Author's Note

This first chapter is cute and fluffy but don't get used to it. The story gets progressively darker as it goes.

Chapter One- Oddity

The sun had barely started to rise to start a new day when Fluttershy awoke. She hadn't slept well the evening before as it had been unseasonably cold and she'd had a dreadful feeling all night. As she lethargically got out of bed, Fluttershy made a mental note to ask Rainbow Dash about the weather last night if she happened to see her. She went to her restroom and brushed her long main and tail before gently running the brush over her coat and brushing her teeth.

After splashing some cold water on her face, Fluttershy smiled at herself in the mirror and felt the tiredness leaving her quickly. After a light breakfast to get a real pep in her step, Fluttershy left her cottage, ready to start her day of caring for all her animal friends.

Not getting past her doorstep, Fluttershy saw something she hadn't expected: a basket sitting right on top of her welcome mat. Furrowing her brows in confusion, Fluttershy edged towards the basket and nudged it. It was surprisingly heavy. Curiosity over-riding her apprehension, Fluttershy lifted the blanket that was covering the basket and gasped loudly at the contents: a foal.

It's eyes were closed and Fluttershy wasn't sure if it was even alive. Just as she was about to check, the foal opened it's eyes and for a split-second, Fluttershy swore it had slit pupils like a snake. She blinked and they vanished and she decided it was just her still-sleepy mind playing tricks on her.

Gently taking the swaddled foal from the basket, Fluttershy looked for a note but didn't find one. She frowned and brought the foal inside, her care-giving instincts kicking in, and made it something to eat. She didn't have any foal formula but did have some other animal formulas that she knew would work for the moment. Fluttershy figured the foal was hungry but it didn't cry, it simply watched her with it's bright purple eyes.

Considering how cold the night before was, she was surprised the little foal was even still alive, blanket or not. Pushing away her thoughts and deciding to just thank Celestia that she'd woken up so early, Fluttershy fed the foal, burping it afterwards and then began to unwrap it from it's swaddle. Even though the foal had been swaddled expertly in the blanket, it wasn't wearing a diaper or anything at all underneath, making it even more strange that it had survived the night.

The foal, who was a he, had a dusty greyish purple coat and was a unicorn. At first Fluttershy thought the greyness was due to dirt but as she gently dabbed at his tummy with a warm cloth, she found that he wasn't dirty and was in fact in very good condition. He was plump, which she figured was healthy since most baby animals were plump, and even reached out to touch her occasionally now that his arms were free. Smiling at the foal, Fluttershy made a little cooing sound and her smile grew when he smiled at the sound.

"Hi, little ashy." She cooed softly, nuzzling him and practically beaming when he touched her face with both of his little hooves. Pulling away, Fluttershy checked the blanket and found that it was also remarkably clean despite the fact that the foal hadn't been wearing a diaper. She frowned in concern and quickly but gently swaddled him again, though she left his arms free.

After feeding Angel, Fluttershy left her cottage with the foal, flying so that she could still hold him close to her. She flew into town and made her way immediately to Ponyville's local pediatrician, her earlier thoughts of asking Rainbow about the weather forgotten even as she saw the other pegasus zipping through the sky, clearing out clouds.

Once she arrived, Fluttershy told the pediatrician about the odd little foal and, just as worried as she was, he saw him at once. The check-up want well and, despite the lack of a mess in the blanket, the pediatrician informed Fluttershy that the foal seemed just fine. "Perfectly healthy." He'd said. Fluttershy thanked the pediatrician and he told her to keep an eye on his eating habits and to come back if he hadn't done anything after another feeding.

After she left, Fluttershy wasn't quite sure what to do. The foal wasn't hers, but he didn't seem like he had a family since he'd been left on her doorstep. She looked down at the foal and realized he was watching her with his big, purple eyes, and in that moment, Fluttershy thought of a name for him: Ashen Amethyst.

