Alucard sensed a stare being burned into the back of his head, and turned to face it. Fluttershy was looking up at him with equal parts fear and sadness. He looked away from her eyes, toward the side.
Fluttershy continued to gaze up at him, studying his eyes. He did not look angry at her, or smug about his gruesome work. He looked resigned. Whatever reaction he was waiting for, however, didn’t come. Instead, she turned away.
“Twilight, I think we’ve seen all there is to see. I’m going back the cottage. Prince Alucard, would you walk with me?” At Fluttershy’s words, the other ponies went quiet. They looked back and forth between the two, confused.
Rainbow was displeased, but she could say nothing to stop Alucard from going with Fluttershy. While he was not a Prince of her country, he was still Royalty. Her ingrained respect of the crown outweighed her suspicions. Until she had solid, irrefutable proof that he was up to no good, she would stay silent.
She was rash, yes. But an idiot? Absolutely not. All she could do was observe and wait.
----------
Fluttershy trotted beside him, keeping a respectable distance between them. After a time, she stopped walking. Alucard stopped also, though he did not turn to her. Clearly, she was going to make a speech. He could almost hear the sharp, accusing words she would throw his way.
Fluttershy proved him wrong again, though. The only thing she did was ask a quiet question.
“Did he suffer?”
Alucard’s eyes widened, then closed. “No. When his neck was broken, he could not move or feel. He died quickly after that.”
She nodded to herself. A mercy, then… she thought. But another thought wormed its way up into her brain. It made her ill. “Why do you hunt predators, specifically?”
Alucard’s gold eyes opened slightly. “They are large and easy to find. If I was to eat rabbits or some other small prey, I would need to feed much more often. Predators also do not hide themselves unless they are actively hunting. They spread their scent around freely, to ward off others of their kind.”
At his logical reasoning, she was relieved. He was not hunting for sport, but to keep himself from going hungry.
“Isn’t going after such strong animals dangerous? What if you run into a cockatrice, or a hydra?”
Alucard smiled a little. “Not as dangerous as you would think. I thank you for the concern, but I am very experienced.”
Fluttershy felt a small shudder from that. Experienced…
“Well… I can’t stop you. I don’t want you to starve, but…” The words burned in her throat. “The populations…”
Alucard huffed out a chuckle. “I am only one man, Fluttershy. I will not drive the whole forest into extinction.”
Fluttershy’s worries eased. I’m being silly. “You’re right.”
“If that is all, may we continue?” Alucard offered. Fluttershy paused, before nodding. They then continued forward, with the buttery pegasus leading the way. She ruminated in her mind everything she had learned about the tall figure walking slightly behind her, which wasn't much to be perfectly honest. A question was bubbling inside her, however. One that had been bugging her.
“Um… Prince Alucard… the friend you had, that you mentioned when we spoke last, the one that loved animals like me… What was she like?”
The dhampir was stricken for a moment, memories flying around his head like a swarm of bats scared out of their cave. “Why do you ask?” His voice was tight.
Fluttershy noticed his change in demeanor immediately. Her head dipped low, like she wanted to avoid his eyes, even though she knew he was purposefully not looking anywhere near her.
“W-Well, it's just that, uh, you said that she was passionate about animals like I am. And, um, I've never heard of anypony with a cutie mark like, well, m-mine.”
Alucard's pursed his lips tightly together, to stop himself from making a vicious snarl instead. He imagined that baring his long, sharp teeth would not help this situation in the slightest. A situation he had put himself in when he had begun jabbering like a fool at the sight of a miniature horse standing near some birds.
He took a deep breath to swallow back some of the anger he felt at himself. He hated talking about Maria. Talking about anyone from the past. Actually, if he never had to speak again, he would most likely be fine with it.
He took a second breath.
“Her name was... Maria.” How long had it been since he had spoken her name. He was filled with guilt at the thought that he wished it was longer. He wanted to hold the memories, the words deep inside. He wanted to hoard them, to share nothing of her to anyone else.
You are your father’s child, a dark voice whispered in his mind.
“She… was unique. She was…” Beautiful. Intelligent. Free.
Fluttershy looked up at Alucard, trying to read his face. She caught merely a glimpse before he turned away.
“She made me see something in people that I had not seen in ages. I hated them. The humans. I hated them the same as my father did. In enough time, I may have forgotten the promise I had made to myself…” To Mother. “But… She reminded me. Not all at once. But the seed was planted, and that was enough.”
If even the slightest thing had been different. If I had simply killed Richter, as I had initially planned to… Who is to say what could have happened. There could very well be no ponies nor pony princesses. Only a king.
“She was important. Far more than I realized at the time.”
Fluttershy gazed at his back, always so tall and straight. Now he seemed to almost sag, like he had a crushing weight on his shoulders. Alucard, the foreign prince, who had seemed so regal, so refined. Fluttershy had always wondered what it was like to be a princess. To be like Celestia, who had grace and poise and always knew the right thing to say.
“But that is enough reminiscing. Those days are long gone. I am sure your birds must be low on seed. We best not keep them waiting.” Alucard drew himself back to his full height, and carefully straightened his clothing and brushed his hair away from his face.
Fluttershy quietly agreed with him and began leading them the trees once more. Being a Princess must be tiring.
Fluttershy would have to tell Rarity that on their next spa date. She would most certainly be interested.
The sun filtered through the leaves, golden and radiant. The earth smelled fresh, and song birds sang their hearts out to anyone that would listen. Alucard envied their simple joy.
---
High above them, a far more dangerous bird swirled on the winds. She was no falcon, nor eagle. She was barely shaped like a bird at all. Her torso was bare of feathers or clothing and shaped distinctly feminine, but she felt no shame for her nakedness. Her tangled dark hair flapped wildly in the wind behind her. On her face curved a jubilant smile, for her sharp eyes had spied a head of silky, white hair far more fetching than her own moving between the trees.
She allowed herself to watch him for only a moment longer, before she wheeled around to fly towards the heart of the forest. She would soar as fast as her wings could take her to her sisters. There was finally some good news.
The Tragic Prince was awake and aware once more, and the darkness stirred in anticipation. The King was gone, but his sole heir had returned. Perhaps it was time to start thinking about a coronation.