Fall of Deathwing

by Demeristraz

Fire Flowers

Fluttershy awoke to chirping birds, warm sunlight, and a most wonderful smell. She paused a moment, lifting her head and breathing deep, trying to discover where she had smelled the particular scent before. She went through her morning routine of getting ready to face the day with a bright smile on her face, until she left her room. To her surprise someone had decorated her entire home with bouquets of pale Blue Moon Blossoms. Dozens of the flowers covered every available surface, filling her home with a delicately sweet scent.

Her smile returned tenfold, as she moved about her house preparing breakfast for her and Angel. The little bunny sat at the table, tapping his foot and frowning. "Is something wrong?" She asked, as she placed a small salad before the bunny. It merely covered its nose and scowled. "I suppose there are a lot of them..." She said, glancing about at the numerous blossoms. "But they do look so pretty."

Absently she wondered who had given her such a gift, although she had been a model for a time she never found herself swarmed with suitors. She was seen as too shy to be approachable, those that did try and strike up a conversation with her were often met with an insurmountable wall of silence. She had never received flowers, let alone this many of such a rare species.

"Good morning, Fluttershy." Came the rather deep rumbling of her new housemate as he entered the kitchen. He appeared exhausted, and Fluttershy was quick to guess the cause.

"Good morning Nel, was it you who brought the flowers?" She asked, sitting down for her morning cereal.

"Of course, your friends suggested I do so, as an apology gift. I'm glad to see they aren't for eating, it was quite the long trip." He said, sitting down on the floor next to the table.

Fluttershy didn't know how to feel. He had only given her the flowers because of her friends suggesting it. On the other hoof he had gone to great lengths to fetch her this gift, even if there was no romantic under text. She honestly didn't know how she'd feel if there was romantic intentions, part of her was still terrified of the dragon.

"It's a very sweet gesture." She said meekly, looking away in case she caught a glimpse of those terrifying teeth. "What are your plans for the day?"

"I'm just up to feed the animals, it's become something of a habit really. I'll probably go back to sleep afterwards, I wasn't home until early this morning." He grumbled, rising to do just that.

"Oh, well um... There is this rather large fireworks display going on tonight. My friends and I have plans to go, and um... you should come along as well... If you want to I mean... If you're busy or too tired I'll understand." She said, looking down so that her hair covered her face. She continued speaking but anything past that point was inaudible.

"Fireworks huh?" The dragon pondered. "I suppose that is acceptable. I'll likely be in my cave, come fetch me when it is time to go." He said, moving out the door to the backyard.

O~O~O~O~O

Some time later Twilight knocked on the door of Fluttershy's cottage, Pinkie bouncing merrily along beside her. She felt rather bad about fooling their shy friend, but this was for science, or so she convinced herself. The door opened moments later, to reveal a rather grumpy looking Angel Bunny. "Is Fluttershy home?" Twilight asked, getting a nod and a point in response. Smiling at the cross looking critter the two ponies stepped inside.

"Wowie! Look at all the flowers!" Pinkie said, darting about the house to count them all.

"He certainly took his 'quest' seriously." Twilight said, stopping to smell one of the blossoms herself.

"He must really really like her, there's one hundred and forty four of them!" Pinkie called.

"Twelve sets of twelve? Could it be a coincidence?" Twilight asked.

"It must be destiny! Like your cutie mark having forty two points." Pinkie said.

"I've told you before Pinkie, forty two isn't a meaningful number." The unicorn grumbled.

"Oh um... Hello Twilight, Pinkie." Came a soft voice from the kitchen.

"Fluttershy! Good morning, I love what you've done with the place." Twilight said with a knowing smile.

"Nel brought them for me." The pegasus admitted with a slight blush on her cheeks.

"Aw I knew old Nelly was a big softy on the inside. Is he going to the firework festival?" Pinkie asked.

"Well um... I invited him, and he said he'd go..." Fluttershy said.

"Great! The rest of us can't make it, and we were worried you wouldn't have anypony to go with." Pinkie said.

"The rest of you can't go? Any of you?" Fluttershy asked, suddenly a little put off going to the festival.

"A whole bunch of really important stuff came up." Twilight said. "We were on our way to tell you, but you can still go with Neltharion right? I'm sure you'll enjoy it."

They got a slight nod in response, the little yellow pegasus looked down and whispered, "He still kind of scares me though. I know he can be very sweet, but when I see him, I picture a much bigger dragon."

