The King of Carrot Flowers

by ShadowBoxingKing

The King of Carrot Flowers

Have you ever seen a carrot flower? I once overheard a young farmer describing what they look like: white fluffy things, pitiful in stature and wholly unimpressive to the Earth pony who wishes to cultivate food. The carrot whose root runs deep is valued greatly, while its flowery brethren are discarded and culled for the compost heap.

The origin of the carrot flower is one of adversity. When seeds are sown too early, whether by inexperienced hooves or indifferent Mother Nature, the resulting saplings face the brunt of winter, chilled to their tiny roots by frost and almost always wilting away to nothing. But in the rare circumstance of survival, these early bloomers are uniquely marked for life, with flowers.

I am not entirely unlike these wretched flowers, if only because I lack awareness of my own origin. The concept of history evades me, with neither sight nor articulation to ascribe it meaning, rendering my innermost thoughts as invisible as the passing wind. If individuals are defined by social interaction, I am nonexistent to all but one.

She enters the forest every night since our first encounter, each time with as much trepidation as the last. She feels no fear, no anxiety or distress—the behavior is simply a part of her nature. The traits that make her an outcast among her own are what fascinate me the most.

It seems I am not alone in this fascination. The others speak of her frequently, though it is clear they see her as an anomaly, a broken toy to be fixed. They urge her to function in ways that make her uncomfortable, as if she were an animal on display at the zoo. She tells me they give her these passive orders with such nonchalance, unaware of how inferior it makes her feel. If I could speak, I would tell her that in this aspect we are kindred spirits.

For as long as I can remember, ponies have been searching for me. They enter my home, shouting the nicknames they have assigned me, begging to be terrified for cheap thrills. Sometimes I answer their call, and the sight of my elongated form and sinister black tendrils sends them away screaming.

But not so for the little Pegasus. I appear to be capable of torment beyond a pony's worst nightmares, and still she returns to me after every sunset without fail. I suspect that I am not especially interesting with so little to say, but perhaps she enjoys the company of one who will listen unconditionally to what she has to say.

Our fateful introduction occurred on the evening I had almost succeeded in ending my meaningless life. Unlike the other creatures who inhabit this place, I obtain nourishment using a strange form of photosynthesis, drawing energy from an organism's body to fuel my own. Long before I had learned to control the life-sucking ability in my tendrils, I accidentally mangled and destroyed a few innocent creatures, some of them sentient. These unforgivable past sins are the reason I live with a soiled reputation, and to this very day there are those who seek vengeance in spilling my blood.

I had been in the forest for weeks, where I tied myself down with several unholy appendages after slicing off the rest. The constant hum of cicadas' mating was finally beginning to fade, and I welcomed the silence as I occasionally felt my body twitch against stiff blades of dead grass. It took so long to get this far, when my limbs insisted upon drawing nutrients from the ground beneath me, but those trace scraps of decay would not last forever. I had hoped for satisfaction that never came, feeling only disgrace as I lost consciousness.

---

The sound of music filled my brain. It was a female's voice singing to me, and the sudden realization that my suicide had been interrupted made me furious. My tendrils flared out wildly, shocking me as they did so. They had grown back. Even more surprising was the fact that this disembodied voice now giggled at my display.

“Are you awake, sleepyhead?” I craned my neck in her direction, wondering why she didn't scream and flee. A faceless monster had just threatened this creature, and in response she laughed and gave it a pet name. I considered the possibility that I had encountered one of those “crazies” who other ponies make jokes about.

“I'll take that as a yes.” I used my hooves to feel around. There were dry, rotten fruits and vegetables piled all over the ground, indicating that she had brought me food and I helplessly leeched from it every bit of juice that I could. I was insulted by her flagrant belief that my pitiful life was worth living.

“You were so hungry,” she continued, oblivious to my hateful thoughts. “I've never seen a pony eat that much! Well . . . it wasn't really eating, and you're, um . . . are you a pony?” I flinched as I felt her muzzle come close to my face—or where my face would be, if I had one. The warm breath tickled me and I shook my head. The dreaded Slender Pony, terror of the night who allegedly kidnaps and murders foals, was engaging a silly little Pegasus in idle chit-chat.

“It's okay if you're not a pony. Some of my best friends aren't ponies,” she said in an excited whisper, as if it were a huge secret that I would actually be capable of sharing with others. Incredible. I had never been good at guessing, but I felt that my previous assumption was correct. She must have been insane, I told myself, to treat me with the same hospitality one provides an ordinary traveler.

I listened as she chattered about her work, animal husbandry, feeling a sense of camaraderie in the fact that we both enjoyed the company of woodland creatures. I think she would have found it amusing if I told her how squirrels and birds often rest on my back when I stay still long enough. Alas, being speechless has its disadvantages.

