The Beauty And The Beast - All Magic Comes With A Price

  The Dark One relaxed in a chair of the end of the table where he watched the mare work her way in making him some tea. Of course he could just make some appear, but he liked making her doing it of course. He had left earlier to take care of...business...should he call it, and while he was gone, Fluttershy seemed to have done a great job with dusting the entire castle. He couldn't even find one speck of dust.

  The Dark One was slightly surprised that she did so well, and as a princess too. But it was only dusting, an extremely simple and easy task that anyone could do. He couldn't help but get confused when she wasn't fussing over her fancy dress that was now covered in dust, or complaining about getting dirty, but he guessed she just didn't want to get in trouble, after all, everyone feared him.

  "You've done well deary..." He murmured and Fluttershy who was walking over to the table with a tray in her hooves halted and looked at him. "Now you will dust every day, not the whole castle, but large sections to keep it from getting dusty." He started explaining and Fluttershy placed the tray down and began to fix a cup of tea.

  "Now to list the rest of your chores." He grinned and snapped his fingers and a long scroll appeared that began rolling across the room, making Fluttershy's eyes widen.

  "All of this?" She asked after turning around and slowly picking up the scroll in her hooves. It had many complicated and some what dangerous jobs listed on it that caused her to shiver.

  "Of course, is there a problem with that?" He replied with a tilt of the head and a raised eye brow.

  "N-n-no...its fine but...how will I do all of...this-" She referred to the rest of the scroll that reached the organ. "Every single day?!" She asked, already feeling exhausted.

  "You know I actually have no idea." The Dark One chuckled with a wave of his claw. "You'll just have to try your hardest I guess." He shrugged and Fluttershy opened her mouth to reply but shut it. She didn't want to argue and even if she wanted to, she couldn't out of fear of angering the creature.

  Fluttershy tried to focus on what she had to do and started working on finishing the tea she had prepared for him. The Dark One smiled softly and stood up to walk around the table and stretch his legs from sitting down for a while. He kept catching the mare in his eye and he couldn't help but watch as those soft looking hooves handled the glass of the tea pot and cup so gentle, so delicately as if she feared it would break, and he couldn't help but admire it slightly.

  The Dark One shook his head and smiled slightly. "Oh I almost forgot, aside from that list, you will also have to take care of a few personal things for me." He grinned when she looked up at him. "One, wash the sheets of my chambers. Two, polish it's floors. Three, the windows of course, I can't have dirty windows. OH!" He suddenly chirped and turned to face her. "And skin the foals I hunt! For their flanks..."

  Fluttershy's eyes and mouth widened in horror and she gasped before her hoof bumped and knocked over the tea cup that she was filling, but didn't notice from her shock and dread of his comment. Who would ever do such a thing to poor helpless foals? Fluttershy questioned in her head. She could feel bile rising from her throat at the image his words put in her mind.

  "I-I-I...wh-what!!?" She asked, placing a hoof to her heart as it started racing and Discord laughed.

  "Oh I love the look on your face!" He laughed as he sat back down. "Oh my dear your reactions are priceless." He murmured and Fluttershy looked at him in horror, confusion, and disbelief.

  "You can't be serious...." She whispered and Discord smirked.

  "No...I'm not serious..." He replied and Fluttershy blinked at him, fearing he was playing with her. "That one was a quip." He grinned and Fluttershy stood still for a moment before she let out a relieved breath, panting slightly.

  "Oh thank goodness..." She whispered, placing a hoof on her stomach and trying to calm her heart rate.

  The Dark One smiled and crossed his leg over the other, the ends of his fingers coming together in front of him. "Besides, why would I want foals? I may eat meat and I may be a monster but I would never eat something as disgusting as a foal." He gagged with his tongue sticking out.

  Fluttershy glared at him slightly at how much he seemed to hate foals but she forgot about it when she spotted the tea cup on the floor, the rug covered in it's contents.

  "Oh...I-I'm so sorry..." She whispered and bit her lip in worry when she noticed that the cup had been damaged from the small and sharp pieces on the floor. The Dark One furrowed his eyes brows and peeked over to see what she was apologizing about. "I didn't mean to....you startled me and I dropped the cup...." She whispered, scared to meet his gaze in fear he would punish her.

  Fluttershy picked up the cup and Discord again noticed at how much care she put into holding that piece of glass. Her soft hooves gently caressing the broken part, and some strange part of him wanted to walk over and hold those soft looking hooves.

  "Please don't be angry..." she whimpered as she stood up and showed him the cup. "I-it's only chipped..." She whispered and The Dark One felt slight astonishment at how upset she was just over glass.

  "Well it's just a cup..." He replied, with a raise of his eyes brow shaking his head and his hands out, and Fluttershy finally looked up at him confused before with relief.

  "Oh...okay then...um...I'll just clean this all up then." She whispered and The Dark One watched as she walked away to find something to clean it with. He continued to watch as she came back with a rag and a bottle before she continued to clean up her mess. The Dark One felt a strange sense of pity for the mare, she looked so sad in those teal eyes, and he didn't know why but he felt a strange pull at his chest when she hissed as she cut her hoof slightly on a piece of glass she missed.

  The Dark One shook his head and growled before standing up and walking away to go to his chamber. He didn't like what he was feeling around this mare, and he needed a chance to get away longer. He glared at her as he walked by but stopped when his eyes fell on that chipped cup and his eyes widened.

  The Dark One stared at the cup and felt a memory flash back into his mind as he stared at that damaged cup.