"Well, this is your chance to get to know him better then. I'm certain the more you get to know him, the easier it will be to look past the scary parts." The unicorn reassured.

O~O~O~O~O

The day passed surprisingly quickly, and Fluttershy soon found herself outside of Neltharion's cave beneath her house. It was odd really, if anypony had told her a few years ago that someday she'd have a dragon living under her house she'd have fainted from even imagining it.

Sill when she had first met the dragon something about him helped her look past the fear. He wasn't like Spike, that was certain, more like a miniature adult dragon than a baby. The thought of him smiling made her heart race, in a way that was entirely unromantic. When she had first spoken to him though, he had seemed so broken that she couldn't help but offer up her cellar to him.

In front of that very cellar she now stood, waiting patiently for the small dragon to come out. "Good afternoon, Fluttershy." He grumbled amiably, stepping out of the darkness of the cave and into the orange light of the setting sun. "Is it just the two of us?" He asked, eyes peering around for more of the bright colored ponies.

"The others all canceled, saying something had come up. If you don't want to go..." She said, seeing the dragon snort a small grey cloud of smoke. She took the gesture as a dismissal and turned to lead the two towards the hillside where ponies would gather to watch the fireworks. The two walked onwards in companionable silence. "Have you seen fireworks before?"

"I have," he nodded, remembering his days shortly before the madness took him, watching over goblins as they worked. "There were goblins, in my homeland, who would often compete with their creations. Making fireworks was a hobby of theirs, and once a year they would compete to see which engineer could make the most beautiful explosions. Mostly it was to prevent them from blowing each other up. They live underground you see. The Kaldorei would come and watch sometimes, they called them 'fire flowers' in their language, a fitting name don't you think?"

"Kaldorei?" Fluttershy asked, having never heard the term before.

"One of the races of sentient beings from my homeland. The word means 'children of the stars', you would fit in well with them I believe." The dragon said, giving a small smile at the mare, and seeing her look away quickly.

"How so?" She asked quietly.

"They're a nature loving race, much like you. They exist in harmony with the plants and animals around them, and live among massive trees. Some of them can even turn into animals." He said, catching her wide-eyed look of wonder. "They are a nocturnal race, and worship the moon goddess Elune."

"Is that like Princess Luna?" She asked, seeing the curious look from the dragon.

"I'm not certain, the Kaldorei call her Elune, and the Tauren call her Mu'Sha. She's said to have watched over the world in its infancy, bringing peace and protection wherever there was conflict, to ensure that life continued." Seeing his companion smiling along at the story he continued, telling him what he could of their culture and history. It wasn't much, he believed, as he had never paid much mind to the dealings of the mortal races, but they seemed to entertain the mare.

Soon enough they had reached the hillsides and the sun had set. They found a secluded spot to sit and watch as the sky lit up with gentle popping noises. "If you don't mind me asking. Why do you live on the ground? Sensible as it is to do so, most pegasi do not, do they?" Neltharion asked, causing the yellow mare to look down in embarrassment.

"I grew up in cloudsdale, the city of clouds, where many pegasi live." She began.

"That floating city up there? Like Dalaran?" The dragon interjected, gesturing in the direction of the far off city.

"Dalaran?" She asked.

"A flying city filled with... magic users, like the unicorns." Neltharion said, remembering the shock he had felt, even through the haze of madness, at seeing the city in all of its radiant glory, floating above the crystal forest. He could tell her of the city some other time, likely Twilight would appreciate the tale as well. Instead he nodded for her to continue.

"Well I was never a strong flier, even as a little filly, and I hated getting too close to the edges of the clouds. Despite this, my parents signed me up for flight school, thinking it'd help me get over my fears. I... was teased a lot." She said, letting out a sigh as she watched the explosions of color far above.

"I would never stand up for myself, and I'd struggle through even the simplest of flying maneuvers. I didn't have a lot of friends, and one day, during a race at school between Rainbow Dash and some other pegasi, I fell." She admitted.

"Fell?" Neltharion said, that city had seemed an awful long way up.

"I was caught though, by a swarm of butterflies." She said.

"Butterflies?" The dragon said, trying to even comprehend how that would happen.

"It was my first time being to the ground. The flight school was so full of horror stories about the things down here but... The moment I touched down upon the ground I fell in love, with all the plants and animals around me. It was the happiest day of my life, and I earned my cutie mark for my love of all the little critters. When my parents came down to find me I was heartbroken. From then on I'd sneak away to the land below at every opportunity. When I became old enough I moved down to Ponyville, into that little cottage. My parents don't understand my choice, but they respect it now at least." She said, looking out over the field of ponies around them with a small smile.

