"Alright, alright, you can stop chewing on the bars. I'd just like you to promise you aren't going to trash my lab."
"I'm not promising anything!"
"As I presumed..Well, get over here."
The scientist pony, Discord trotted over to the cage which contained the massive creature which was once causing havoc to his flower bed outside before he dragged it inside and caged it up. The creature was rather fascinating but had quite an attitude. It was a hybrid of some sort of many animals such as a leopard, a deer, and..A butterfly? He couldn't be quite sure. All he knew was the giant creature didn't like being in tight spaces where it couldn't do what it wanted and also most likely hated him too. Safety precautions would be needed for this creature.
His horn glowed a yellow aura as he pulled out a pair of cuffs. They weren't attached to each other like any normal cuffs and they looked slightly different. They were wider and seemed like they could cover an entire wrist. He forcefully pulled the creature's claws towards him and slammed each cuff on each wrist. There was a small click noise and a fizz as they locked on to the creature's wrists. A green light flashed on the cuffs seeming to tell Discord that they were secured on.
"What are these exactly.." The creature said.
"Magic proof cuffs. They prevent any flow of magic." Discord replied. "Sorry but I'm not letting you destroy anything else in here. You weren't going to corporate so that's your fault."
Discord walked towards a switch and pulled it. The entrance to the cage suddenly opened allowing the creature freedom to leave. The creature wasn't very pleased at all with the cuffs or being locked in here and gave Discord a sort of death glare as she exited her cage. She flicked her tail around like a angry cat.
"What are you going to do with me now, 'Mr. Scientist'? Are you going to hook me up to some machine and drain all the fluids from my body? Tear away all my limbs? Ooo, how about cut off my antlers and put them on your wall so everyone can marvel at your disgusting discovery of draconequi." She pointed at her antlers, grinning at him.
"Draconequi?..That's what you are. Hmm..Never heard of such a creature. Perhaps I have a book on them here somewhere.." Discord said, going over to a very large bookshelf and looking around.
The creature swore at herself, angry at what information she just gave to the scientist. She sat down on the ground and began to bite at her cuffs with her sharp teeth attempting to either break it or get them off.
"That's not going to work you know. I invented those especially for creatures such as yourself that like to take the 'biting' and 'smashing' route."
The creature screamed in anger and got up, looking around for something else she could take her anger on. She spotted a small study space littered with open books and quills. The creature charged for it but suddenly smacked into an invisible wall. The creature was flung backward across the floor groaning.
"I also knew you'd do that. An automatic force field." He grinned, finding slight amusement in the creature's attempt at destroying his things.
"AAAAGGGH!!"
The creature screamed, charging at Discord. Discord simply only smirked, standing in place and waiting for the approaching creature. The creature stopped and attempted to scratch at his face but again an invisible force field was in her way and simply made her claw bounce off it.
"AAAH!" She hissed as her claw suddenly felt like it was on fire as she waved it around.
"Another force field and an added on little treat this time. When touched it burns you."
"HOW THE HECK DO YOU HAVE TIME TO PUT UP ALL THESE DEFENSIVE THINGS?!"
"I don't just walk around empty hoofed you know. That'd be dangerous."
The creature furiously rubbed her claw, unsure what to do with it due to having no magic to heal herself or anything else. Discord watched her struggle a little before finally saying something.
"Look, if you be good I'll heal your claw for you."
"Be quiet stupid mortal, I can take care of myself!"
Discord shrugged and then pulled out a small notebook and pencil. He wrote down that she called him a 'mortal' and could perhaps mean that she was an immortal creature herself. Although that was rather unbelievable since all life died someday. Still, he noted it down for future reference. He then glanced back up at her again to see her trying to lick her burn on her claw. He cringed a little seeing her flinch in pain.
"Still don't want me to help?"
"No, leave me alone!"
"Well, suit yourself then. I'm going to go read."
Discord adjusted his glasses on his muzzle for a moment before trotting off to the other room, leaving the female draconequus to struggle with the burn she had given herself. He climbed into a comfy chair and levitated a book he had been previously reading, opening it to its bookmarked page. As his eyes moved over the words he heard the draconequus groan and yell at herself in the other room once more. He would help her if she let him but she didn't. No point in fighting with someone who doesn't want help. He snickered a little at her struggling however as he turned the page.
