//------------------------------// // Love Letters // Story: Domestic Drabbles of Discord's Dimension // by GeekCat //------------------------------// "Oh, Gavin," she sighed, a hoof against her forehead as she leaned into her lover's arms. "Promise you won't forget me!" Gavin gently stroked her mane with his talons. "I could never, Marella," he whispered. "I swear, I'll write to you every day!" Fluttershy sighed, a soft smile on her face as she took a break from reading to look at Chaosville's sky. It was shifting through lovely shades of purple today, and off in the horizon, she could just barely see a group of creatures performing ballet in midair. The temperature was nice, with a cooling breeze circling around every so often. She took a deep breath, taking in the smell of peppermint that was heavy in the air today. Reading on the porch had been a good idea...even if she could imagine Discord laughing at her book in the back of her mind. As her thoughts turned to him, she shifted on the small porch couch, her eyes lingering on the ballet creatures. Discord was currently on a trip to Las Pegasus—Celestia and Luna's choice of a vacation spot this year, which they had decided to invite him to. Five whole days of gambling, cavorting, and controlled chaos! He had invited her to come along, as well, but she politely declined. She knew from experience that Las Pegasus would be chock full of crowds, flashing lights, and noisy attractions...other than the occasional animal show, there wouldn't be much to pique her interest. She encouraged him to go, though—she was confident that the trip would be fun for him. A slight breeze ruffled her fur, smelling a little like orange peels. This was enough to bring her thoughts back to the moment. With a slight smile, she turned her attention back to the book in her hooves. Though she was starting to miss Discord a little bit, she knew that he would return home in just two more days. She hoped that he was having fun. Her ears perked up when she heard something—the sound of flapping wings approaching her. She looked up, wondering if one of the birds needed her. But no...what she saw wasn't a bird, and she had to blink to make sure she was seeing it correctly. It appeared to be a black mailbox, ordinary in every way...aside from the pure white, feathered wings on its sides, of course. It easily flew through the air, heading straight for her. She tensed as it came closer, but it stopped a few inches in front of her, its red flag popping up. It seemed to be waiting for her to do something. Slowly, she opened the mailbox. It hovered steadily in place as she peered inside. There were two things inside of it, and she reached in to grab both of them. Once she had emptied it of its contents, the mailbox lowered its flag and flew away, settling on a wooden post near their front door. She watched it for a few moments, to see if it would fly away or not, but it stayed in place. In fact, if it weren't for the wings, it would have almost seemed like a normal mailbox, sitting so perfectly still. Then, she turned her attention to the things she had grabbed from the box. The first was a magazine—one detailing different animal shows in Las Pegasus, and how they were cared for and trained. She flipped through the pages, her eyes lighting up when she saw how many rare or odd creatures it went into detail about. It seemed like the perfect magazine to curl up on the couch and read. She shifted the items in her hooves to look at the second one. It appeared to be a letter, though not an ordinary one. It was sealed in a black envelope by a dark red wax seal, which had the symbol of an X across it. It looked...ominous. As ominous as a letter could be, anyway. She flipped the envelope to look at its back. It had a list of stamped-on instructions, the ink the same dark red color as the wax seal. DANGER: FOR FLUTTERSHY'S EYES ONLY IF YOU ARE FLUTTERSHY, TAP THE WAX SEAL TO OPEN IF NOT, GIVE THIS TO FLUTTERSHY, NO PEEKING! FROM: DISCORD Somehow, she wasn't surprised it was from Discord. She was tempted to open it now, but...if he was this insistent that only she could read it, maybe it was meant to be extra-private. Even if there was nopony else in Chaosville, there were still several creatures around, chaotic or not, and it didn't seem right to read it out in the open. And so, she gathered her book and mail in her hooves and headed back inside. She sat on the couch, setting the book and magazine on a pillar-like end table, then turned her attention to the ominous letter. She turned it over in her hooves, to see if she could spot anything else, but there was just the seal on the front and the instructions on the back. Slowly, she tapped a hoof against the wax seal, as the back instructed. It glowed a faint blue under her touch, and then it broke apart. The black envelope unfolded in four flaps as the seal separated, revealing...another envelope. This one was much different than the first, though. This envelope was a pale pink color, with lacy white trim glued crookedly along its edges. On the back, her name was written in cursive, in a dark red, glittery ink. The front of the envelope had been sealed with a puffy pink heart sticker. Could it be...a love letter? she wondered, her heart pounding. All signs pointed to 'yes', but knowing Discord, it could just be a letter about the weather dressed in a fancy romantic envelope. Well. Just staring at it wouldn't tell her anything! She carefully gripped the sticker and peeled it away, careful to not rip it or the envelope. With that done, she carefully removed the folded paper inside. She swore she could catch a whiff of chocolate perfume as she unfurled the letter, and recognized Discord's messy handwriting. Smiling, she straightened out the paper and leaned back against the couch to read. Dearest Fluttershy, I hope this letter finds you well! I've been having a grand time in Las Pegasus. Don't worry, Celestia and