"This is my gift: compassion for all things. A drive to protect and nurture them. And the ability to heal that which others cannot, and love even the unlovable-- who surely need such grace more than any other souls." Neltharion said in a low whisper. Seeing the confused look from his companion he elaborated. "Alexstrasza, my sister. That was her blessing from her... 'father'. Each of my siblings received one, and we strove to live our lives by them. She would find in you a kindred spirit, I am certain." He smiled, and for once the fear of those teeth did not overtake her.

"What about you? If you don't mind me asking I mean." The pegasus whispered.

The dragon was silent for a few long minutes, causing Fluttershy to worry she had asked the wrong thing. "Neither me or my siblings truly knew our parents. We were left at a very young age with only words to live by. Still, we were close, and for a long time we existed alongside each other in peace." The dragon finally spoke, his tone low and somber. "And then... then I did something unforgivable, and they banished me."

"That's horrible, they were your family." Fluttershy began, trying to comfort the dragon.

"I should be dead." The dragon snorted, "I deserve to be dead." He said in a whisper.

The two sat in silence, in the distant skies fireworks burst into multicolored streams of sparks. "I was given a chance to start over, to live a life as a normal dragon. It's far more than I deserve." He said quietly, the mare next to him nodding with understanding.

"I won't pry. If you want to talk about it though..." Fluttershy said softly.

"I think, given half an opportunity, I'd spend millennia with the burden of this memory mine alone to bear." The dragon said, though he appreciated the gesture. As he watched the night sky decorated with colored fire, he caught a glimpse of the pink haired pegasus shivering. "Are you cold?"

"It's not that bad, though I wish I had brought a blanket." She said, still gazing skyward. WIthout a word one of Neltharions wings draped over her, cutting off the gentle wind and letting her feel the heat that radiated from him. "You're warm!" She remarked, Spike had never given off this kind of heat.

"Most older dragons can control their body temperature... so long as they are in the right state of mind." Thoughts of his maddened state filled his mind unbidden, images of molten rivers of blood that flowed from between his mangled scales. With a shudder of his own he pushed the thoughts away, as the pegasus leaned into him.

"Tell me more about your homeland?" She asked, eyes still locked on the skies above, so the dragon spoke, of anything that came to mind. He spoke of Thousand Needles, a massive chasm where pillars of stone reached towards the heavens. He spoke of Ungoro Crater, where life first bloomed into existance, and dinosaurs still walked the earth. He told her of Stranglethorn Vale and its tropical beaches, of Dun Morogh and its snowy mountaintops.

They spoke for hours on the subject of creatures big and small, as he described moonkin and furbolgs, gnolls and quillboar. He told her more stories about the Kaldorei and Trolls, and what he knew of the more modern races. Finally the last of the fireworks blazed a trail across the sky and he looked down to see Fluttershy laying against him, struggling to keep her eyes open. "Come along then, time to go home." He said, voice hoarse from so much speaking.

With some effort they rose to their feet, and walked back to the cottage by the forest. Neltharion kept his wing over the mare the entire way. They walked slowly, and in silence, taking in the sounds of the night around them. At long last they reached the doorway to the cottage, and Fluttershy seemed to hesitate. "I had a wonderful time tonight Nel, thank you for coming with me." She said, turning to face the dragon, hair hiding her features.

"It was a shame your friends couldn't make it, but I enjoyed accompanying you... I enjoy your company." The dragon said, unsure of what to do.

The pegaus raised her head, giving the dragon her biggest smile, which Neltharion returned as well. The lurch in her heart returned once more, but with it a feeling of confusion, rather than fear. "Good night Nel."

"Good night to you as well, Fluttershy." He said, turning towards the cellar.

That night he dreamt of standing in a burning art gallery, looking at all of the paintings of places he had described to Fluttershy, and knowing deep down that he had started the fire.

Comments

[dark imp]

that brought a tear to my eye

[elflakkiri]

Noooooo, wanted to be first

Loved the chapter tho, keep it up

[elflakkiri]

I just have to know, when do you think you'll post the next chapter? I looooooove this sooo much!

[StasisLock]

"I have been busy in my absence"

Yes, yes you have. You may yet be redeemed.

