Heir To Darkness

by Leafdoggy

Chapter 1: Departure

“Well? Aren’t you going to invite me in?”

Dracula towered above Fluttershy with her head held high and her smile unflinching. She was the very picture of confidence, even despite the warm, sunny Ponyville day behind her contrasting with everything that she was.

Fluttershy gasped and stepped aside. “Of course! Please, come in, make yourself comfortable. Oh, and your—”

Dracula held up a hoof to stop her. “No. They can stay outside.”

“Oh. Well, if you’re sure…” Fluttershy turned to the two ponies waiting outside and gave them a meek smile. “I’m sorry.”

The stallion shrugged.

Before Fluttershy could say anything else, a white glow enveloped the door, and it swung shut with a quiet click. When Fluttershy looked back, Dracula had already lounged on her sofa extravagantly.

The room stood silent. The birds and insects outside had fallen quiet, and the breeze that blew in was hollow. A clock ticked in the kitchen, but even it seemed further away with every second.

Dracula propped her head up with a hoof and watched Fluttershy wordlessly.

Fluttershy looked back, their eyes locked together, until she realized that she should probably be doing something. Then she coughed and trotted over as quickly as she could without looking panicked. “Is there anything I can get you, My—” She caught herself and cleared her throat. “Um, Miss Dracula?”

Dracula wrinkled her brow. “Well don’t call me miss. I’m not some doe-eyed bride-to-be.”

“Oh.” Fluttershy looked more nervous with every word. “Sorry, um…”

“Fine, just go with ‘My Lady.’” She sighed. “This is going to be harder than I thought.”

“What is?” Fluttershy asked without thinking, then gasped and covered her mouth. “Oh, sorry, I probably shouldn’t—”

Dracula put a hoof up again, and Fluttershy stopped talking. “Sit down. We need to talk.”

Fluttershy looked around at the sofa taken up by Dracula and the chair filled by Pinkie. Seeing no other option, she sat on the floor.

Dracula narrowed her eyes. “What are you doing? Use a chair, you’re embarrassing us both.”

“But… The chair is taken.”

Dracula’s gaze lingered on Fluttershy for a moment before slowly turning and falling on Pinkie’s sleeping form. “Ah,” she said. “Your thrall.”

Fluttershy pursed her lips. “Girlfriend, actually,” she said quietly.

Dracula raised an eyebrow towards her. “Hm?” The blazing red of her eyes seemed to pierce straight into Fluttershy’s soul.

“N-Nothing!” Fluttershy sat up as straight as she could and shut her mouth.

“Mm.” Dracula regarded her for a moment, then returned her attention to Pinkie. “Wake her up.”

“What?” Fluttershy looked at her blankly. “But why?”

“You need a seat. At the very least, she could share.”

“She’s comfortable, though,” Fluttershy said.

“And I should care why?”

“Waking her up would be mean”

“I’m Dracula. I don’t care if something is mean.” She stared down at Fluttershy for a moment, until her face softened as a thought struck her. “Fine,” she said. “I’ll do it.”

“But-” Fluttershy started, but Dracula ignored her.

Dracula’s horn lit up with a blazing white glow, and a moment later one of Pinkie’s hind legs did as well. Then Dracula dragged her into the air, holding her with one leg like a towel with an unsightly stain, and scowled. “Wake up.”

Pinkie yawned and blinked a few times as the sleep left her body and her mind came back to her. She didn’t seem to notice that she was being held upside down in midair. “Mm?” she mumbled, and when she was finally lucid enough to recognize Dracula, a wide smile crossed her face.

“Dracula!” Pinkie tried to swing her legs up excitedly, but all that accomplished was making her swing back and forth. “You came to visit!”

“This is not a visit, Pinkamena. I’m here on business.”

Pinkie tilted her head. “With me?” Behind her, Fluttershy stifled a laugh.

Dracula growled and dropped her. Pinkie landed with a roll that left her lying next to Fluttershy, who ran a hoof through her mane and smiled.

“Enough of this. Fluttershy, say your goodbyes. You won’t be returning to Ponyville for some time.”

Fluttershy’s face fell. “What? B-But, My Lady, why? This is my home.”

“That’s part of the problem,” Dracula said. “This place has softened you. If you are to be a proper heiress, you’ll need to strengthen your resolve.”

“A proper…” Fluttershy choked on the words.

“Heiress, yes. I’ve made my decision, and you are to be the next Dracula.”

Pinkie gasped. “Fluttershy, did you hear that? You’re Dracula! Ooh, I’m dating Dracula, this is so cool!”

“But...” Fluttershy was reeling. “But I…”

Dracula glared at her. “Are you doubting my wisdom?”

Fluttershy gulped. “No, M-My Lady, I just… I don’t think I want to be Dracula.”

“Nor did I, when I took the throne. It is a position of necessity, not desire.”

“How could I be the best choice, though?” Fluttershy bit her lip anxiously.

“A modern Equestria needs a modern Dracula. Conversion has been outlawed for some time, though, and so you’re the only modern vampire. Thus, it falls on you.”

“Oh…” Fluttershy looked down at the floor, trying to wrap her head around it all.

“Plus,” Dracula added, “I like you. You’re cute when I make you squirm.”

“So I have to say goodbye to everypony?” Fluttershy asked. “Even Pinkie?”

“Well, that depends,” Dracula said. “Thralls are perfectly permissible. Significant others, however, are not.”

“She’s not—”

“I could be a thrall,” Pinkie said. “What’s a thrall?”

Dracula grinned. “Oh, a thrall is many things. A servant. A plaything. A snack. Anything Fluttershy might need, really.”

“Just give her whatever she wants?” Pinkie waved a hoof. “Pfft, that’s easy. I already do that!”