Smiling softly, Fluttershy gave Ashen a small kiss on the forehead, just under his horn, and when he made his first sound, a cute little babbling noise, she knew she couldn't bear to part with him. Hugging Ashen closer to herself, Fluttershy made her way to city hall, not quite sure what the legal protocol for adopting a foal left on a doorstep was, but determined to find out. Luckily for her, the mayor's secretary knew where to find the paperwork Fluttershy needed and helped her get it all sorted out rather quickly. It took about an hour all in all and when Fluttershy left town hall, she left it with something that hadn't crossed her mind since she was just a filly: a foal all her own.

After making a stop at her cottage to collect her saddlebag, Fluttershy began going around Ponyville to collect all of the things she'd need to take care of Ashen. Her hunt for foal supplies took her to many stores and for bigger items like cribs and changing tables, she had to pay a few extra bits to have them delivered and assembled for her. She picked up formula, a new blanket, a few toys, and even a few books on how to take care of a unicorn foal.

By the halfway point of the shopping trip, Fluttershy had to break for lunch for Ashen and herself and by the end of the trip, she found that he again hadn't made a mess in the diaper he was now wearing. Perturbed and afraid, Fluttershy did the most logical thing she could think of and took Ashen to Twilight's house.

Following a thorough examination, Twilight found that Ashen's body processed nutrients differently than a normal pony and concluded that he most likely wouldn't make any waste for Fluttershy to clean up. After voicing her concern about the fact that he was so quiet, Fluttershy found that Ashen simply wasn't a loud baby; there wasn't any scientific reason Twilight could find for it, he was just quiet. Relieved, Fluttershy was ready to head home with Ashen when a question from Twilight suddenly made her realize she had a bit of explaining to do.

"Who's foal is that, anyway?" Twilight asked, eying Ashen curiously.

"Oh, well, he's mine." Fluttershy said quietly, smiling shyly when Twilight gaped at her in disbelief. "I found him on my doorstep this morning without a note or anything so... I decided to keep him."

"Fluttershy, foals are alot of responsibility, you can't just DECIDE to keep one." Twilight chastised, not sure if her friend was really ready for the responsibility of motherhood on top of her responsibilities to her animals.

"I know." Fluttershy said, opening her saddlebag with one of her wings to reveal the books she'd purchased. "But I think I'm ready. He's such a little sweety and I don't think I could bear to part with him."

Levitating the books out of Fluttershy's bag, Twilight looked them over and then nodded in approval, putting them back. "Well, alright. If you really think you can handle it. Promise me you'll come to me or one of the girls if you need help though, alright?"

"I promise, Twilight." Then hugs were exchanged and Fluttershy decided to track down and inform her other friends while she was still out and about.

Pinkie was so over-joyed that she'd tried to insist on throwing Fluttershy a "welcome to motherhood" party right then and there and Fluttershy had to politely decline several times before Pinkie relented to a rescheduling of the party. Rainbow shared Twilight's initial concern but at Fluttershy's reassurance, was supportive. Applejack was surprised but happy for Fluttershy, and Rarity was quick to warn her about unicorn foal magic bursts, having had first-hoof experience from when Sweetie was just a foal. After Fluttershy's assurance that she'd be careful, Rarity was also supportive. All of her closest friends were happy and supportive except for one; Discord. She obviously hadn't gotten the chance to tell him yet and decided she'd wait until their Tuesday Tea, which was conveniently the next day.

The rest of the evening seemed to pass by in a flash for Fluttershy. Ashen barely made a peep for the entire time and was easily the calmest, most well-behaved foal Fluttershy had ever seen. It was after yet another mess-free feeding that Fluttershy decided a diaper wasn't necessary and stashed the new ones she'd bought in a cabinet just in case. The only truly stand-out moment was when she tried to introduce Angel to Ashen and Angel ran away, seemingly in a panic, the moment Ashen looked at him.

Having chalked their encounter up to Angel being Angel, Fluttershy put Ashen to bed and was quite happy when he fell asleep almost instantly. Feeling proud and accomplished from her first day of motherhood and confident about her decision to keep Ashen, Fluttershy also went to bed, another little weight lifting off her chest when she felt Angel hop onto the bed and snuggle up with her as he always did. Sighing contently, Fluttershy dozed off into a peaceful slumber.