[Lumindia]

Being a huge fan of both WoW and MLP:FiM,_ I don't feel alienated from either... I was giggling and d'awwwwing all the way through.

[Gypsy]

dooooont ship them!!!! DONT

[hk-47]

I AM DEATHWING! THE DESTROYER! THE END OF ALL THINGS! INEVITABLE! INDOMINABLE! I AM THE CATACLYSM!

[djthomp]

Excellent story so far, I am really enjoying this.

[Alex Wadegrove]

Interesting story. I'll be sure to keep my eye on this. Tracked.

[Zh3sh1re]

Is this going to continue?

[Insanity]

2 things.
1 when will the next chapter come?
2 do not ship neltherion and fluttershy, do NOT

[xbox432]

Whether you ship them or not I couldn't care, I'm mostly interested in "Nelly" finding redemption. I'm looking forward to the Mane 6's reactions as they find out more about him.

[Lumindia]

y u no update more?

[N00813]

Dead fic, then.

Shame. It was a good one.

[Emerulf]

No updates? Shame, shame indeed.
I was actually hoping that you'd update this with the same amount of frequency you used to update the Friendship Contract (or still continue to, I haven't followed it in quite awhile).

...Hmm, any criticism for this story? No, not really. Just some thoughts on what I'd love to see. For example...

1. I'd love to see Neltharion overcome his guilt alone.
"B-But Fluttershy can help him an-" No. That cliche isn't romantic. Besides, Neltharion would just feel even more guilty and angry with himself. Guilty, because he's sharing his burden with another (a mortal another) and angry because of his increasing weakness.

2. I'd love to see Rainbow Dash to drop the insults/'jokes'.
Not without anything happening, mind you. I'm mentioning this because it's becoming borderline villainizing. I mean, she does have SOME depth, she's not some cardboard cut-out that is just here to insult Neltharion.

3. To ship or not to ship? That, dear friends, is the question.
I'll be honest, in a rational standpoint, the chances of him in a relationship with Fluttershy would be...
...difficult, to say the least.

First, she won't live a third of his lifespan. In fact, not even a 1/100000th.
...The counter to this argument would be "...So?". It's more of a matter of opinion.

Second, age difference. She is barely an adult, and he's...
...past that.
Really past that.

And third... There's not much of a reason for them to even have a romantic relationship.
She helps him and leaves him alone, and he enjoys her presence much like one enjoys the presence of a good friend.
Riveting.

All these points lead me to one conclusion... No. Don't ship them.
BUT, and this is a big but(t), leave the tension around. The pressure of their friends pushing them into a relationship.
Now that is interesting.

P.S: Poison Joke = Deathwing's "return"

[Kingth]

Oh god, I've never been so happy being a WoW fan and brony.
Too bad this fic has not been updated for 3 months now. I would really, REALLY love to see the end of it.

[DavidPony]

this fic is epic i never thought of deathwing shipping before
i hope you update soon

[Lord_of_Shadows]

Man, its a real shame that you dont end this amazing history D:

[Lumindia]

I am quite upset that this hasn't been updated in forever... D:

[Dolbik]

Вставай сука!На парад пойдём!

[Azarune]

I myself don't see a problem with having the two together. I like this story and it saddens me that it might not be completed.

[MoonlightBlue]

This is so disappointing, why is it that over half the entertaining stories I end up reading are incomplete, with no resolution or ending, and most likely abandoned, with little chance for someone else to write their own version.
Edit: Sorry, I really like the story, but that's been building up for years.

[ancientofstone]

update this plz T^T

[Paladin Redflare]

ERRMAHGERZ!

[Huntermjiolnir]

MORE!

[lusians]

R.I.P this great story

[Selias]

This is... kind of interesting. Not a fan of all the romance crap, though.

[muffinator]

You shall update or i will unleash the force of all five aspects

[justindashsparkleshypie]

2042368

you fuckers annoy me, alot. If you understand English, please write it. It makes no sense, and if you don't speak English then run your comment through google translate or something...

*sigh* who do I think I'm kidding, you are almost guaranteed to be an English speaking person, I just can't...

[-Brutus]

I hope this updates more someday :>

[Orkus]

Hmph.

[A Wild Magikarp]

Someone stole my Next button! Halp!!

[Omniverse Infinity]

7692663
OMNI:We Should ally together to capture the thieve(s)
4831974
ALL:Finally someone who understands!
OMNI:Also,love that profile pic...