About half an hour later, he saw a little blur in the distance behind his book as he looked up to see the draconequus looking rather annoyed and staring at the ground in shame. It seemed she had finally given up.
“Sooo...Do you need help?”
“...Yes.”
“There you are. It might sting a little with the cream I put on but it’ll help.”
“What, you think I can’t handle a little pain?!”
“Of course not, I never said that. I think you’re a very capable uh..Draconequus. Since you’ve been here in my lab, you’ve shown great confidence and..May I add ‘recklessness’. Your personality is very strong which only means that you, my dear are stronger than many who may try and take you down in the future."
The draconequus stared at the new bandages wrapped around her claw as the scientist washed his hooves of cream he had just applied on her burn. It felt numb and cold and made her think of an ice cube attached to her. Though, it felt good and a lot better than the pain she had experienced earlier.
"When can I leave." She asked.
Discord dried his hooves off on a towel before facing the draconequus.
"Well, unfortunately, you chose the wrong flower bed to destroy and because of that, I'd like to run a few tests on you before releasing you. You know, payback for destroying my exotic flowers from halfway across Equestria." There was a slight tension in his voice but he took a silent breath before continuing again to calm himself. "They're only simple tests anyway on your magic and your anatomy and such. It's not everyday somepony like me stumbles upon a rare creature. The results could really help me."
"Well, too bad for you I suppose because I'm not doing ANY of that! I'm getting out of here before you can even hook me up to your strange contraptions."
The draconequus spread her mismatched wings out and attempted to fly into the air but simply plummeted back to the ground again.
"Again, you don't have your magic so you cannot just fly away. Every living being has it's own magic actually to help do its tasks. Your magic is suppressed by those cuffs I put on you earlier so therefore you can't access the magic you need to fly."
"Grrrr..Stupid, stupid, STUPID!"
"The faster you get the tests done the faster you get to leave." He said, smirking a little.
Not long after, Discord had the draconequus set up in a room separated by a large glass window. It was empty, sort of like a little box. Well, not entirely empty. There were dummies placed around the room and one she was placed right in front of. It reminded the draconequus of a scarecrow as it was a pony like a figure stuffed with straw. She stared at it unimpressed as Discord suddenly appeared at the other side of the glass window with a little clipboard and pen. He pulled out a small microphone and his voice suddenly filtered throughout the room.
"Before I explain the first test, may I ask your name?"
"Pff..Why should I tell YOU?"
"Again, do you realize I'm the only escape for you."
She heavily sighed and glanced at the pony angrily behind her long pink mane. "Flutter.." She mumbled.
"What was that?"
Her eyes narrowed and she spoke a little louder but rather still quiet. "Flut..Shy.."
"Didn't quite catch that."
Her face suddenly lit up with fury. "I SAID FLUTTERSHY YOU IMBECILE!"
Discord simply grinned and laughed a bit. "That's what I wanted to hear. Now, Fluttershy, why don't you channel that anger in the dummies around you? Those dummies have sensors on them that can detect the amount of energy that your magic gives off. Feel free to destroy them too, I have no use for them after that."
Fluttershy looked at the dummy in front of her, her eyes darting around at its features and then she looked back at Discord.
"You're kidding..Right?"
"I am not, my dear. I am quite serious."
"Don't call me 'your dear'. I'm not your anything."
"But you are my test subject."
"I'm only doing this because you'll let me go. Now quit it."
Discord watched as a pink sort of aura formed around the draconequus's claw before suddenly shooting at the dummy in front of it. It didn't do much except push it back a little as it waved back and forth before finally resting idly. He heard beep noises as the calculations came in on her magic. It was fairly low as he frowned a little at it.
"There, am I done now?"
"Uh..Not quite. I don't think you were trying hard enough."
"What, what are you talking about? I literally just shot it with my magic."
"Well, you possibly didn't use enough of your magic. Try and feel your magic course through you and allow it to push right out. Don't hold back, use as much as you can!"
"Grrr...I literally just did it for you. I don't care if I didn't try hard enough, you got your data or whatever so now I can go."
Fluttershy turned away from the dummy, beginning to walk over to the door to leave.
"Fluttershy, you get back...Wait.."
