PARCHMENTS
By Ponyman and CandleEyes
With help from: Psyentific and a Lam
Twilight Sparkle paced the foyer of her library home as her mind tried to think of what to do about her current situation. She bit her lip as she glanced over at the empty shelf where the blank scrolls were normally kept. It was bad enough she was going to be late with her report to Celestia, but now she had nothing to write on as well. Spike had tried to get some more, but the scroll shop wouldn't have anymore until Monday. It would be too late by then.
The unicorn felt her eye twitch involuntarily, a nervous tic that appeared when she became overcome with worry. She could feel every strand of her mane stand on end, making her appear as if she had just rolled out of bed. Not that the bags under her eyes would help discredit that theory.
“I have to get this report to Princess Celestia before it's too late! She was lenient the first time, but I don't want to take advantage of her kindness! She might banish me to the Everfree forest!” Twilight pressed her hooves to her snout to stifle a loud gasp of horror that that thought brought. Once she was over it, she placed her hooves back onto the floor and sighed. “Wait a minute! I have magic! Maybe I can make some parchment!”
Twilight closed her eyes and concentrated hard, her horn glowing. Nothing appeared. Frowning, she figured that maybe there was a reason that the magical scrolls directed to the Princess herself couldn't be reproduced by normal means. Didn't want any potential frauds starting any unneeded conflicts. Only those trusted by the royal house were given the magical scrolls to relay messages and matters. Everypony else had to apply in person, or through a designated “middle pony.”
Her wandering eyes fell on the shelves of books. The books she confided in whenever she needed advice. Her magic pulled one particular tome off the shelf, and she opened it and flipped through the pages.
Ponies in the Middle Ages made parchments from animal hide.... Twilight wasn’t thinking straight by this point, and the idea sounded too good to pass up.
“Spike, I’m going out!”
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Fluttershy was humming to herself quietly, feeding a carrot to her pet bunny, Angel. She was interrupted by a knock at her door, and gave him an affectionate little pat on the head before going to answer it.
“H- hello?”
“Oh, hey Fluttershy. Can I come in?”
“Oh! Sure you can, Twilight.” Fluttershy smiled. Her friends always made her feel so happy.
“So, why are you here?”
“Well, see, I have to write a letter to Princess Celestia every week, right?”
“Right.” The pegasus looked around uncomfortably. Hopefully Twilight hadn’t gotten carried away again...
“I- I do have something to write about, don’t worry. I just don’t have any parchment.”
“Do you... need some bits?”
“No... I have money. The problem is, the store is out of parchment, too.”
“Then I’m sorry, Twilight, but I don’t think there’s-”
“Oh, but there is, Fluttershy.”
“Hm?”
Twilight walked over to a window and glanced out. The sun was setting and it would be dark soon. Perfect. She pulled a rag out of her saddlebags and tied it around her face. Then she procured a bottle of chloroform and opened it.
“Um, Twilight? What are you-”
The unicorn pounced and pinned her victim against the floor. “We’re going to make some parchment together, Fluttershy.” She pressed the bottle up against her friend’s nose. Try as she might, she had to breathe eventually. A haze washed over her and Fluttershy passed out.
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Fluttershy awoke in a groggy daze. Her mouth was no longer gagged, but the faint smell of some chemical lingered in her nostrils. Once she was fully aware of her position, she squirmed against the ropes that bound her hooves to the rock. She was on her stomach, her wings forcibly spread out so as not to hinder the process.
“Twilight, what’s going on?” the yellow pegasus cried, her eyes tearing up in fear. The lavender unicorn loomed over her helpless form, a wicked Cheshire smile on her face as her pupils had shrunk to mere dots. Twilight's mane was a frazzled mess and hung in her bloodshot eyes.
“I need to write a report to Celestia....and I need parchments in order to do that....” Twilight stammered, her teeth chattering as she spoke.
“What do you need me for?” Fluttershy asked, hiding her face behind her mane as best she could.
“Your flesh....can be parchment....” Twilight explained, raising her head to show she had a sharp scalpel in her teeth. Before the helpless pegasus could object, a quick and frighteningly painless slice of the blade took one of her wings away. Blood seeped from the wound and Fluttershy cried out when the pain finally registered. With another drop of the blade, the other wing was gone, but this time Fluttershy knew it was coming, and another cry shredded out of her throat.
“Now that those are out of the way, I can begin. Hold still now...” Twilight explained, her voice broken, unhinged. She was nothing like herself, which terrified Fluttershy more than what was happening to her.
