Starlight tapped her hooves against her chair, just one of the many nervous ticks in her arsenal. Before her, suspended in her turquoise magic, was a folded letter gently bobbing up and down in the air. The letter's envelope lay discarded below, addressed with a pink butterfly stamp and one line neatly written in cursive that read, 'To Starlight'.
Dear Starlight,
I wish I had time to let you know myself, but I'm very busy at my nature sanctuary today, helping this season's litter of baby bunnies get accustomed to their new home; so I've sent Cleo to deliver this message to you for me, instead.
Starlight briefly looked past the paper to see Cleo, a red robin, chirping warmly at her from atop her dresser.
I know you're probably busy as well, so I'll get straight to the point.
Discord and I were having our regular Tuesday Tea this morning when the topic of our friends came up. We talked about the wonderful things they've been doing over this past year. It usually takes quite a lot to catch Discord's attention, but he became very interested when I brought up your visit to see the changelings with Trixie. He left not long after that, and he didn't even take his tea cakes with him!
Starlight, I think Discord may be planning to drop by the castle to see you. He seemed upset, though I'm not entirely sure what about. Please let Twilight know about this, as well. She gets anxious when things go unexpectedly, and though I find him endearing, Discord tends to do, well...everything unexpectedly.
Please say hello to Twilight and Spike for me.
Fluttershy
Starlight frantically read through each sentence, her eyes growing steadily wider and wilder with each one. When the letter finally finished, her magic faded, and the paper gracefully floated down onto the table. Starlight then left her chair and began to pace around the room, absently watching the floor as her mind raced.
"Discord is upset over Trixie and I seeing the changelings?" she muttered aloud, occasionally glancing at Cleo preening her wings. "Why would he be upset over that? That...doesn't make sense."
A loud bang shot through the room, and Starlight jumped. When she turned her head, she found her bedroom window thrown open. Cleo, now spooked, flew from her perch and out the window. A cold chill ran up Starlight's spine.
This was no ordinary burst of morning air. An unmistakable presence now leered over her.
"We've now reached the part where I say something to the effect of, 'why, Starlight, have you even met me? Not making sense is my very reason for getting out of my tree in the morning.'"
A shallow gasp fell from Starlight's lips. The unicorn shot a look over her shoulder, slowly tracing her gaze up the elongated body of Discord. The spirit's pointed yellow eyes met hers, and he crossed his arms. An eyebrow rose clear off his forehead.
"True to the form of not making sense," he continued, racing along the wall like a snake and rising next to where Starlight stood. "I am feeling rather torn up today."
As if on cue, the shrill sound of a tearing paper filled the room, as Discord's body was reduced to a pile of shreds. Starlight barely had occasion to grimace before the pile of scraps rose to life with a mind of its own, folding itself into a blizzard of crumpled origami shapes until Discord's form was rebuilt. His expression returned as a hard stare that left Starlight in a sweat.
"But why are you upset?" Starlight probed. "What about my trip with Trixie could have possibly bothered you?"
Discord's beady eyes rolled out from his head like golf balls, circling up and around his antlers before returning to his sockets. "You're an astute graduated friendship student, and you don't even realize what you did? Really, Starlight, I expected more from you."
The draconequus reached his eagle claw through thin air, pulling a bright yellow foam hand out from the ether. The prop, featuring a pointed finger and 'YOU!' emblazoned on it, floated up above their heads, incessantly pointing at Starlight.
"You and Trixie went to visit our newly crowned friend King Horsebug, yes?"
"We did."
"You did this because you consider yourselves friends with Thorax, now that Queen Cheeselegs is no longer calling the shots, correct?"
Starlight hypnotically watched the foam hand dance around her bedroom ceiling. "Well, yeah. That, and we're allies with the changelings now. When Thorax needed help, Trixie and I offered to visit him and see what we could do."
"Oh, how very thoughtful," Discord said calmly. "Though I do seem to recall a fourth member in that little troop of secondary characters that took on the changeling hive. A fourth friend to that gaggle of companions that faced certain peril, together. Hmm, now what was his name, again?"
As if yanked by an invisible force, the foam hand soared over to fit itself over Discord's lion paw, the lettering now reading 'DISCORD!'. Starlight blinked, and Discord now wore a black leather outfit with a wool overcoat. She blinked again, and a vibrant red guitar hung from a shoulder strap over his shoulder.