He thought about it for a moment. She wasn't trying most likely because she wasn't feeling her emotions. It seemed when she was angry she could really power her magic..He grinned as he had an idea.
"Ooooh, daaarlinnng~"
Fluttershy immediately stopped in her tracks, her ears noticeably perking up.
"What did you just call me?.."
“Oh..I was just wondering if perhaps you appreciated being called ‘darling’ or ‘dear’..After all, your rather cute and adorable.” He smiled smugly at her, hoping to get a reaction.
“SHUT UP!”
It was like a tornado went through the room suddenly. All the dummies toppled over surrounding Fluttershy and suddenly were destroyed into many pieces. Discord heard his calculations going off the charts with many beeping noises when the glass separating him and Fluttershy suddenly smashed, flying right at him. He didn’t have much chance to escape before he felt many shards hit him all over his body. He smacked into the nearby wall, many blood droplets falling on the floor all around him along with shards of glass.
“Grrr...Huh..Wait..Science dude?”
Fluttershy looked all around her to see the destruction she had caused. She had done what Discord wanted but rather more aggressively than maybe he had thought. She noticed the smashed glass and the sudden disappearance of the scientist, rather confused. She climbed over fallen dummies to the other room.
“Hello?..Anypony here?”
She gasped when she almost stepped over him. He lied on the floor covered in cuts oozing with blood as there were blood droplets sprayed across the floor. He had a rather large cut on his eyelid, dripping blood down his cheek and muzzle. She picked him up, her claws becoming wet with his blood.
“Please don’t tell me I killed him..” She mumbled. “Mr. Scientist pony?”
She saw his eyes open and look up at her.
“W-Wow..C-Can I just say you have a massive amount o-of power..More than I thought..” He chuckled weakly.
“Are you alright?”
“Y-Yeah..I’m fine..Just some cuts and my head hurts..Nothing a little magic can’t fix.”
And he was right. It wasn’t long before he had cleaned himself up. He had many bandages along his body and one covering his eye but he seemed well other than that. He seemed to of been able to save the records for her magic as well. Fluttershy nervously twiddled with her claws, waiting for her next instruction.
“Alright, just two more tests. You did incredibly well with the magic. I must say I’m very impressed. Your magic would be of great use to ponies.”
“Yeah well, it’s not going to be used by ponies. It’s my own and mine alone. I’m not bending over backwards for you guys.”
“Understood, but, if you do change your mind you can always let me know.”
“I never will.”
“Anyways, time for the second test. Well, it’s not really a test actually. I’d just like to inspect your different limbs. You see, I get your species are hybrids of already existing animals. I’d just like to document all of what you are and go from there.”
“Well..Alright then.”
“Very good. Now, could you sit in that chair over there?” He pointed to a nearby chair near Fluttershy.
She shrugged and sat in it. It almost sounded like she broke it as it creaked dangerously. She gritted her teeth a little at the noise. Discord approached her, taking his hooves to her claws.
“Woah, woah, woah. What are you doing?”
“Inspecting your claws.”
“Yes, but you're touching them..”
“This is how I inspect them as well.”
“I don’t feel comfortable with you touching my claws.” She said angrily.
“I’m not going to hurt you if that’s what you think.” He replied, quickly jotting something down on a piece of paper.
He then moved his hooves to her butterfly wing. It fluttered harmlessly until Discord touched it with his hooves.
“HOOVES OFF!” She shouted, shoving his hooves away.
“What, you think a small little pony is going to hurt you?..”
“I never thought that once!”
“Than why are you scared?..”
“I’M NOT!” She screamed in his face.
He sighed, folding his ears. “Perhaps we should take a break for today. You can..Sleep in your cage I guess. I’ll put some pillows and a blanket out.”
Fluttershy began to say something back when Discord turned his back on her, trotting elsewhere. She only folded her ears, watching him go. She knew she may as well let him go.
Night had come quicker than Fluttershy had predicted and it was as if she wasn’t quite ready for it..But, it came anyway. She had watched in silence as Discord threw down a pillow and blanket in her cage, briefly looking at her before turning and leaving again. She could still remember the disappointed look he had on his face. She couldn’t figure out why he was so disappointed in her though..It was just a ‘test’ she refused to do..Or perhaps it was something more she didn’t know about..It didn’t really matter anymore anyway as she went inside her cage, getting herself all comfy as she watched all the lights in the lab flick off. She left the cage door ajar but she rested her head on her pillow, closing her eyes.
