the mare at work. He knew precious little about Ms. Cheerilee. He had briefly met with her when he was offered to spend a day with the children, the day he met Diamond Tiara. They exchanged a few words, but from those few words, he could tell that she cared for her students.

Enough to struggle at their expense to grade their papers. I mean, it was almost pitiful to look at. The pencil fell from her mouth more than a couple of times. Granted, she also looked deadly tired and uncoordinated, further implied by the cup of coffee left next to her. Avon could feel the rising empathy in his cold heart, so he knocked against the frame of the door. This snapped the mare out of her trance, having her shoot up straight like the pencil in her mouth. She looked to see Avon leaning on the door.

“Oh.” Ms. Cheerilee started, pencil dropping from her mouth. “Hi, Anonymous. I’m surprised you came to visit the schoolhouse, let alone me.”

“Actually, it’s Avon. It’s a long story.” Avon corrected. He pushed himself off the frame and started walking to Cheerilee’s desk. He grabbed a spare chair and attempted to sit. Emphasis on attempted, as the chair was so small, he may as well have just sat on the floor. That’s what happens when you take the chair of a foal about the size of your knee. He set aside the useless chair, instead choosing to sit on the corner of the desk. “Anyway, I was just in the area and thinking about schools.”

“Ah, so you’ve seen the new School of Friendship.” Ms. Cheerilee nodded, grabbing and taking a sip of her mug. “It’s a novel idea. A school based around teaching students important social skills and etiquette.”

“You ever thought about applying to be a teacher there? You know, when it gets built?” Avon has figured that maybe the School of Friendship would serve as a replacement for Ponyville’s Schoolhouse.

Cheerilee shook her head. “Oh, I couldn’t! I mean, who would run this school? This schoolhouse is going nowhere, least of all me.” She picked the pencil back up in her mouth and tried to speak clearly as she did. “I mean, who else will teach the young minds of fillies and colts.”

“A noble profession.” Avon watched as Cheerilee again struggled to grade papers. He bit the inside of his cheek, before speaking again. “Although, it seems like a...challenging one.” Cheerilee looked back up, confused, until she realized the pencil in her mouth.

“Oh, you mean this?” She spat the pencil out onto the desk. She blushed lightly. “Yes, I suppose it can be a little tough. I don’t have a horn after all. It doesn’t help that I feel particularly...unwell today.” She looked away, her cheery smile flattening into a melancholic expression.

“You sick?” Avon asked. Cheerilee opened her mouth to reply, but hesitated briefly.

“...In a way, yes.” She shook her head, smiling once more. “It’s nothing to worry about though! I’ll be fine.” Avon returned a smile, nodding in agreement.

“I bet you will. Still, it looks like that, at least for now, you could use a little help.”

Cheerilee’s eyebrows raised ever so slightly. “A little help? How so?”

“Well, given your...situation, I could offer to grade for you.” Avon showed off his hands, wriggling his fingers. “These little guys can do things you would not believe.”

“I do not doubt that...” She muttered under her breath, watching the fingers as they wiggle. She coughed into a hoof to break her fixation. “I suppose I could use a break. But, you aren’t familiar with the work. How are you going to grade.”

“Well, I meant that I write for you. You just gotta tell me what to write down.” Avon reached for the pencil, then stopped. Remembering where it had been, he reached for the tip of the pencil, cautiously lifting it up. He used his shirt to wipe away the saliva from the eraser’s end. He prepared himself to write, only for Cheerilee to stop him.

“One moment!” Cheerilee exclaimed, before leaving her seat. “I think it’s best for you to sit since you’re doing most of the work.” She offered the chair with a hoof.

“I can’t accept that, teach. Horse or not, you’re still a lady and my mom raised a gentleman. Keep the seat.” Avon returned the gesture, hoping Cheerilee would take her place again. Instead, she looked down, seemingly in thought. When she looked back up, she seemed more nervous than she was a second ago.