"One does not simply have a band reunion without the lead guitarist, Starlight. Honestly, it's as if you failed to invite me on purpose."
"Lead guitarist?" Starlight babbled. "Wait, you feel...you're feeling left out? I didn't-Discord, I didn't think you'd care to come along with us. I didn't know you and Thorax were even that close. I didn't think you'd-"
"Yes, you didn't ‘think’!" Discord turned on his hoofed heel and faced the still-open window. His wavy jet black hair now trailed to his waist, flowing in the breeze. "Just how many times must I assure ponies that the Lord of Chaos is truly reformed now, and that he is truly interested in creating and maintaining friendships these days? I feel it's been shown ad nauseam at this point, don't you think? I mean, we are pretty far along in the plot."
Discord cracked the joints in his limbs by twisting them. "But you know what? This is just fine. As Fluttershy always says, 'look for the positive, then create the positive'. I'll simply visit our dear friend Lord Beetlemoose myself. I promised the changelings I'd return with new comedic material, anyway, and now that they're all varying shades of fabulous and can think for themselves, I'm sure they'll be far more entertaining than they used to be."
In a way to defy all laws of gravity, Discord's feet left the floor before his upper body, slithering up the wall and out the window. As his body followed suit, he shot another look at the baffled unicorn and spoke with venom.
"Rest assured, Thorax and I will have a grand old time, Starlight. I promise I'll tell you all about it as soon as I return, and perhaps next time we can all organize a proper reunion for the four of us."
The serpentine spirit vanished, and Starlight's window panes promptly slammed shut. The unicorn bit her lip as she stared after him, mounting anxieties tumbling down a slippery slope. Her room was suddenly quiet and calm, but the volume of her own thoughts was deafening.
"Starlight!" The sudden, frantic voice of Twilight came with a pop of pink magic. "Oh, there you are. Are you okay? I thought I heard voices in here."
Starlight sidelined a worried look, and Twilight raised a hoof in distress.
"O-oh my, I'm so sorry! I really need to get better at knocking first."
"No, you're fine," Starlight mumbled, releasing a heavy sigh and trotting over to her bed. "It was nothing, just another friendship lesson I botched horribly."
Twilight cocked her head. While Starlight cocooned herself within a mass of pillows and blankets, Twilight took to the bedside, attempting to catch her pupil's eye. "Botched a friendship lesson? Starlight, what happened? Who were you talking to?"
"Discord," said Starlight, her voice muffled by the bedding. "He's put out that I didn't invite him to come with Trixie and I to visit Thorax. I guess he thinks we were having some kind of 'Chrysalis Overthrowers Squad' reunion without him."
Twilight giggled and sat back on her haunches, patiently observing the distraught unicorn as she fumbled around under the mass of feathered comforts. "Well, it is Discord. He's only beaten by Rarity when it comes to being melodramatic."
"Still, I could’ve at least asked him, couldn't I? He's right. Without him, we would never have been able to get past Chrysalis's guards, or even made it to her throne room. Now he probably thinks I'm ungrateful."
"Starlight, I think you're overthinking this just a bit," Twilight stated with a knowing smile. "There's no way you could’ve known Discord's feelings ahead of time. Nopony is omniscient, especially towards somepony as unpredictable as Discord. Why not try organizing a proper reunion for all four of you? Discord will feel included, and everypony will get a chance to see each other again."
Starlight let out a shallow laugh at her onset deja vu. Her head emerged from the depths of her blankets, and she shared a smile with her mentor. "Yeah, that's probably a good idea. I think I'll leave a message with Fluttershy when Discord comes back from the Changeling Kingdom, letting him know I'd like to have us all get together sometime. It's just like you taught me—’I can't change the past, but I can change the future’, right? Twilight?"
The color had drained from Twilight's cheeks. Starlight quickly bloomed from her cocoon and waved a hoof in front of her face.
"Uh, Twilight? Are you there?"
"Did you say Discord is going to the Changeling Kingdom?" Twilight repeated in a low whisper. Starlight's worried look returned with a vengeance.
"Um, yes? Is that a bad thing?"
Twilight began to dance on her hoof tips. "As in, he went on an impromptu visit to one of our foreign neighbors without letting anypony know in advance!?"