After a good five minutes though, Fluttershy reopened her eyes unable to fall asleep. She sighed annoyed as she stood up, focusing her eyes on an hourglass in the dark. The sand slowly fell to the bottom as it seemed it count the time she had left to sleep. Either that or it was counting something else. It sort of stressed Fluttershy out to look at it though as she put her claws over her face and groaned.
“I wonder if he’d mind if I looked around a little..” She mumbled.
She crawled out of her cage and stood on her four legs like a dog. She walked around admiring the different machines and inventions Discord had lying around the room. Although it was rather hard to see them, she could sort of figure out what they were. She smiled and giggled at a small bubble blowing machine she encountered behind a few books. It seemed he had tried to hide it perhaps. Maybe he was embarrassed by such a cute little thing. She walked around again in a circle after she finished observing everything she could see and sighed.
"I never thought I'd say this but I guess scientists are pretty cool.." She laughed a bit.
All of a sudden she heard a cry out into the silence. Fluttershy's head instantly jerked to the way Discord had trotted off to and to a door at the end of the hall which seemed to have light coming out of it. She did a silent jog over to the door and looked up at it. It had a small little name tag of Discord's name. It must have been Discord's office..But why was there a light on? Shouldn't he of been asleep by now? Maybe he forgot to turn off the light..Or perhaps that cry into the night was him..She pressed her claw to the door and it began to open. She watched as it slowly creaked and moved to allow a small space for her to walk on inside. She slipped in through the door, her tail sneaking in behind.
She almost stepped on a beaker that was lying on the floor. She cringed a little, pulling her claw away and searching the floor for any more obstacles. It was rather messy in here and less tidy than the main room of the lab. Honestly, it seemed like a little bit of a safety hazard. She used her wings to only softly flutter over the beaker or any other objects until she was on none littered ground. She smiled to herself, walking further until she spotted a little desk and a chair..And Discord was sitting in it!
She was about to turn back until she heard a small snoring noise..Good..He was asleep. He would never know she was in here. She approached him to see him have his head on his hooves, softly asleep. His glasses had fallen down on to a book he had been previously reading and was now sort of using as a pillow. Although..She noticed something rather peculiar..There seem to be little wet droplets on the pages of the book as if someone had dripped water on them. There were also a few on his glasses. She then noticed his face was slightly wet with..Tears. He had been crying?..Why in all of Equestria would he been crying?..Well, that's a rather stupid question since everypony cried, even Fluttershy. But still, what could possibly make him cry?
"EEK!"
Fluttershy immediately clasped her claw to her mouth. She frantically looked at Discord to make sure he was still sleeping. Luckily he only shifted a little and changed positions so he faced away from Fluttershy. She sighed in relief as she looked down at the ground. She had almost stepped on a picture frame that seemed to of been thrown on the floor and shattered its glass. She carefully cleared away the broken glass and picked up the picture, gasping at what she saw.
It was a sweet-looking pony with strawberry colored hair. She was smiling at what seemed to be a camera as another pony in the picture, Discord, had his arm wrapped around her shoulder. They both looked very happy and it seemed to be a very sunny day in the picture. Her curiosity was over its limits when she suddenly heard more shifting noises. She had to get out of there before Discord noticed she had come in here..She quickly bolted out of the office with the picture without looking back. She jumped into her cage and slammed it shut as she rested the picture behind her. She quickly covered it up with blankets and rested her head on her pillow, shutting her eyes and pretending to sleep. She heard a few trots of hooves until it all faded into silence and she eventually fell asleep for real.
"Hey, get up sleepyhead. Time to get up!"
Fluttershy woke up, hitting her head on the side of the cage and groaning. She rubbed her head and saw Discord staring at her sitting in a nearby chair with what looked like a nice hot cup of coffee. He looked like he had just come back from a party though as his mane was a mess and he had dark circles under his eyes. He gently sipped his coffee as he waited for her to exit, staring in the direction of the hallway lost in thought. She sighed, looking behind her to the picture of the mare and him..Maybe she could say she stumbled upon it while looking for..A glass of water?..Maybe. The excuse might work. She grabbed the picture with her tail and hid it behind her as she exited the cage.
