"Discord! You won't succeed!" said Celestia angrily. "This time, you can't mess with the Elements!"
"Oh, I know. But what about their bearers?" Discord asked, grinning.
"What did you do to them?!" asked Celestia in shock and horror, tears streaming down her face as she realized her mistake.
Discord frowned. "I only prevented them from obtaining the Elements. They are safe. Do you really think I could hurt Fluttershy?"
"You never really cared!"
Discord seethed. "I do care! I just can't change who I am! Not even a thousand years, frozen in stone, could change me!"
"I thought a friend could." said Celestia quietly.
Discord felt tears begin falling out of his eyes as well. "I thought so as well." he replied, before teleporting away, back to his throne in Ponyville. He sat there for a while, feeling something missing. He decided to see what his fri-FORMER friends were up to. With a teleport, he was in the library, right next to them, invisible for the moment.
"They were right there!" said Twilight, panicked. "The Elements are gone!"
"Maybe... you misplaced them?" asked Rarity, concerned. "What other explanation is there?"
"I don't know, but we need to look for them! They could be anywhere!" panicked Twilight.
To Discord's surprise, Pinkie Pie was holding the Elements of Harmony on her back. "I have no clue where they are!" Pinkie said, giggling. "They're certainly not invisible on my back while an invisible Discord steals them!"
Everypony stared at Pinkie, confused and concerned, while an invisible Discord stole the invisible Elements off of Pinkie's back. He may not have been able to use magic on them, but he could hold them in his claws. He nervously backed away, before tripping over Pinkie's outstretched hoof and falling into one of Twilight's shelves. Books and dust rained over Discord, and everypony turned his way. He was still invisible, but Twilight and her friends could clearly see his outline from the dust and books lying on top of him, as well as the Elements. They simultaneously made a mad dash for the Elements, but Discord teleported away with a snap. It took him under ten seconds to figure out his mistake. He teleported back in, still invisible, this time behind Twilight. His magic hadn't kept the Elements with him during the transport. They were still sorting out where each element was, so he quickly and quietly took one, the Element of Laughter. Serves her right! How did she even know I was there, and how did she find the Elements? Discord wondered. He was about to teleport away again, but caught himself. He walked out the door, then with a snap of his fingers a giant pit appeared in Ponyville, about a hundred feet deep. He dropped the Element of Laughter at the bottom, then sealed it back up with another snap of his fingers. Opposition was over and done with when he deposited Tirek on the moon, three snaps later. Nopony could stop him now, but he still felt something missing. Back on his throne, directly above the Element of Laughter, he sighed. Chaos was back, and it looked like this time it was here for good, but he couldn't help feeling something missing. He wished Fluttershy was there. There was no denying it, something inside him had stopped him from terrorizing animals, and it was the same part who didn't want to lose the only friend he had ever made. Thousands of years of life, and in the entire time, only one friend? There was a part of him that still hoped that Fluttershy might forgive him, and maybe even help him, in time. He teleported to Fluttershy, who was currently sobbing in her cottage.
"Fluttershy?"
"D-discord? What are you doing here? Why did you go back to causing chaos? I thought I was your friend!"
"I was your friend, and I would like to remain your friend."
"Then fix everything! Remove the chaos!"
"I can't, Fluttershy. I can't change who I am. In my heart, I am made of chaos. Nothing can change that. Would you force one of your friends to be something they weren't?"
"N-no. I just, really thought you didn't need chaos anymore."
"I'm afraid I'm always going to need chaos."
There was a moment of silence. "What are you going to do to us?" Fluttershy asked, fearfully.
Discord's head whipped around, 360 degrees. "I will let you live your lives, dropping in from time to time to say hello. I really am sorry about all this. Make no mistake, I won't mess with you. You taught me friendship. That is a part of me now, and I want my friends to be happy."
"I can't be happy with permanent chaos."
"I... guess I can compromise. I'll create a hole in my chaos. After all, perfect chaos is order." Discord said, while a hole in his chest appeared and grew until it was about the size of his head. He snapped his fingers, and Canterlot returned to normal, and Celestia and Luna were teleported next to him. With another snap, he created a crown and staff for Fluttershy. "Here you go, you are now ruler of Canterlot, non-chaos capital of the world! Sorry, Celly and Woona, you've been demoted. You can stay with me, though. Oh! We could play card games!"
Fluttershy flew off, reaching Canterlot only a few minutes later. Discord had apparently shortened the distance between the two cities. She gulped noticeably, before reaching Canterlot Castle. This was her home now, and it was her job to keep these ponies safe.