She remained with me that entire evening and night, leaving only to fetch a blanket when I refused to go home with her. I rarely feel comfortable venturing out of the forest, and I was surprised that she wanted to stay here. There are wild creatures, large and terrifying, but nothing I cannot tame adeptly. It seems she has a similar influence over beasts. Ironically, her notorious icy stare is only incapable of provoking me. Chance brought us together, but it was her kindness that forged our bond permanently.

Introverts love to talk if you allow them, but their desire to listen is steadfast. The Pegasus asked what seemed like a hundred questions a day, and after some time I found myself eager to answer, and equally distraught by my innate disability. She quickly implemented a system that comes naturally to the rest of the world—body language, she called it. Her efforts were valiant, albeit fruitless since the “words” were all based on feelings that eluded me. I was silent as ever, save for one multipurpose expression.

Wiggling my ears, she insisted, was a positive affirmation meaning 'yes,' 'okay,' or even 'happy.' I still use this one on a daily basis, though I am often unsure what it truly means to be happy. One night we traveled to a clearing in the forest, untouched by grass and covered instead with sandy loam. She grasped my hoof gently with her own, bringing it to the soil and tracing a series of lines in the dirt.

“Fluttershy,” she said. She moved my hoof to her chest. “Fluttershy.” We repeated this elaborate motion for hours, until the sun rose once more and warmed our shivering skin. I ignored hunger and sleepiness, taking in each movement until it had been etched into my memory perfectly. Upon her next visit, I sat by the patch of dirt lazily absorbing a tree's nutrients, proud of what I had accomplished. She gasped as she saw my penmanship below: Fluttershy, Fluttershy, Fluttershy.

For months we continued the tradition, starting with letters, syllables and short words that held little significance elsewhere. My vocabulary grew fast and she squealed with delight at the daily activities I began to depict. I was amazed with how this pony could be so enraptured by my dull adventures.

She sidled up to me one night while describing the loveliness of a full moon, beaming down upon the humble earth and providing us with extra light to engage in our “discussion.” My hooves smeared away whatever previous, pointless thing I had written, and hurriedly scribbled out a new message.

She was quiet as she read my question.

“What is happiness?”

“But . . . 'happy' was the first word you learned, remember?”

I tilted my head towards the ground, wanting her to fulfill my wish by giving the elaborate explanation I craved. Everything else had a set definition so far. Trees were trees, cats were cats, and ponies were ponies, but 'happy' . . . it just existed.

“You know what happiness is,” she assured me. I was unconvinced, and I lowered my ears to say 'no,' as if she had asked a question instead. She seemed to be struggling for words, and I worried that perhaps I had upset my little teacher by finally stumping her. She reached for my hoof and maneuvered it slowly. I expected cold dirt, but instead felt the warmth of her coat and a thumping sensation beneath it.

“Happiness,” she said, pressing my hoof firmly against her beating heart. “I'm afraid I can't tell you what it means, my friend. It's something you have to experience yourself.”

After hearing that, I surpassed the potential of my learning curve with flying colors. We sped through whatever book she brought along, progressing from fairy tales and children's literature to philosophical classics written by the ancient ponies. I had never fancied myself an intellectual, but I was determined to solve the mystery of happiness, only to be met with challenges far more overwhelming. Yesterday I gave up on The Canterlot Tails.

I hope she is not discouraged by my failure to find meaning in words. If she returns tonight with the book, I will listen again as she reads it to me, but I cannot make any promises as to whether or not I will understand it. If she returns with Green Eggs and Hay, I am not certain I will fare much better. To apologize for my embarrassing stoicism, I have brought her a gift.

Rustling through the breeze in a bundle at my hooves, there are flowers, wild carrot flowers gathered from the deepest part of the forest where few are wont to explore. Their soft, unassuming nature reminds me of her as I wait for our usual meeting.

I cannot tell if these fluffy clumps are considered beautiful, but I pray that she will appreciate them regardless. I have yet to solve the riddle of emotion, and I may never do so, but my dear friend's unwavering devotion to such a foolish beast is deserving of reciprocation, even if it is only in the form of tiny flowers.

My ears lift at the sound of delicate hoof beats. Perhaps this is what happiness feels like.

Comments

[ShadowBoxingKing]

omgomg i actually postd somethign for the 1st tiem in weekz!!1

Before this hits the front page, I'd like to clarify that my story here isn't intended to be scary, hence the Everyone rating. Plus, just look at how cute Slendy is in the above image. If I was going for horror, I would have at least used something with more bloody eyeballs and weird-looking baby dolls.

I know this is one of those corny "misunderstood monster" motifs, so please forgive me for that. As much as I love creepypasta, stories like this, where ghosts and paranormal creatures turn out to be kind and sweet, are among my favorites.

