I sat in the older foal's area, watching them while the other new workers prepared their food. "Ben- Ben- Ben!" A golden maned filly ran over. "Ben...hi."

"Hey sweetie, what's up?" I answered, setting down my magazine and leaning down to her.

The golden maned filly just stared at me. "You're pretty!" She spouted oddly before running off. I was left scratching my head as she bolted off.

"Huh...well that was--" I was stopped as a terrible scream broke the silence.

"Ooooowwwwie!" A foal screamed before bawling loudly. I ran over, grabbing the first aid kit and finding a colt with a cut on his forehead. He was sobbing as he held his hoof to the small cut.

I ducked down next to him and pulled his hoof away. "Scotch!" I moved his mane out of the way and started to clean the cut. "Scotch what happened!?"

"Oleander pushed him off the table!" A grey maned filly ran over and started yelling. "She pushed him off and ran away!"

I put a bandage on Scotch's head and picked him up, rubbing his cut as he curled up in my arms. I knelt down to the grey maned filly. "Lantana, where is she?" I asked calmly, but with fire behind my words. "I need to talk with her."

Lantana was shocked. "Ben...you're...you're being scary...is she in trouble?"

"Big, big trouble. But you did good, you do good." I patted her head as I cradled the softly sobbing colt. Lantana nervously accepted my petting and backed away.

She looked away and started sneaking away. "Okay...I...she ran into the library." Lantana started running away. "Please don't tell her I told!"

I stood up and turned to the Library. I carried the slightly injured colt with me as I searched up and down the bookshelves for the rouge filly. Eventually I spotted a bright blue mane sticking out of a dictionary. I walked slowly over and stared down at the hiding filly. "Oleander...put the book down."

Oleander pretended not to hear, prompting me to pull the book away from her. She stared at the floor as I set the heavy book down. I stared her down until she stood. "Am I--"

"Yes. Big trouble." I leaned down and picked her up by the scruff of the neck. "Big, big trouble." I carried the already mournful filly back into the main room and set Scotch down.

He finished crying and sat watching me as I sat down with Oleander. "Ben...it still hurts."

I put Oleander across my knee and pointed to the door to the infant's area. "Find Foxglove, tell her you hit your head, okay buddy?"

Scotch wiped his face and walked slowly off. "Okay...thank you." He walked off, leaving me and the growing crowd of foals to the business at hand.

I let out a sharp whistle, calling every foal in the room to me. Before too long a crowd of ten young lives surrounded me. "Kids...Oleander pushed Scotch off a table...he started bleeding."

The miniature crowd gasped, quickly talking amongst themselves as I adjusted the soon to be punished filly. "Now normally I would just send you all on your way, but Oleander did it on purpose."

"He pushed me!" She yelled, trying to get free. "He pushed me so I pushed him!"

"Then why were you hiding?" I asked as I flipped the filly's tail up. "Huh?"

Oleander whimpered as I got ready. "He did it first!"

"Maybe, but you shouldn't ever hurt anybody else." I reeled my hand back, bringing it forward and giving the filly a harsh slap on the ass. The room went dead still as I continued to paddle the filly's backside. After maybe thirty seconds of decent paddling I set her down.

She fell to her haunches, quickly standing up and starting to cry. "You hit me!" She screamed as she stood sadly in front of me. "It hurts!"

"Are you gonna push anypony again?"

She took a moment to realize what I meant and nodded furiously. "No, no, no no no!"

"Good." I crossed my arms and pointed her to the door with my socked foot. "Now go apologize."

Oleander snuffled quietly and limped off. Her flank was reddened as she covered herself with her tail. The crowd of foals was absolutely terrified. It was as if they just witnessed an execution. "Kids...you hurt somepony, you get a spanking, got it?" The crowd just mumbled as I stood up. "Got it?"

"Yes Ben!" They yelled in unison.

"Good. Now who's hungry?" I started corralling the mini horses towards the dining area. I held the door for them as they sourly walked into the room. I watched as Scotch and Oleander joined the herd, Oleander holding a pillow as she walked.

"Ben...I need to talk to you, now." Foxglove's voice croaked nervously. "Like right now."

I walked towards her, ducking into the nursery and closing the door behind me. "This is about the kids right."

"Ben...did you hit Oleander?"

"I spanked her, yes." I crossed my arms defensively. "I didn't hit her."

"That's not what she said!" Foxglove yelped as she ran over and put her hooves on my shirt. "Ben, if it gets out you hit a foal--"

"Spanking is not hitting...."

Foxglove pushed off me. "Okay then...what's spanking?"

I put my hands up and closed my eyes. "Wait...what?"