"Look see? It's only chipped!"

  The Dark One felt confused when he felt black tears fill his eyes as he stared at that blasted cup. It reminded him of her.....the one who took care of him when he was lost, when he was in pain, when he was alone...she was there to comfort him. He didn't like feeling like this and he growled louder, wiping his eyes and walking away again.

  "M-master? Where are you going?" Fluttershy asked as she finished cleaning up the mess and was now trying to take care of her cut.

  "That's none of your concern...go to bed." He growled and she jumped in fear at his tone.

  "But, what about your tea?" She asked and squeaked when he turned around with glowing gold eyes.

  "I SAID GO TO BED!" He roared and she cowered. The Dark One panted and quickly turned around, storming out of the room leaving Fluttershy shivering on the floor.

  Fluttershy sniffled and got up, quickly obeying him and going down the hall where her prison was, not wanting to anger him. She felt so confused at the moment. He was being his normal cruel self then suddenly he's yelling out in anger. Was he really upset about the cup? She didn't know and didn't care as she entered her cell and jumped, spinning around as the door closed by itself with a slam.

  Fluttershy wrapped her hooves around herself and slid down against the wall before laying her face in her hooves and crying. She missed him so much....her papa...her friends....why did she have to live with this monster? She wanted so badly to go home, but she couldn't.

Past

  Carrot Top sighed in relief as they finally made it to their new home. Of course she had to pay a price of money to buy the small cottage, but she loved it and the gardens that surrounded it. It was slightly secluded from other houses from trees that went around it, which she liked, they would need to privacy to stay comfortable.

  The smile that was on Carrot's face fell as she glanced down at the colt who looked absolutely exhausted. He has been like this for a full week, and it hurt to see him in such a weak and helpless state. He no longer had that small curious or mischievous smile, he wasn't hopping around playing among the flowers, just standing next to her looking miserable.

  Discord's eyes were still the color gray, but thankfully, the color in his eyes seemed to be returning slowly. Carrot Top sighed and knelt down to the colt who seemed to be slightly shaking from fatigue.

  "Come on Discord...lets get you inside." She whispered tenderly and picked him up, holding his small and somewhat delicate form close to her. "I'll come back for our stuff once you get to relax okay?" She murmured while nuzzling his ruffled black mane.

  Discord only nodded his head before closing his eyes and snuggling into his mothers hold. His curse was finally gone, he couldn't hurt anyone with his magic any longer. But he felt so weak, like every bone and muscle in his body weighed more than hundreds of pounds and each step he had struggled with on the way. It has been extremely difficult to keep up with his mother and he often fainted from exhaustion.

  Discord knew that the wizard said that it would go away, but he couldn't stand feeling such a way for such a long time. Discord took in a deep breath of satisfaction as his mother laid him gently on a small bench inside the cottage. He could already feel the spell of sleep fall over him as he snuggled into the hard wood.

  Carrot Top smiled as she stroked a part of his wild mane away from his face and turned to get their stuff from outside. As she walked outside she sighed and looked around her. They were finally at a home where they could be happy and live in peace. Of course there was still matters of taxes but with hard work, she believed they would get through it all right.

  Carrot Top hoped that Discord would stay happy here, and maybe even gain some friends since he no longer had magic to scare anyone off. The thought caused her to frown as she started picking up a cart and pulling it over to the cottage. Even though his magic is now gone, most of the ponies from the other village feared him for both his magic, and his strange appearance.

  Carrot Top only hoped that things would go well for him, for all that mattered to her was that he was happy. Ever since she lost Written Script, she had felt so empty, and the time she learned she wasn't capable of having foals, she had felt such sorrow that she couldn't make a family of her own. That is why Discord was so special to her. His crazy and loving personality always brightened her days, and he seemed to fill that hole in her soul from losing her dear husband.

  As Carrot Top started sorting things out and unpacking, she started thinking how they would make money. She no longer had a job in the other village as a tailor. Maybe perhaps she could work selling wool and blankets. After all she did have a lot of experience with a spinning wheel as a filly, and she still had some money left.

  Carrot Top decided that after she got settled, she would explore town and see if she could find a good spinning wheel, or find someone to make her one. If that didn't work, she was sure she could find something to keep food on their table.

  Carrot Top was lifting a bag from the cart outside to bring in when suddenly she dropped it and held onto the cottage door coughing. Discord awoke from the sound of rapid coughing and used his left over strength to sit up.

  "Mom? mom are you okay?" Discord asked as Carrot Top's coughing started to calm and she cleared her throat with a hoof to her mouth.

  "I'm alright darling..." She murmured with a wave of her hoof. "There was probably something in the air, don't worry." She smiled and Discord returned it before trying to get up.

  "Do you need help?" He asked and Carrot Top looked up at him and widened her eyes.

  "No, I don't need help little one. But even if I did you are too weak to do anything right now." She chuckled and came over after pulling a small blanket out of a bag and forcing him to lay back on the bench.

  "But I don't want to rest..." Discord pouted and Carrot Top smiled.

  "I'm afraid your gonna have to cope with it son." She whispered and kissed his forehead. Discord sighed with annoyance but didn't push it and relaxed back down.

  Carrot Top smiled once more before returning to her work. She halted for a second and held her stomach, coughing for a second before shaking her head and sitting down on a small chair. Ever since this morning she had felt strange, and her throat felt somewhat scratchy. Perhaps after she goes to town, she would relax for a while.