Before Celestia had awoken to raise the sun for the day to begin, Fluttershy was awoken by a presence in front of her muzzle. She opened her eyes, expecting to see Angel standing there, impatiently waiting for her to wake up and feed him, but instead saw a pair of glowing purple eyes with serpentine pupils. She squeaked in fear and backed away quickly, the most primal part of her mind registering the eyes as something to be feared.

Misjudging the width of her bed in her half-asleep panic, Fluttershy fell off the bed and was dazed for a moment. When her brain caught up with what had happened, she realized a now far more familiar pair of eyes was peering at her from the edge of the bed. "Ashen?" Fluttershy squeaked, getting to her hooves quickly and gently nudging the foal more towards the center of the bed with her muzzle. "How did you get out of your crib?"

As if in answer to her question, Ashen's stubby little horn lit up with bright purple energy and in a flash, he was gone. Fluttershy didn't have time to panic as within less than a second, with another flash behind her, Ashen reappeared in his crib. Turning, Fluttershy frowned and trotted up to the crib, gently patting Ashen on the head. "You can't do that, Ashy, you scared me." She scolded gently, unable to stay upset when he lifted his little hooves and made a cooing noise at her.

Sighing softly, Fluttershy picked Ashen up by the scruff of his neck and then held him with one hoof. He nuzzled into the fur of her chest and she couldn't help but smile. Walking the short distance to her kitchen, Fluttershy made Ashen a bottle of formula and he drank it down eagerly. Realizing the sun was just beginning to peak over the horizon, Fluttershy decided to stay awake and get an early jump on her daily tasks. Starting so early hopefully meant that she'd be done before Discord arrived for their weekly teatime and could then spend the entire day with him.

Snacking on a few smaller vegetables as she went, Fluttershy tended to her garden, keeping an eye on Ashen while she harvested her small patch of crops. He occupied himself by playing in the dirt, making small mounds and decorating them with even smaller pebbles or the occasional blade of grass. After finishing with her garden, Fluttershy loaded Ashen onto her back and started checking on her animals.

She found that they were a quite a lot more skittish than they usually were and figured it must've been because of Ashen. Trying to inform them that he was just a harmless baby didn't seem to help ease their nerves, so she just worked more carefully, trying to ensure that her animals didn't feel threatened and that Ashen wasn't in any danger.

By the time Fluttershy's daily duties were finished, both herself and Ashen were filthy. Heading back inside, Fluttershy managed to clean both herself and Ashen with just enough time to spare to make the tea for when Discord would arrive. When the draconequus did arrive with a flash in her living room, Fluttershy was just setting the tea down on the table.

"Mm, is that pineapple and peppermint I smell?" Discord asked, sniffing the air and looking down at the tea Fluttershy was pouring. "What's the occasion?"

Smiling happily as Discord set down a platter full of pickle and petunia sandwiches, Fluttershy turned and scooped Ashen off her chair. Spinning back around, she proudly presented Ashen to Discord with a soft "ta-da!".

Raising an eyebrow at Fluttershy, Discord lightly poked Ashen in the stomach with his paw. He then quickly withdrew his paw as if burned by the foal when Ashen giggled softly and wiggled lightly in Fluttershy's grasp. "It's alive!? I thought it was a doll!"

"He." Fluttershy corrected, cradling Ashen close as he stared curiously at Discord. "What do you think?"

Slowly taking his seat as he looked suspiciously at the foal in Fluttershy's arms, Discord held out his hands. "May I see the little tyke?" He asked as politely as he could manage. Trusting Discord not to do anything too chaotic or odd to her new foal, Fluttershy hoofed Ashen over. Looking over the foal, Discord couldn't help but think that those amethyst eyes were just a little too sentient for a pony his age. "How long are you taking care of him?" He asked, lowering Ashen a bit to look at Fluttershy.

"Well, at last until he's an adult, I guess." Fluttershy said, realizing Discord thought she was only foalsitting. "I mean, he is my son, after all."

At that, Discord almost dropped Ashen but then held him considerably more carefully. "Your son? When were you pregnant?" He asked, his eyes suddenly narrowing as his jealous side quickly surfaced. "Who's the father?"