I'm done yammering now.

[xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

959942
I like.

[Haku1013]

I must prepare for the approaching awesomeness

[Nyronus]

The concept blew my mind.

Slendy is kind of a hard beast to pin down in the ponyverse. He's cosmic horror manifest in an unassuming shape, made all the more menacing because he's just a dude in a suit. Thing is, he has no real power that we know of, except to appear menacing, cause memory problems, teleport, and ruin cheap cameras. Enough to fuck with muggles, but when you consider that Discord is more or less as powerful as Cthulu, and the Mane 6 kind of stomped him flat, Slendy stops being so scary.

But, pairing him with Fluttershy... its pure genius. Honestly, the concept alone is enough to elicit crack-fic lulz. You wouldn't believe how hard even looking at this story broke my poor friend.

As for the story itself... decent. Not mind blowing, completely out of character for Slendy, and you could call it cliche. I wouldn't. The whole "learning emotion" aspect was a completely different spin on the concept and made the story really interesting. Writing was solid and you got Fluttershy pretty down pat. All in all I give it a solid B+. Good job.

[Halogen and Alkali]

I hope you continue

[Haku1013]

Oh my god, this was amazing. An original take on the Slender Pony, and you delivered it perfectly. Definitely one of the better stories on this website.

[Gypsy]

962726

more or less as powerful as Cthulhu? thats the worst comparison ive ever had the displeasure of reading, its like comparing Cobra to Doctor Doom.

Cosmic horror isnt the correct word for him, thats reserved for the Elder gods like Zalgo and Cthulhu. He is more along the lines of a eldritch horror or abomination depending on theories.

[Nyronus]

962871

Your confusing genre with the ability to do shit. The Elder Gods aren't scary because of their awe-inspiring power, their scary because they are indifferent to anything we can do to them. Slenderman is a perfect example of this. He picks directly at all the things that make Cosmic Horror scary... by standing in the background

Even then, remember that Cthulu was only a God to us puny insects. To his people he was simply a powerful Priest-King. To the Outer Gods he was an ant. He was a rather minor figure in Lovecraft's lore, only important due to just how close he was to us.

But, let's go down the relevant facts.

> Sealed away for a long time.
> Broken free unexpectedly.
> Mere presence reshapes the world in it's image.

Yeah. Totally no comparisons to be made.

[Mask]

Whoa, this story is awesome! I love the way how you're writing Slender. It's a whole new way to view him. Keep up the great work, mate. Cheers!

[maker7999]

moar if that's okay with you

[DudeITA]

This was awesome! why do you have to end it here?

[Xerzes]

Well done.

[ThegreatH]

Zero dislikes. DAMN STRAIGHT.
Great story. Very well written.

[xXmentracksXx]

tears of pur joy for an outstanding job for this story. keep it up.

[Bad Horse]

This is a wonderful story, wonderfully written. I don't believe there's such a thing as a "best" story - some shouldn't be compared to each other - but there's nothing better than this on fimfiction. Such a distinctive voice, unlike any pony in canon, yet fit into that world. Such a touching and true-to-canon use of Fluttershy. Pathos done subtly, and succinctly, as it should be. Most writers here would have stretched this out to 6,000 words or more. This story is not sparse or stingy with words, yet it's very compact. Every word contributes directly to the theme.

You didn't add it to groups. You need to add your story to the right groups on the day you release it, preferably just after it scrolls off the front page, to have a chance at the feature box. I'm going to add it to some now. Also, this could have the Romance tag. Readers like the Romance tag. (But GoH is right; it probably shouldn't.)

Blind people might object to this: "The concept of history evades me, with neither sight nor articulation to ascribe it meaning, rendering my innermost thoughts as invisible as the passing wind." People without sight have no such problem.
"Ironically, her notorious icy stare is only incapable of provoking me." - Her stare does the opposite of provoke.

[GhostOfHeraclitus]

Marvelous story. I thank my lucky stars[1] I chanced upon it. Have a thumbs-up & a follow.

1066980
I don't think it's romance. It could be, certainly, but I think it's really about friendship. Bizarrely, a story about Slenderpony is actually remarkably akin in tone to the show itself.

[1] Mostly in the constellation of Malus Equus, if you get my drift.[2]
[2] I apologize for that pun. The people responsible have been sacked.

[mechafone]

This was absolutely amazing and breathtaking and severely touching. I have none of the correct words to do this amazing, unusual story justice.

[Bad Horse]

1067276
Look, let's not tread on each others' specialties. You give advice on how to create art; I give advice on how to prostitute that art in exchange for the adoration of the masses.

[Cobra Commander]

Exceptional, sir. Simply exceptional.

[A cubed]

You're aware of these videos, or at least of this game, correct?