“Um, perhaps we can...share the seat?” She asked bashfully, one hoof rubbing against the other. For a second, it was like he was addressing Fluttershy for a second. “T-that is if you want. I don’t want to suggest anything that would make you uncomfortable. We’ve only met a couple times and-“

“Aight.” Avon answered simply. He had to admit, it was a strange request, especially from a teacher he hardly met. However, he was no stranger to ponies sitting on his lap. He took his seat and sat back, allowing for Cheerilee to take her place. Cheerilee was hesitant, standing by the chair with a flushed look about her.

But before Avon could ask if she had second thoughts, she quickly placed a hoof on his leg. Little by little, she slowly climbed herself on his lap. The mare was quite big, but she was able to sit laying on her size, if albeit curled up more than usual. When she was settled, Avon leaned in to get a better view of the papers that laid before him. Cheerilee stiffened, as his head was awfully close to her. In their current position, both were able to comfortably view the desk before them in close proximity.

“Alright, give me the word, teach.” Avon readied his pencil. The assignment turned out to be a book report, asking for the student to give a summary of what they read and what the book had to offer. The first of the papers was for a colt named Pipsqueak. After some more hesitation, Cheerilee spoke up.

“Oh, well, there’s a misspelling right about there.” She pointed with a hoof. “I usually just mark it with an ‘Sp’ as a shorthand.” Avon quickly wrote down the suggested shorthand. As it resulted, his writing arm pressed tighter against Cheerilee, causing her to jump.

“You okay?” Avon asked worriedly. Cheerilee was quick to answer.

“It’s fine! It’s fine.” She said, wiping a bead of sweat. “It’s just been a while since I’ve been this...anyway, there’s another spelling mistake. Pipsqueak is not that great at spelling.” Avon shrugged off her response, deciding it best not to press her. She was tired and potentially sick, as she said.

For a good half hour, the two sat at the desk grading together. Avon functioned as the hand, Cheerilee the brain. With this set up, they had blazed through assignment after assignment in record time. However, Cheerilee could care less about that. While part of her mind remained focused on her job grading her students, another part was taking in every little detail of Avon.

She felt his heartbeat against her back, along with the rise and fall of his chest. In direct contrast, her heart had quickened its pace in a way it hadn’t before. She took note of the touch of the human’s thin hairs and smooth skin against her coat as he wrote on her behalf. She could even feel the warm jets of air that came from his nose as he softly breathed against her neck.

Cheerilee felt as though she was trapped in the arms of a stranger. However, it wasn’t wholly a negative, fearful feeling. It was true that she felt helpless, like at any given second, Avon could just pick her up and carry her to Celestia-knows-where. However, she also felt paradoxically safe, as though nothing would come to harm her, least of all the human. With precious little space between them, it was as if they shared a moment of oneness.

“Yo, Cheerilee. You still with me?” Avon asked for the 3rd time. Cheerilee awoken from her trance with a start. She looked back up at Avon, only turn back away embarrassed.

“I-I’m sorry.” She muttered. “I just...lost my train of thought.” She attempted to sit up straighter, until she felt a hand stroke her mane. The light tugging and gentle touch made her melt within the human’s lap.

“I get it, but I wanted to ask about this.” Avon pointed the eraser tip at the paper he was currently grading. On the paper was a stick figure doodle, one with two arms, two legs and a head, drawn in the margins of the paper. Cheerilee shifted a bit to get a better look.

“What about it?”

“Notice anything odd with your students?”

Cheerilee shock her head. “Can’t say I have. Why-“

Avon flipped the page. On the back was around a dozen similar drawings, each of a human figure in a bunch of different poses. Some were given bizarre poses which demonstrated a clear misunderstanding of human anatomy. Cheerilee’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Oh my.” She slid the paper closer to her to confirm what she was seeing, “That is admittedly peculiar. Perhaps it’s one of the CMC’s handiwork. They were always fond of you.”

“This is Diamond Tiara’s paper.” Avon corrected, flipping the page again to show the name written at the top. “Found similar doodles on Silver Spoon’s paper. I swear, I’m starting to suspect I’m developing a fan club.”