Laughing, Fluttershy waved a hoof at Discord. "I adopted him, silly." She replied, smiling at how interested in Discord Ashen was. He hadn't taken his eyes off the draconequus since Discord had picked him up.

Huffing and calming down, Discord looked back down at the foal and made a face out of curiosity to see how he’d react. Much to his surprise, as he'd been expecting Ashen to cry, the foal smiled as much as a foal could and made a low, growling sound deep in his chest. Eyes wider than usual, Discord looked to Fluttershy and wasn't the slightest bit relieved to see that she looked equally shocked. After the pair made eye contact and then looked back to Ashen, Discord began to laugh.

"I haven't spent much time with many foals in my life, but I like this one." He admitted, making another face at Ashen and getting a much louder growl in return. Discord grinned broadly and lifted the foal up high. "You're certainly a weird little pony." He complimented, eyes narrowing slightly but grin remaining when he caught sight of Ashen's reptilian eyes for a brief second. Lowering the foal, Discord handed him back over to Fluttershy who took him happily.

"I'm glad you like him." She chirped brightly, Ashen's odd growls all but forgotten in light of Discord giving him his seal of approval.

"What's his name?" Discord asked, finally picking up a sandwich and a cup of tea.

"Ashen Amethyst." Fluttershy responded, also taking a sandwich and a teacup. Not so long ago, she would have never thought to pair pineapple and peppermint tea with pickle and petunia sandwiches, but Discord, by his very nature, enjoyed things that were random and mismatched and she herself found that she enjoyed the odd combinations more often than not. The sandwiches, for instance, were very good, the sour from the pickles and sweet from the petunias blending in a weird-but-good way.

"How appropriate." Discord said, sparing Ashen a glance and finding that the foal was still watching him.

Now that the introductions were taken care of, Discord and Fluttershy spent their Tuesday Tea like they always did, talking and laughing. Ashen being as quiet as he was didn't interrupt except to be fed, not even making noise with any of the foal toys Fluttershy tried to give him as he seemed perfectly entertained keeping a watchful eye on Discord.

An hour before sunset, Discord and Fluttershy said their goodbyes as Fluttershy had her evening chores to take care of before it got too dark. Discord even said goodbye to Ashen, getting a hearty growl and a smile for his efforts, before he vanished with a puff of orange smoke and the sound of a duck quaking. Making a note to consult somepony about Ashen's newfound ability to growl, Fluttershy went about her evening chores and then put Ashen and herself down for a well-earned night's slumber.

The next day, Fluttershy was straight off to Twilight's house again. Grown ponies could make noises similar to a growl with their mouths, Pinkie herself had snarled a few times for various reasons, but she'd never heard anypony, adult or otherwise, growl the way Ashen did. His growls came from deep in his chest and sounded more like a predatory animal’s growls. When Fluttershy relayed this to Twilight, she looked equally as confused.

"You're sure he was growling and not making some other noise?" She asked, holding Ashen in her magic and eying the foal.

"Make a face at him. The weirdest you can." Fluttershy urged, watching as Twilight made a face that made her giggle but only caused Ashen to tilt his head. "Maybe it only works when Discord does it." She mumbled, frowning.

"He growled at Discord?"

"Mmhm."

Snickering and looking at Ashen with a proud smile, Twilight lightly bounced the foal in her magic. "Could you get Discord to come over?"

"I'll try." Fluttershy closed her eyes and concentrated for less than a minute before a puff of green smoke signified Discord's arrival.

"Oh, Fluttershy, you know I always have a moment for you." He greeted, noticing Twilight and grinning. "Hello, Twilight. If you're here, why didn't you summon me?"

"I've had enough mental scarring from the last time I caught you in the bath, thank you very much." Twilight said, levitating Ashen up to Discord. "Make a face."

"Demanding." Discord observed, grin broadening as he took Ashen from Twilight's magic. "Well, if it isn't my new favorite infant!" He said happily, making a wacky face and laughing when Ashen growled loudly at him.

"See?" Fluttershy asked, looking at a very surprised Twilight.

