I Shall Remember Thee
The cold, rainy evening was a poor time for it to happen. I remember being called over to Twilight's castle, and thinking that we would have a party. The opposite happened. I knocked on the door, and a crying Twilight answered. When I asked her what was wrong, she replied, "Oh, Fluttershy, you had better come inside and see." That got me worried. Twilight would never deny me the right to know what I was walking into before hoof unless it was important.
As we walked through the barren hallways of Twilight's new castle, I got the feeling that something bad was happening; something really bad that would destroy my life. Although I wanted to run away, to not face the music, I continued to follow Twilight. After what felt like an eternity, though was probably only five minutes, we came to a dimly lit room. Before we went in, Twilight stopped me. "Listen," she said, her voice quivering. "What's in here is going to make you want to run away, to cry, to paralyze you. Promise me, though, that you won't. Promise me that you will get through this." Twilight, who normally was so open about me being shy, was forcing me to face this, so I knew it was going to be bad. I just didn't know how bad. I nodded as a response to Twilight's message, and followed her inside the room.
Immediately I smelled an animal that needed help. It was in the air. An infection, and probably a broken bone or two. The light made it hard to see what was in the room, but once my eyes adjusted, I saw that it was a bedroom. I saw the bed, and on the bed, was my worst nightmare. I wanted to scream, to run, but I couldn't because of my promise. On the bed, on the bed I wish that I had never saw, laid a dying Discord. I rushed up to the bed and kissed him on the lips. There was no response. I hugged him, but there was still no response. I sat there, crying over Discord's dying body, when Twilight spoke. "W-we found him in the Everfree fighting this, this, creature that we didn't know what it was. He was badly injured, nearly dead, but the creature ran when he saw us. I brought him back here so that you could say goodbye. After all, it is obvious that you love him." Her voice, though gentle, had an underlying tone of distaste.
Hearing my friend's voice so disgusted filled me with rage and gave me courage. "You know what, Twilight?" I was deathly serious, and it must have shown, because Twilight shrank away from me. "I love him! Okay? Have you ever cared about anypony so much that you would be willing to die, or even kill, for him?! Obviously not, as you have the insensitivity to tell me what happened to him as if you are reading out of a book. I love him, you hear? I love him!" I was shouting by the end, and the entire room shook. I realized that I had been using The Stare on my friend, so I looked away. She ran as if an entire pack of ravenous Timber Wolves were following her.
"Buck Twilight, right?" A small voice, quiet, but memorable, sounded from behind me. I couldn't turn around, for the fear that I had imagined it. "She can be a real bitch sometimes, ya know? She never-" Discord was interrupted by me forcing my lips into his. He didn't even try to do anything, which was strange. Normal by now, we would be lifted up by a huge rose, trumpets would be playing in the background, or we would be magically teleported to the beach at sunset. Nothing happened, and yet strangely, it was the most romantic kiss that we had ever shared, the most natural. He broke apart, and looked me in the eyes. "Well, I guess that you can tell that I'm not feeling my best..."
He was about to go on a long rant, but I interrupted him, again. "Obviously not!" I called, my voice shrill. "You're on your death bed! You-you met a strange creature that almost killed you! How can a creature kill you? You're a God for Celestia's sake!" Discord shushed me with a single touch to my lips. He knew how to get me going. Whenever he touched me, I felt my heart flutter. Maybe my parents should have named me Flutterheart instead of Fluttershy, right now, that seems like a more suiting name. "D-Discord, move your paw, or I might have a heart-attack." He did, but not without a slight brush of my hair first. Once again, my heart started to beat faster, and my stomach did flips to join my heart. Oh, how messed up I sound, even to myself. Truly, though, that's how much I love him; and, apparently, how much he loves me.
Discord looked me in my eyes, which he hardly ever did. "Fluttershy, the creature that attacked me was much like a changeling, except instead of drinking love, it drinks power...now that I think about it, much like Tirek. The one difference between it and Tirek is that even though it is no longer near me, it can still suck my power. And, you know, an entity like me is made of power, so once it is done sucking my power..." He trailed off, not wanting to finish the sentence, not wanting to seal his fate. Words are a fickle thing. he once told me. Once spoken, they set your fate in stone. I had merely laughed at his superstition, but now, I understood. Still, I had to bring it up.
"Discord, will you die?" My voice was barely audible. I felt something inside me break. Like a dam, the tears just started flowing, and I just couldn't stop.
Discord laid there smiling at me. "Damn, Fluttershy, do you have an ocean inside of you?" Seeing that this didn't get a laugh, he pushed on. "Yes, I am dying. I will probably die within the hour." He said this with such certainty that I didn't dare doubt him.
"If you're dying, then I want will as well. I can't stand to live without you." I know how desperate I must have sounded, yet Discord stayed strong.
"No, you must stay here. You must live and raise our child."
I started crying again. "No! I will be miserable without you! We can be happy in the afterlife together! Let me die!" The tears flooded from my eyes like I wanted-still want- my life to flow from my body. Despite the odds, Discord started crying, too.
"Fluttershy, my little bat, I would like nothing more than for you to curl up with me and die, but you must live. You must take care of our child. You- you must remember me. Please, Fluttershy. Please." Discord never cried in front of me, never showed weakness. I now realized what his fear was. "Fluttershy, if you kill yourself, who will remember me? I mean, who will remember me for the romantic, caring, loving Draconequus that I am? Who will?" I had no response. Nopony would, it was only me. "Fluttershy," he said, his voice slightly faint. "Fluttershy, will you marry me?"
My heart stopped. My entire essence felt like it was on fire. I leaned forward, and in his right ear whispered, "Yes, I will. I, Fluttershy, vow to love you until death do us part".
A smile appeared on Discord's graying face. "I, Discord, vow to love you, until death do us part. You may now kiss your bride." I leaned in and kissed him gently on his lips. A sigh escaped him, and with a flash of sparks he disappeared. I felt myself crying, shaking, and I fell to the floor. As I fell, a piece of cloth fell on me. I looked at it, and saw that it was my dress from the Gala, except slightly changed. It was longer, and had a white piece of cloth on the back. A smile escaped, closely followed by uncontrollable sobbing. I sobbed, not only for my dead husband, but also for my unborn child, and all of the ponies of Equestria that had never met the kind Discord.
I sat there sobbing for hours. I sobbed until I had no tears left to cry. Finally, I sat up and said, "I shall remember thee." I put on the dress, and walked the halls of Twilight's castle. I walked without purpose, thinking about what I was going to tell everypony that would make them remember Discord for the kind, loving Draconequus that he truly was.
***
Ten years later, while watching Entity play with old Angle bunny, I remember that night, and remember the promise I made. Thinking back, I really had achieved my goal. I never have fully told my daughter about her father all the way though. I decided that I would, and called her over. "Hey, honey! Let me tell you a story that I know you will love..."