“Anything she needs,” Dracula corrected, “and in my care she’ll need many things. She’s to become the most powerful vampire in Equestria. A thrall will come with certain… Expectations of her.”

“You mean—”

“I’ll do it!” Pinkie said. “I don’t care what I’d have to do for her.”

“But Pinkie—”

“Fluttershy, don’t worry about me,” Pinkie told her. “I can handle whatever she’s talking about.”

“I’m not worried about you,” Fluttershy said. “I know you’d be fine, but I can’t bite you. It’s just too much.”

“Oh.” Pinkie looked blankly at her, then started to frown.

“Well, I suppose that’s settled,” Dracula said. “No Pinkamena” Suddenly, she stood up. “Well, it’s getting late. Shall we go?”

Fluttershy gasped quietly. “But I thought you said I should say my goodbyes!”

“Yes, to Pinkamena here,” Dracula said. “Did you think I was going to go gallivanting around town with you as you shed your tears for every friend you have?”

“Well, I just—”

Dracula glared at her. “What was that?”

Fluttershy swallowed her words. “N-Nothing, My Lady. Of course, you’re right. I shouldn’t… Waste your time like that.”

Dracula shook her head. “You’ve a long way to go.” Then she turned and started walking to the door. “Say goodbye quickly, lest my patience run out.”

As soon as the door clicked shut behind Dracula, Fluttershy turned to Pinkie and grabbed her in a tight hug. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered. “I’m not strong enough to take you with me.”

Pinkie sniffed hard and squeezed her back. “I get it.”

“I’ll miss you,” Fluttershy said. Her voice cracked as she spoke. “I’ll think about you every day.”

Pinkie nodded and pressed herself against Fluttershy. “Mm-hm.”

“I’ll come back to you as soon as I can. I love you, Pinkie.”

“I love you too…”

They stayed there, holding each other, until there was an impatient knock on the door. Then Fluttershy pulled back, gave Pinkie a soft kiss, and got up to head for the door.

“Bye-bye,” Pinkie muttered under her breath. It was too quiet for Fluttershy to hear.

A moment later, the door clicked shut again, and Pinkie wiped her eyes. “It’ll be okay, Pinkie,” she told herself. “She’s just… Going to a town full of vampires and ghouls and ghosts and is gonna be stuck there until Dracula thinks she’s mean enough. So… Forever.”

The color seemed to drain out of her as her expression started to turn even more sullen.

---

Fluttershy tapped the side of the carriage anxiously as they flew over a far off forest. Below her was a sea of trees, and from up above the dark wood and thick canopy made the few places where she could see past the leaves look like they dropped into a bottomless pit. The dense fog had just started to creep in as they made their way closer to their destination.

It was a simple carriage. Two seats, facing each other, with no roof or enclosure. It was made of old, dry wood that creaked and groaned as the carriage shifted in the sky. Dracula was sitting opposite Fluttershy, watching her in silence, and had been for the entire trip.

Without thinking, Fluttershy let out a sigh.

“Something the matter?” Dracula asked.

“What?” Fluttershy’s eyes went wide. “Oh, no, not at all, My Lady.”

“Fluttershy, I’m not your enemy here,” Dracula said. “You needn’t be afraid of me.”

“O-Of course, My Lady.”

Dracula hummed in thought for a moment. “How do you think I gained the name of Dracula?”

“You, um, said you were the first Dracula’s daughter, right?”

“Correct, but that does not mean it was willingly handed down.”

They locked eyes, and looked at each other in silence for a minute.

“My father was an awful man. He ruled through fear and power, and instilled in the creatures of the night a drive to do the same. And, for a time, it worked.”

Fluttershy nodded slowly.

“You can only push so hard, though, before something pushes back. The ponies of the day learned. They studied. They began to rise up, and there was nothing we could do. Should we stop one of them, three more would rise seeking retribution. The world changed. We were hunted.”

She paused and stared into Fluttershy’s eyes, letting it all sink in.

“And yet, still, they followed him. The creatures of the night were all but ready to follow my father to our bitter end.”

“So, you…”

Dracula nodded. “So, I seized the throne. I knew he would never step down, and I would be unable to change the flow of events with words alone. Power was the language they understood, so power was what I showed them.”

She paused again, this time for several minutes. In the distance, the sun started to set.

“My reign has lasted far longer than his, and I have been far more successful. I’ve led up to a state of peace with the ponies of the day, though it cost us dearly. We’ve lost our place in this world. We live in secrecy, always afraid we may be found and hunted once more. I’ve bought us safety, yes, but at the same time I lost us security.”

She took a long, deep breath before continuing.

“We need a new leader. One who can bring us out of hiding without placing us in danger, because that is something I cannot do. We need a softer touch.”

She focused intently on Fluttershy.

“We need you.”

Fluttershy reached up and rubbed one of her ears nervously. “Am I really the only pony who can do it?”

“Plenty of ponies probably could,” Dracula said, “but they aren’t here. They’re in their own world, full of light and hope. Of my subjects, there are very few I believe could lead us into the future, and of them all, you are the only one I believe could ever take the throne from me.”

“Wait, take?” Fluttershy leaned back in shock.

“We are not the Equestria you know. Despite all I’ve done, I’ve never been able to move us past that focus on power. What do you think would happen if I were to step aside, and tell them all to follow you as you are now?”

“Um…”

“They would tear you apart. Every creature out there with delusions of grandeur would descend on the throne, and our society would fall apart. You need to be strong enough to take the throne.”

“Oh.” Fluttershy looked to her side, out at the great body of trees that was now entirely shrouded in mist. “And… And you’re sure it has to be me?”

“There is not a doubt in my mind.”

Comments

[vinyldash23]

A modern Equestria needs a modern Dracula

Modern problems require modern solutions.