"Ah yes, I thought it might take all morning for me to get you up but, here you are! Before we get to tests would you like some breakfast? It's the least I can do."
"Actually..I wanted to talk to you about something else." She nervously glanced behind her to the picture still being clutched by her tail.
"Oh, alright, what is it?" He asked, taking another sip of his coffee.
"It's uh..Well..I woke up in the night and uh..Was feeling rather thirsty and..I uh..I..Stumbled upon this picture!" She moved her tail over to him in a swift motion, showing the picture being grasped by it.
She watched nervously as his chair rolled over so he could get a better look, adjusting his glasses and squinting his eyes. He gasped when his magic suddenly gave out and the cup of coffee fell straight to the floor, smashing and splashing into a puddle. She flinched, her eyes widening as they darted to Discord's surprised face and the puddle of coffee and shards of the cup on the ground.
"W-Where did you get this?!" Discord said, sounding very scared and very unlike himself.
"I-I told you! I stumbled upon it while looking for a drink!"
"No, you didn't..I know you're lying, Fluttershy. I can tell by the tone in your voice and the way you're acting! Where--HOW did you find it!"
"I..I-"
"FLUTTERSHY!"
“I went inside your office okay?! You were asleep and you were clearly crying before that and I saw the dang picture, alright?” Fluttershy explained angrily.
He snatched it from her tail abruptly, taking it in his own hooves and treating it with care. He folded his ears sighing. She could see that he was sort of fighting back tears as he sat there in the room with her.
"It's not like I couldn't notice you were upset anyway. You look like a total wreck. But you know, if you don't WANT me to care than I won't."
She heard a soft laughing noise from Discord as he squeezed his eyes shut, placing his hoof on his face. There was a moment of silence until he let out a very sharp breath, raised his hoof high in the air with the picture, and sent it flying across the room with a cry of anger.
"WOAH!"
Fluttershy dived right for where the picture was headed and quickly grabbed it with her claws. She hit the floor hard and slid across it but she seemed unhurt.
"So it was you! This wasn't just a mistake of it accidentally falling off somewhere or something...No..You tried to smash it yourself! That's why it was already smashed..Why? What could this mare have done to you?" She pointed at the mare in the picture.
He inhaled sharply once again before opening his eyes to stare at her. Tears fell down his cheeks as he stared at her firmly. "Nothing..Absolutely nothing.."
"Huh?..What do you mean nothing..Why are you crying over her then?"
"Because..I lost her for being myself. It's my fault technically.."
"But if somepony doesn't like you for yourself than they shouldn't be your friend or well..Whatever she was to you." She gestured to the picture. "Obviously there's something wrong with her and it's good that she's gone."
"No, no..You don't understand. It was me and I am at fault.." He sighed. "Alright, I'll just tell you."
Fluttershy sat down in front of him, looking up at him waiting.
"By the way, she wasn't just my friend..She was my marefriend. Anyways..Well..We met in a coffee shop. She worked there and of course, I was a rather flustered mess during that time and while trying to order I clumsily hit into her while she was trying to clean a mess. We both fell over and well.." He chuckled. "The funny thing is..She reminds me of you a lot."
"Me?..Why me?"
"Beneath all the kind and cute looks, she's actually confident and..Well, a rude pony. But that's what I loved about her. When the first time we met she yelled in my face and although often times that can throw off someone to not be another's friend, we talked more and I realized I was starting to fall in love with her. And beneath all that confidence and rudeness, she was the sweetest pony I ever met. Maybe not to others but she had a soft spot for me." He glanced at Fluttershy, smiling sadly.
"We eventually fell in love with another and became stallionfriend and marefriend. It lasted for a good few months and those were the happiest months for me if you couldn't tell. As a scientist, my job usually requires me to be alone all the time unless I have a conversation with others about a new discovery or something else. She made me want to come out into the sun more and be more open to others. She even showed me how to make a garden..That's why I have one outside. The one you destroyed."
Fluttershy sheepishly smiled, shrugging.