Well, this story has now completely ruined the game for me... THANK YOU!!! I CAN SLEEP AGAIN!!!

But seriously though, this was excellent. It reminds me a little of Tales of Symphonia, when the girl lost her voice and had to talk by writing letters in the boy's hand. And ToS is my favorite story in existence. Congratulations, sir, you deserve the Featured Box, all 10 slots.

[ShadowBoxingKing]

962726
Thank you so much for recommending my fic to others. I can't tell you how much I appreciate it, being a relative unknown in the huge archive of incredible works that is FIMFiction. I'm glad you enjoyed it, and I hope those who were linked to it through your recommendation or Bad Horse's also find it to be worth reading. Which brings me to my next comment response...

1066980
You probably already got my PM, but thanks again for the shout-out on your blog! It truly made my day, and your critique has certainly been taken into consideration. I suppose I was trying to attribute Slendy's difficulty in understanding the importance of history to his lack of social interaction more than his lack of sight, but goofed it up. Believe me when I say it's the first flaw that sticks out when I reread this.

Her stare does the opposite of provoke. Same story, couldn't think of a better word.

1071618
Well, this story has now completely ruined the game for me... THANK YOU!!! I CAN SLEEP AGAIN!!!

Always happy to be of service.

I find the best way to ruin a good creepypasta is by making it cute or funny. For example, I used to be terrified of that Squidward's Suicide picture (yeah, I know, lame; lol don't judge me) until I photoshopped it with party hats and aviators and stuff. /off-topic

Hopefully one day I'll get that featured spot, but I dunno about all ten slots. Haha. Thanks for the kind words, though I feel obligated out of Internet Honesty™ to let you and 1067546 know I'm not a "sir." But that's okay, no offense taken or anything, since I have a weird username and my avatar is now Hugo Weaving.

To everyone else who commented, faved or watched: Bear hugs all around.

api.ning.com/files/yoGU*sWDg*D02C9GNP15zs9z2ZBNKEVTMPlOCvYn6zXhKCJwLNCdWf7*W2KUajIuW-gRLwKQxMIY9lMHKzCCd6NtXeEKxLGZ/bearhug2.jpg

[iloveportalz0r]

If we still had favorites, this would be one of the few stories in it ;_;
(the current list is equivalent to "Stuff that isn't garbage" for me)

[Redback Spino]

I never thought I'd read a story that portrayed Slenderman in a tragic or sympathetic light, but you did it! The writing was splendid, fluid and the concept was intriguing. Fluttershy was pretty much In character. And I do like how it was less a telling of events and more a telling of thoughts and emotions.

Might I suggest submitting this to EqD? I know they might be beginning to see the Slenderpony as an overused plot device, but such a unique spin as this might grab their interests.

All this said, it doesn't change the fact that the Slenderman still scares the ever-living crud out of me.

[Paladin Redflare]

Well, I liked that alot. Nice stories like this... they increase my mood. A world without conflict, a world with misunderstood creatures who only want to be like us. PONIES.

[Paladin Redflare]

1071618 *SCREAM* AHHHHHHHHHH!

[Pe4ceKeep3r]

this is the best slenderman(pony) fanfic i have read. keep it up.

[Elzipper7]

Slendy X Shy? This I have to read.

[bookplayer]

i1084.photobucket.com/albums/j412/bookplayer/ThankYoucopy.jpg
Your story was added to The Dreamers in the folder Dreams of Hope.

[Derrigan]

MOAR!!!!!

[Semblance]

While I seem to be a bit tardy in finding this story I just wanted to convey my compliments on a well written alternative take on Slendy. And to offer a small critique: You have (him?) describe his feeding as a "strange form of photosynthesis" Photosynthesis refers to gaining energy from light while (he?) gains energy from other organisms, so more like a Saprotrophism. Anyway terminology aside I very much enjoyed your story.

[moonlightmare]

I know what it is like to be seen like I'm a freak or monster, sigh.....maybe freak I don't know about being monster well I don't think everyone ever thought of me that way. But sometimes I see my self that way, you wold understand if you knew what dark and evil thoughts went through my head.

But if it matters to you slender mane I don't think of you as a monster and I mean it, from the bottom of my heart.

[Casca]

You may thank the powerhouse that is Bad Horse for pointing me your way. This was a really good read, skillfully written. It's just as Bad Horse says - the voice and the length are just right, which shows a strong grasp of the craft. Good, thought-engaging read you have here.

[cheezesauce]

I enjoyed reading this story. It's written simply, but yet manages to bring across quite complex feelings and emotions.

[DanishDash]

This was so beautiful <3

[Late_Night]

a good story, but it feels like it could be more

[Starlight Nova]

What does the story's title have to do with the Slender Pony?