This got a chuckle out of Cheerilee, followed by a sigh of content. She had to admit, the day had taken a surprising turn for the best. She wasn’t in her best of moods and she expected that she’d spend the day alone as she usually had. And yet, here was Avon. He not only offered to stick around on a chance encounter, but even offered to help with her work. Not to mention he gave her the privilege to sit in his lap, a privilege that was reserved for…

Cheerilee sighed. She didn’t want to think negatively, not a time like this. She wanted to enjoy this moment for as long as it lasted. Before-

“That’s the last of ‘em, chief!” Avon exclaimed, stretching his arms and yawning. The yawn transferred to Cheerilee, although she attempted to suppress it.

“Oh, are we?” She looked at the pile that had accumulated in a completed stack. “I hadn’t noticed. I was just so...comfortable.”

“I could tell.” Avon chuckled. “There were a couple times there I thought you were going to fall asleep there. Would’ve been a problem, considering I don’t know where you live.”

The two shared a laugh. For Cheerilee, it was interrupted by the sudden feeling of being lifted and set back down on the floor of the schoolhouse. The floor was a lot colder than she had suspected and the same could be said for the air temperature. She couldn’t remember if the room had always been this cold or if it was just because she was separated from Avon.

“Alright, I’ll get outta your hair.” Avon stood, pushing the chair into the desk. “I’m sure you got a life outside of school, Cheerilee. I’ll leave ya to it.” Avon began walking towards the door, while Cheerilee stood still. Her mood had dropped significantly in such a little amount of time. A part of her almost felt betrayed in a way. Yet, she couldn’t bring herself to really say anything. She never felt this way before. The only comparable feeling was…

“Take care, teach.” Avon gave his farewell, stepping down the stairs. For him, his day had taken a pleasant turn. Although the work itself was not nothing but a chore, it felt nice to be needed and, in turn, helpful. He figured he would head back to his home dimension. There was still studying to be done, chores to do, and responsibilities to uphold.

“Wait!” Cried a voice from behind him. Avon turned with a start, only to find Ms. Cheerilee standing atop the stairs. Once Cheerilee got his attention, she sighed. “Could you, just, wait one moment?”

“Is something the matter?” Avon turned completely, willing to help in any way he could. “Are you too sick to head home alone?” Cheerilee frowned, looking away. She rubbed her foreleg again, with that same bashfulness from before.

“I…” She took a deep breath before resuming. “I heard about what happened last night.”

“What?!” Avon blurted out. “I-I mean, what have you heard?”

“I heard about your...incident.” Cheerilee continued, rubbing the back of her neck. “Rainbow Dash was talking about how you were less of yourself that night.”

Avon turned away for a second. “That snitch!”

“Pinkie was with her. She had talked about how you, ahem, hugged Fluttershy and her.” Cheerilee blushed again. Avon sucked his teeth, rubbing his arm in remembrance.

“Yeeeeah, that wasn’t a proud moment.” Avon thought a little longer, specifically why she brought any of this up. Then, his eyes widened in fear. “Oh my God, wait! Cheerilee, I would NEVER do that to one of your students!”

“I wanted to-what?!” Cheerilee was taken aback.

“I know you saw those doodles but I had nothing to do with them!” Avon frantically continued, closing the distance between them. He got on one knee and held the mare’s hoof in his hand. “I would never even think about drinking around any child, let alone get frisky with them!”

“What?!” Cheerilee repeated, pulling her hoof away. “Avon, no! I didn’t think you would touch my students.” Avon paused, before sighing with relief. He then broke into laughter.

“Oh thank God!” He admitted. “I just got over that night and I was worried I made you think I was some pedo or some shit.”

“Avon, I would never think that!” Cheerilee said seriously, playing a hoof on his chest. “You are a remarkably kind and patient individual. I have never felt as safe in any ponies arms as I have in yours, more so than I have in a long time. And I do mean a long time…” Cheerilee looked away, her eyes scrunched together. Avon’s face grew more concerned.

“Cheerilee?” Avon asked, unsure if he even wants her to continue. That wariness made Cheerilee all the more anxious to say what she wanted, but she swallowed the fear as best she can.

“Anonymous. Er, Avon.” Cheerilee said, avoiding eye contact. She hesitated, then looked directly into his eyes. Her eyes were pleading and sad, which created a pit in Avon’s stomach. “Could...could you cuddle me for the night?”