"Anyway..Things became more distant over time as I got more into my work. I didn't have much time to balance her and my studies but I did try..I really did. She eventually noticed that I didn't have much time for her anymore and well..One night she just walked off and never came back.." He folded his ears as tears began to well up in his eyes again.
"Wow..Well..You know, I wouldn't say it's your fault entirely because for stuff like that to work you need both partners to commit and understand the other's issues and deal with the problems. She should have understood how much your work meant to you but you also should have tried to plan out time with her. I'd say it's both your faults."
“Y-Yea..I suppose so..”
There was a silence in the room again except for Discord’s sniffling and quiet sighing.
“You know what..Ugh, I’ve never done this for anypony before or well..Any creature for that matter so hear me out.”
Discord turned to her.
“I’ll help you find that mare and help you get her back for you if you’d like. I’m sure we could find her somewhere and I’m sure if you let her know how much she meant to you and that you would be willing to do things right this time, she’d forgive you.”
“W-What? No, no, Fluttershy, you don’t have to do that. I think honestly it’s better if we’re apart. Our lives just wouldn’t work out. I have my science and she has..Well..I guess her gardening or whatever.”
“But you miss her a lot and care for her. Even if you and she don’t get back together, you two could always apologize.”
“I..Suppose..But, I don’t even know where she is.”
“I’ll help you..You said she works at a coffee shop right?”
“Yes..The Hay Shack I think is what it was called.”
“Hmm..I might know where that is.”
“How are we going to do this?”
“Since I’m an unfamiliar face I’ll go up to her and tell her that someone wanted to talk to her and lead her outside. You could have a gift or something for her ready and then do the old sappy apologizing.”
“But..What would I even give her..W-What would I even say?”
“First let's do the gift and then we’ll think about the apologizing.”
Both Fluttershy and Discord were strolling down to the market place of Ponyville. Discord seems to have trusted Fluttershy more than he did before because she was out of her magic suppressing cuffs. It was crazy to think about how much their friendship had changed over a day. As they strolled along, there were many different reactions to Fluttershy’s appearance. Some stared up at her in awe, some ran away screaming, some mothers and father’s covered their children’s eyes as she passed, and some...Smiled at her. It was an odd reaction to her appearance but it happened anyway.
“How do you deal with this every day?” Discord whispered.
“What do you mean?”
“You know..All the staring and fear from the other ponies. Don’t you feel..Ashamed of yourself and the way you look?”
“I have felt that way before but eventually you just forget about it. In the way I think of it, I think they're jealous of my body.” Fluttershy grinned, chuckling a little.
“I guess that’s a good way to look at screaming and running away ponies.”
They both laughed as they soon both approached a flower display of many different colorful flowers. Some even the two of them had never seen before. A pony named Roseluck was currently running it and when she saw the two approaching, she immediately ducked behind her display in fear.
“Hah, just like a flower. Hiding and closing her 'petals'.” She laughed.
“Fluttershy..” He shot her a look.
“Sorry, couldn’t help the chance for a joke.”
“Good morning, Roseluck.” Discord addressed her more politely. “I’d like to purchase a bouquet of..Hm..”
His eyes moved along the many different kinds of flowers as he became rather stressed looking at them. Fluttershy must of noticed because she stepped forward.
“Do you know if she has a favorite flower?..Maybe a lot of flowers you saw in her garden from last time?"
“Uhh...” He searched his mind for a bit before his face lit up. “I saw a lot of daffodils in there.”
“Then daffodils it is.”
Fluttershy’s claw hovered over the flowers before she found a bouquet of daffodils in the group. She snatched it and walked off with it.
“Fluttershy! Ugh..I’m so sorry, Roseluck. How much are the daffodils?” He asked nervously.
“U-Uh..F-Five bits...”
He pulled out his wallet and levitated five bits over to Roseluck. She hesitantly caught them in her hooves. He began to gallop after Fluttershy but turned around to Roseluck once again.
“Thank you for the daffodils!”
Roseluck nodded as he disappeared after Fluttershy.
“You know you can’t just take something and walk off with it. At least pay for it first.” Discord said, giving Fluttershy quite an angry look.
“Eh, you’re the nice pony in a crowd. I knew you’d go back and pay for it. Besides, I can’t just appear bits out of thin air. I got no job and your pony money stuff is confusing and annoying.”