The blade bit into Fluttershy’s flank, and the pegasus tried to scream again but found her voice had broken from the last time. All she could do was whimper silently, tears stinging her eyes, as the blade worked its way across her flank. She could feel the burning start as skin was separated from muscle tissue, and thick blood poured out of the ever growing gash. Twilight was delicate in her work, ensuring only minimal tearing and damage.
After what felt like hours, a good portion of flesh had been scraped away from Fluttershy’s flank, her cutie mark removed for obvious reasons, forcing Twilight to have to cut the rest in half to compensate for the hole. For a moment, she felt a knot in her gut when she looked at the weeping form on the rock. But her mind was too far gone to fully register. The damage had been done, and it was only humane to end her suffering. There was still more parchment to harvest.
Tossing what she had acquired so far into a nearby bucket of water and lime to remove any blood and the hair of her coat, Twilight sighed and prepared herself for the next round. The taste of blood still fresh on her lips, so forbidden, and so sweet.
“Twilight...please...you don’t have to do this....” Fluttershy whimpered, her voice rough and broken.
“It’s too late now, Fluttershy. But I appreciate your help nonetheless.” Twilight grinned her unsettling smile and proceeded to the other flank, being as careful as she had been before. The pegasus winced in pain, slowly becoming numb to the assault on her nerves as she felt more blood pour down her leg. Her teeth clenched together as she tried not to scream again, her throat on fire.
“I have to admit, Fluttershy, you skin is so soft.” Twilight observed as she slowly peeled the slab of flesh away from the shiny muscle underneath. This time, she had decided to take more, and the slab continued its detachment across her flank and up her side.
“Twilight....please....”
“You’re making this harder than it has to be, Fluttershy!” Twilight snapped, sadness in her voice, but her twisted smile provided a stark contrast. The unicorn’s mind was a mix of random emotions of both sadness and perverted desire. There was an odd thrill in Twilght’s heart about this whole incident, and the adrenaline rush kept her going despite her second thoughts. It would be too cruel to end it now. At least make sure she is at peace. It’s what Fluttershy would do.
Putting the blade back to work, Twilight began to cut away from the opening in Fluttershy’s side. The scalpel slipped a few times in her teeth, stabbing into the taught muscles that were left naked from the last process. Fluttershy’s hind leg kicked on instinct, causing Twilight to jerk back in surprise.
“Sorry....” Twilight apologized. She didn’t know WHY she apologized, but felt it right to do so anyway.
“It’s okay Twilight.” Fluttershy replied, her voice a whisper. Is she accepting this now?! Twilight thought, her eyes wide in shock. Fluttershy was the kindest pony, even until the bitter end.
Another piece of flesh tore away, but Fluttershy was now at peace with what was going on. It would all be over soon, and her conscience was clear as she knew she helped a friend one last time. It was a twisted thought to be sure, but what else was there to do?
After hours of painstaking work, the now lifeless corpse of Fluttershy lie before Twilight. The unicorn had left her peaceful face intact as a twisted way of memorializing her. She looked so peaceful in her eternal slumber, despite the fact the reset of her body was now bare muscle. Congealed blood pooled all around the rock and down Twilight’s face.
The unicorn glanced around in terror when she realized she had heard a twig snap. Her head spun around to see Sweetie Belle emerging from a bush. A WITNESS! Twilight was horrified. A filly no less! I’ve probably scarred her for life!
“Hey Twilight. What are you doing?” the white unicorn asked, looking at the horrible site with a blank stare.
“Nothing...nothing....ummmm, why?” Twilight’s smile twitched at the edges, her eyes wide.
“Well, Scootaloo was telling me about helping Pinkie with making cupcakes, so I thought that’s what you were doing.” Sweetie Belle replied. “Can I help?”
The lavender unicorn’s smile widened even more, if that was even possible. “Sure, you can help. I need a shovel...”
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Dear Princess Celestia,
Today I learned that the best friends are the ones who are always there for you in times of need, and who sacrifice themselves for you. Those are the friends who trust you and who know you trust them, too. While it may be very tempting to try to do it all yourself, sometimes you need somepony to pull you through and remind you where you’re going. It was such a friend that I came upon today, a friend whom I’ll always remember for her loving tenderness. She’s quite close by me as I write this, and I couldn’t be any more grateful for her help.
Your faithful student,
Twilight Sparkle
P.S. My apologies for the late arrival of this letter. I had some difficulty finding parchment.
Twilight sighed as she teleported the letter to the Princess, hoping she didn’t notice the difference in scroll quality, or any strange odors. The unicorn glanced over to Sweetie Belle, who stood with a blank stare on her face.
“Sweetie Belle, I think we’re out of parchment again.” Twilight smiled.
The filly smiled as well, nodding her head eagerly.