"Yeah." Twilight mumbled, immediately cantering off to look through her bookshelves.

"So what's going on?" Discord asked, cradling Ashen in his lion arm. "You aren't trying to fix him, are you?"

"No." Fluttershy replied, looking away from Twilight to look up at Discord. "I just want to know why he does it is all. Or how, even. I've never heard anypony make a sound like that."

"Neither have I." Discord admitted, wiggling a talon at Ashen but lowering it again when the foal showed no interest in doing more than staring at him. "That just adds to what makes him so very interesting."

"I'm still surprised you like him so much." Fluttershy observed, sitting on a chair as she realized Twilight was going to be a bit as she flipped through books.

Shrugging, Discord coiled up in midair with Ashen balanced on his prehensile tail fluff in the middle of his coil. "He's weird, I like weird."

Knowing that weird was a compliment coming from Discord, Fluttershy smiled and continued to make small talk with him as Twilight searched. Eventually the unicorn returned, looking frustrated. Fluttershy knew what that face meant and preempted Twilight's coming rant. "Nothing?"

"Nothing." Twilight huffed, angrily sitting down and gently taking Ashen from Discord in order to scrutinize him. "The only other option I have is to run a more in depth scan on him. He might not like it though."

"Will it hurt him?" Fluttershy asked, frowning in concern.

"No, but he might not like the feeling of magic flowing through him." Twilight explained, looking at the foal's concerned mother. "It's your choice, of course."

"Well, I guess you could try so long as it won't hurt him. You can stop if he starts to fuss, right?"

"Of course." Upon Fluttershy's confirmation nod, Twilight put Ashen back in Discord's coil and then cast a spell, closing her eyes and using her magic to scan Ashen. After making a bit of a face, Ashen went back to looking stoic. He sat as still and quiet as ever as Twilight scanned him, much to Fluttershy's relief. A few minutes passed before Twilight's magic suddenly blinked out and her eyes snapped open. "Ow!" She cried, rubbing at her horn gently and looking at Ashen with a face that was a mix of a wide-eyed look of confusion and a glare.

"What happened?" Fluttershy asked quickly, frowning at the way Twilight and Ashen now seemed to be having a stare-down.

"He..." Twilight made a frustrated sound and broke her gaze with the foal to look at Fluttershy. "It felt like he-he pulled on my magic. I can't describe the feeling any other way." She muttered, brow furrowed deeply.

"Oh dear." Fluttershy mumbled, glancing at Ashen briefly and seeing that he was still eying Twilight. "Did... did you find anything?" She asked quietly, now more curious than ever to know what made Ashen so different from any foal, any pony, she'd ever met.

"Well, he's definitely weird." Twilight huffed, not looking towards Ashen even though she could feel his eyes practically boring into her.

Weird from Discord was good, weird from Twilight was decidedly less so. "Weird how?" Fluttershy urged gently, worried but not wanting to push Twilight too hard.

"I've never scanned anypony like that, but I still had a general idea of what I'd find." Twilight explained, finally chancing a look at Ashen to see he'd given up staring at her to play with one of Discord's talons. "I know plenty about pony anatomy, after all, but Ashen is... different. His anatomy is different beyond how he processes nutrients." She looked almost angry for her lack of understanding. "I've never seen anything like him. He looks like a pony, but..." Twilight trailed off for a moment, looking back at Fluttershy again. "he's not. I don't know what he is."

"Oh dear." Fluttershy mumbled again, gently taking Ashen when Discord offered him to her.

"I'm sorry I don't have more for you. Even if I would've been able to finish the spell, I don't think it would've revealed how he's able to growl like that." Twilight said, getting off her chair when Fluttershy stood. "I'll keep researching though. Maybe something somewhere can tell me something."

"Thanks, Twilight." Fluttershy replied, offering her friend a smile. "I really appreciate it. And I'm sorry about your magic."

Waving a hoof gently at Fluttershy, Twilight smiled lightly in return. "It's alright, it mostly just surprised me." She lied, still feeling the twinge in her horn from having her magic yanked on. "But be careful, alright?"

"I will." Fluttershy promised, leaving with Discord trailing behind her.