“Whatever, just don’t do it again.”
They walked past Sugar Cube Corner and then a few more houses.
“So seriously, where is this coffee shop?” Fluttershy asked.
“What..I thought you said you knew!”
“I only said that to make it look like I knew what I was doing and so that you would go along with the plan. You said you were there before and that was how you met. You should know better than I do.”
“I don’t remember every single place I go! I just..Go there!”
“Wow..Pathetic.”
“Hey, don’t call me pathetic!”
“Whatever Mr. Scientist, I’m pretty sure we’re here.”
“I have a name you know.”
“And you didn’t care to tell me it on the first day you kidnapped me into your little lab. I had to discover it on your office door. Now, shut up and look.”
Discord looked up to see they stood right in front of a little coffee shop. There were the big words ‘The Hay Shack’ on top as ponies entered and exited with cups of coffee and even donuts. Some sat outside giggling with their friends at little tables, enjoying the sun. Discord looked particularly anxious suddenly at the realization that they were here now.
“..You’re not getting cold fe- Uh..I mean, 'hooves', are you?" Fluttershy corrected herself.
“No! Why would I be?”
“You are..You’re shaking and you’re lying to me. Who’s the liar now?” She grinned.
“Quiet, I can handle myself okay..I’ll be okay if I do a few deep breaths.”
She watched as he attempted to do some deep breaths. His breaths were rather shaky and it made Fluttershy snicker a little.
“Feeling better now?” She asked.
“Yeah..I guess so.”
“Good because we’re going in.”
“W-What?! Wait!”
Fluttershy walked in, opening and shutting the door on Discord. He panicked as he opened the door and galloped in, holding the bouquet of flowers in his mouth. The inside of the coffee shop was just as he remembered. It was cozy and not very busy. It made him relax a little and feel a bit more comfortable than he did standing outside. He stood there looking around anxiously for Fluttershy as his eyes moved among the few ponies sitting around chatting with their hot drinks and sweet treats. Then she saw her..No..Not just Fluttershy..Her!
His old marefriend, Chai was standing at the counter greeting ponies and taking their orders just as she did on the first day, well, sort of. The first day he had met her they both crashed into each other..But, still, she was doing her job. She had her pink mane up in a ponytail as she wrote down some orders on a tiny notebook. He felt his heartbeat quicken as he stared at her and watched the line of ponies get smaller. Where was Fluttershy?..Oh..Oh no..She was at the front of the line now..Talking to, Chai!
“Oh..Uh...Hello, how may I help you?” He heard Chai say, seeming to be rather surprised by a none pony.
“Actually, you could help me with more than just a coffee. Ya’ got a minute, I have a friend who wants to see you.”
“Oh, sure, let me see..”
He watched her flip through her notebook and take a glance at the tiny line behind Fluttershy. There were few ponies waiting for their orders to be taken but she didn’t want to keep them waiting. She turned behind her and yelled into the back at another pony. The pony galloped over and soon took her spot as Chai nodded, leaving the counter.
“No, no, no!”
Discord panicked, doing a little dance in the spot as he looked around for a place to hide. He then ran outside again, gaining a few looks from the ponies in the coffee shop. Oddly enough, he chose the worst possible place to hide..A garbage can. It was empty thankfully but it didn’t smell good at all. He heard the door open as Chai and Fluttershy trotted out looking for him.
"So, where's your friend?"
"Darn it..I could of sworn he was right here. He must be shy."
Fluttershy had smiled at Chai friendly-like but gave an angry frown when looking away from her. It clearly wasn't directed towards Chai but rather Discord. She thought for a moment before her claw glowed softly. Discord suddenly heard a poof noise beside him as he looked down to see a telephone. It was one of those old telephones but it oddly didn't have a wire or anything to connect it to anything. It suddenly started ringing, echoing against the walls of the garbage can. He freaked out, kicking at it with his hooves causing the garbage can to not only emit the loud ringing noises but also shake and almost fell over. Fluttershy and Chai spotted it almost immediately and Fluttershy ran over.
"Get out of there you idiot! What were you thinking?!"