"She said you hit her, you're saying you spanked her, so what's the difference?!" She demanded with a stomp of her hoof. "Ben you can't--"

I cut her off. "You don't know what spanking is?"

"No...so you gonna--"

"Really? You've never spanked a kid? You've worked with them a long time, but--" I shook my head. "Alright...you take your hand- oh...I guess...that does make sense." I held my hand up flat. "Okay, flat, bare, hand."

"Right...you look like you're gonna slap me."

I shook my head. "Open hand, you give their backside a quick smack. Not hard, but enough to sting."

"So you hit her...that's not okay--"

I found a seat and sat back. "Foxglove...come here."

Foxglove glared at me. "You're gonna hit me? That's--"

"Just do it...."

Foxglove took a deep breath and walked over. "You hit me and--" I cut her off and picked her up, spinning her around and putting her across my lap. "What the--" She stopped dead as I filpped up her tail and gave her a testing slap. "You pervert! You did that to a--" She stopped dead as I slapped her flank in scale to how I would disiplin a foal. "Ow! Be- Ow!" Foxglove stopped dead as I paddled her. "Ben sto--" She stopped a final time and let me finish with a final tap. "Ow...Ben...ow." She sounded hurt as I set her down. "You did that to a filly?"

"I did that, made sure she knew why, and made her go apologize."

Foxglove tried to sit, quickly jumping up as the pain in her flank became apparent. "Owwww! Dear Luna, Ben, that's- ow...."

I shrugged. "Hurts don't it?"

"Yes!" Foxglove yelled as she rubbed her flank. "It hurts a lot!"

"It'll last a few minutes, it gets the point across, and it's only for a few minutes." Foxglove stared unconvinced. "You want me to prove it works!? Come on." I picked her up and carried her to where the foals were eating.

"Scotch!?" I called out. "Scotch can I talk to you?"

A ginger colt walked over slowly. "Yeah?"

"How's Oleander, she bug you?"

He rubbed his head. "No."

"Did she apologize?" He nodded. "Did she sound like she meant it?"

Scotch tapped his hooves on the ground. "She sounded sad."

I set Foxglove down and shooed Scotch. I walked her to the blue maned filly as she adjusted herself on her butt pillow. "Oleander."

She perked up, folding her ears as she turned around. "Y-yes?"

"You okay?" I asked calmly, a bit of sugar to my voice.

She looked at her lunch. "Yeah...sorry."

"I know sweetie...I'm sorry too, but you can't be pushing each other, Scotch got hurt and only bad fillies hurt ponies." I leaned next to her. "Bad fillies get spanked, are you a bad filly?"

Oleander shook her head. "No! I'm a good filly, I promise."

I nodded thankfully. "Good, good fillies get rewards." I backed up and went into the kitchen. I found a sweetie and brought it to her. I set it down on her plate. "You apologized, and you meant it." I rubbed her head as she stared at the wrapped sweet on her plate. I turned to the gawking crowd. "Remember kids, good foals get rewards, bad foals get spanked. Okay?"

The room mumbled their responses as I lead Foxglove out. She stopped me when we were along. "Okay...but...I still don't like it." She shook her head. "Putting your hand on a foal...it doesn't feel right."

I shrugged. "Odds are I won't have to do it again. She got the short end of the stick being first, but now whenever they're misbehaving I have an ace in the hole." I nodded curtly. "Just trust me."

Foxglove scratched her head. "I do trust you...I hired you, but it was...I don't- Just be careful Ben."

I rolled my eyes. "It's not for everyone. Some people think it screws with kids, but it's about how you use it." I scratched my face. "I'm not planning to go around swatting the foals about, but if somebody starts bleeding I'm gonna have to step in."

"I- fine...you're an adult...I signed off on the adoption forms for Wayne...."

I let my arms fall to my sides. "Uh huh, now let me ask something. Your butt still hurt?"

Foxglove went stiff, feeling around her backside. "I- alright...fine, you can stop. I get it."

"Oh no you don't...remember what I said about bad fillies?" I put my arm around her neck. "And you're usually quite a naughty filly."

"I uh...Ben...that's a joke right...right...Ben?" Foxglove sputtered as I moved her towards the bathroom. "Ben...Ben stop...Ben!" I scooped her up and carried her into the bathroom. A quick bout of light domination and spanking and my day was complete.

Foxglove fixed her mane in the mirror as I checked the door. "Ben...we're gonna get fired like this."

"Eh...worth it."

Foxglove turned to me. "Eh, really? I mean, I agree, totally worth it. But you could show some emotion."

"I did show emotion...put all that emotion into you."

"That was lame." Foxglove scrunched her muzzle up and turned away. "We have work to do...."