Luna haven't gotten any of us into debt yet. Is everything at the sanctuary going well? I hope you aren't posing by windows like a lovestruck maiden, sighing as you wait for my return. If any drama happens, even lovestruck sappy drama, I insist on playing a part! She paused and laughed, shaking her head before continuing to read. Anyway. Speaking of drama, I...must admit that I've missed you these past few days. I've had a blast, of course, but...being away for so long makes my heart ache for you. And during the quiet moments, the moments where we wait for something to start, or when I can't seem to fall asleep...I wish you were by my side. That's why, as utterly corny and cheesy as it is...I simply had to write you a letter. Spill forth my secrets, let my heart bleed onto the page, and so on. She paused, and with a slight grimace, quickly checked the rest of the page. To her relief, there didn't appear to be any literal blood on it. Discord had an...odd talent of making sweet metaphors scary, but he didn't seem to have done so this time. Okay...I'm going to get a bit sappy here. Ahem. The love in my heart burns hotter for you than any sun. The kindness in your heart is larger than even the ocean. Though we are apart, I long to see your face again, to pepper you with kisses and whisper as many silly sweet nothings as you want into your ear! But I'll be home in just a few days, thank chaos. And don't worry, I'll try to pick up a souvenir or two for your while I'm here! Now, I'd better send this before I feel embarrassed and decide to burn it, instead. Love, your devilishly handsome Discord. She giggled, her smile stretching far enough that her cheeks were starting to ache a little. It was such a sweet gesture, even if it was, in his own words, "sappy". But she had missed him herself these past few days, and this short letter alone made her feel a small spark of the happiness he seemed to give her whenever he was with her. With a bright smile, she flew towards the memory museum, holding the letter against her chest. Once there, she searched the room and eventually found a nice corner to tuck it in. Then, she flew to the study, pulling out a sheet of paper, a quill, and ink. If Discord had written her a letter just to express how much he loved and missed her...well, it only felt right to write a message back. She picked up the quill in her mouth, dipped it into the blue ink, and slowly began to pen her message. My dearest, most handsome Cordy, I was delighted to get a letter from you. I've stowed it in the memory museum for now...I know you thought it was sappy, but I thought it was rather sweet. You know how to make me blush...I might have to read it again in the future. I'm so glad to hear your trip is going well! I'm sure the three of you have been having such fun adventures—you'll have to tell me all about them over a cup of tea once you get back! Everything's been going well at the sanctuary, though I don't have many exciting stories to tell. Thank you for the magazine—it might give me some ideas on how to train new arrivals to the sanctuary. If you don't mind...I'd like to get a little "sappy", too. Even though you've only been gone for a few days, and I know you'll be returning soon enough...a part of me still misses you. When you get home, I'm going to give you the biggest hug and kiss I can, and prepare your favorite tea and snacks. You don't have to worry about bringing anything home for me—just having you back would be enough. She paused, racking her brain for anything else to say as a few drops of ink dripped on the margins of the page, in a place they wouldn't obscure any of her words. Then, she started to write again. Other than that, all I can say is...I love you, and I hope you come home safely. Thank you for thinking of me and writing to me. Love, Mrs. Fluttershy Chaos She smiled, content with how it sounded, and set it down to dry. She began rummaging through the drawers, eventually finding a plain white envelope and stickers, along with rolls of unofficial stamps with Discord's smiling face on them. With a chuckle, she placed one of the Discord stamps crookedly on the corner of the envelope. Then, she slowly scattered tiny heart stickers of all colors across the back, without any sort of pattern to them. Finally, she wrote Discord's name on the back in cursive, drawing a little heart next to his name. She checked her letter and found that the ink was dry. She carefully folded it, making it a little bit crooked and uneven, then slowly slid it into the decorated envelope. She quickly licked it to seal it, then added a sticker on the flap for good measure—a pink, glittery heart, which she put on upside-down. After grabbing a drink of water to get the taste of glue out of her mouth, she carefully gripped the letter in her wing and headed back outside. The flying mailbox was still perched out there. "Excuse me," she said as she approached it. "Could you take this letter to Discord, please?" It hovered in the air, saluting her with one of its wings and popping open its door. She smiled and thanked it, slowly sliding her letter inside and closing the door again. It once again saluted her, then turned and rapidly flew away, quickly vanishing from her sight. She stayed at the edge of the island, watching it until it fully disappeared. She smiled and headed back inside, a slight skip in her step. She hoped Discord would enjoy her letter as much as she enjoyed his. Maybe he would even write her back again! The idea of restarting their tradition of writing to each other, even just for a little while, made her smile a little bit wider. She suspected that her romance novel wouldn't make her feel anything close to the warm, fuzzy feeling Discord's letter did...so she opted to pick up the magazine he sent and start to read that, instead. But in the back of her mind, she was already thinking of what she might tell him in another letter...or when he returned home.