Chai simply watched as Fluttershy yelled at the garbage can. It would be thought she'd be annoyed at this point that her time was being taken up by someone scared and hiding in a garbage can but she actually found it rather amusing instead. She giggled behind her hoof as Fluttershy wrestled with the garbage can and soon pulled out Discord with his slightly crumpled up flowers. He looked pretty rough as she set him back on the ground. Chai's smirk faded once she realized who she was seeing in front of her.
"Alright garbage boy, you better make up a good speech because you look like absolute garbage right now..Literally." Fluttershy said, picking a banana peel out of his mane.
Discord stared into Chai's disapproving eyes. He could see her annoyance and not wanting to be here just by her looks. He sighed and stared at his crumpled daffodils. She wouldn't want these now..He threw them on the ground behind him and stared at her again.
"Chai, this wasn't the way I wanted you to see me but I guess this is how it turned out..So..I guess this is all I can do." He folded his ears, looking at her sympathetic. "Chai, I'm so sorry I didn't make enough time for you when we were together. I never got the chance to fix that because you took off before I could..But, I'd like to now.
"If I could take back what I did in the past, I would. I also would make more time for us to do things together rather than bury my head in books. I know all you see now is a pathetic stallion asking for your forgiveness but..You don't have to forgive me. I only want you to know that it was never my intention to make you feel like I never wanted you and that I only want you happy. I think it's better if we go our different ways or maybe even just remain friends. And if not either of those, that's fine to.."
Discord bowed his head and stared at the ground in silence. Fluttershy's eyes darted between the two of them as she became rather confused at the awkwardness of this situation.
"I forgive you."
"What?.." Discord's head raised.
"I forgive you," Chai repeated. "I know you meant well..Just..Yeah..I don't think we were quite meant for each other. We have different dreams and passions and that kind of clashes with what we both want. As long as you're okay with it though..I would like to be friends with you."
"O-Oh..Of course!" Discord smiled, surprised at how well this went.
"Well, that's good to hear." She grinned as well.
Chai and Discord gave each other a hug, smiling. There didn't seem to be any hurt feelings between them anymore or any sadness of not being together anymore. It seemed they both were thinking the same thing of being friends instead which was a good thing. There wasn't any conflict between them and it seemed like their friendship from now on would go well. After a while, Chai and Discord released each other.
"Well..I have to get back to my job. Hmm..Why don't we hang out tomorrow or something at my house? I know you wanted that certain technique with the garden when we last talked."
"Yeah! That'd be great."
"Alright, well, see you around, Dissy. And uh..What's your name?" She gestured to Fluttershy.
"My name's Fluttershy. The name doesn't fit me at all. Blame my mother for such a poor choice of name selection."
Chai burst out laughing. "That's mothers for you. Well, see you!"
Chai waved before hurrying back into the coffee shop. Discord felt like he had made a big achievement and couldn't help but smile as he watched from a nearby window as Chai took orders again inside. She even seemed to be a bit more light-spirited as she smiled and passed along orders with the other ponies working there. It was like a weight had been lifted off him that he never even knew he was carrying before. Fluttershy patted him on the back, watching her work as well.
"Good job, buddy. You did it."
"Yeah..Yeah, I guess I did."
"Now, what's this about the nickname 'Dissy'?" Fluttershy snickered.
"Hey, shhh, don't say that!" Discord's face turned bright red in embarrassment.
"Somebody's embarrased~"
"Quiet!"
Fluttershy laughed as Discord swatted at her like a little angry cat.
"So, are we going back to tests and isolation again?" Fluttershy asked.
"Actually..I think we're done."
"Really? That's a first."
"You barely know me, Flutters."
"I know you enough for you to be giving me nicknames. I guess that means I get to call you, Dissy." She booped him on his muzzle and he blushed.
"Annnyyywaays..By helping me, you showed me that you really do have a heart and care for others more than just yourself. And I have a feeling we'll both be seeing each other more than just at a lab now. You're a pretty interesting draconequus."
"Am I really? Wow, I never knew that." She said sarcastically.
They both began to trot off in the sunset, chatting about random things or poking fun at each other. It wasn't long until the draconequus had taken a step forward and shared a passionate kiss with the scientist. It was uncertain if the scientist shared the same feelings for her but perhaps..Just maybe..Discord was willing to open his heart again to not someone he called a beast but rather a creature of beauty.