"Well, yeah, I guess so. I mean, he told me just now but I take it I'm not the one you were thinking of."
"This could be disastrous!" Twilight hissed, missing her pupil's input altogether and trotting towards the bedroom door. "Discord and foreign relations do not mix! The last time Prince Rutherford visited Canterlot, he almost declared war again over Discord's antics!"
"Okay, here’s a thought. I was overthinking things, but you're just preparing for doomsday," Starlight monotoned, rolling her eyes. "Thorax? Start a war, Twilight? I think we're sooner to come under siege by Fluttershy's animals."
"It was just an example, Starlight. I'm not worried about a war," Twilight galloped out of the bedroom, with Starlight following her. "I'm worried that Discord might startle the changelings."
There was a pause. Starlight gave a shrill, one-note cackle. "Startle? Like, 'hey, don't spook my goat, he might faint' startle?"
Behind her mask of concern, Twilight held back a giggle. "You know what I mean. The changelings are still rediscovering themselves, getting used to feeling emotions rather than feeding off of them. The last thing they need is erratic stimuli like Discord wreaking havoc on the entire hive."
Starlight curled her lip at the thought. "Fair point. So what's the plan of action, then? Warn Thorax?"
"No, it might be too late to warn Thorax with a letter," Twilight sighed, casting her magic on the doorknobs to her library. "And I have way too much work today to make a trip over myself. We'll have to send some ponies over to play damage control."
Starlight had been surveying the tiles along the floor, but a hanging silence caught her attention. She looked up to find Twilight staring at her, wearing a sheepish little smile. The unicorn gave a sigh of her own.
"What, me? I mean, sure, but, I'm not sure how effective I'll be, seeing as Discord seems pretty peeved with me. I suppose I can give it a shot. And...this just came to me, but maybe I should bring somepony along with me. He's been dying to see more of the changelings ever since the graduation dinner, and I have a feeling he might be helpful to have around."
"Tibia."
"Yes, Prince Pharynx?"
"You wanna tell me what I'm looking at?"
"Um, I could only manage a guess, Your Highness."
From atop the changeling hive's chilly peak, Tibia and Pharynx watched an impossibility hurtle straight towards them. A large, narrow vehicle was roaring across the open grasslands below, spouting a trail of boulder-sized soap bubbles from its trunk. The entire car was covered in polka-dots in every color of the rainbow and then some, and perched atop the mighty engine was a bizarrely shaped lamp wearing a tutu.
Sitting in the cockpit of such a monstrosity was a tall creature with an overgrown tooth, outfitted with aviation goggles and a yellow hardhat. The creature grinned from ear to ear, yelping in glee as it ran the car off a hill like a high-speed ramp.
Tibia bit his lip, sweating profusely as Pharynx's head slowly turned in his peripheral.
"Get Thorax," Pharynx growled. "If that's what I think it is, this day is about to go from headache to migraine, and he can share that suffering right along with me."
"R-Right away, Pharynx."
oh my god, best nickname ever!
He seems pretty awake this afternoon if you ask me
Nice reference, and looking forward to the incoming insanity
Ah, I take it Pharynx is aware of Discord's existence and reputation but i'm guessing not aware of his reformation. .....Welp.
This is going to be so.... Awesome!!! Discord going to bust? Man, I love to see much Choas and fun with just Discord
Best quote ever from Celestia
Oh, I hate that you ended the chapter there. I really REALLY hope the next chapter has Discord annoy Pharynx just for the lols. I would love to see that.
Discord, whatever did we do, to make you take our world away~
Discord, whatever did we do...oh wait, Starlight and Trixie didn't invite him along to visit, it's their fault!
Oh boy. This is gonna be good.
I imagined that Discord had "Highway to the Danger Zone" playing as he drove towards the hive. I regret nothing.
Sunburst's joining the party, eh?
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Discord, are we your prey alone? Or are we just a stepping stone to taking back the throne?
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Has to be aware of his reformation, as he's not panicking and has listed this as merely a 'migraine' of a day instead of 'the end is nigh, we all have to go down fighting'.
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How could u! That makes so much sense with Discord
Can you hear the subtle words the world is whisp'ring in...
Complete cacaphony.
The music, never matching, marches on and on...
straight into a dead end.
Conceited crocodiles caressing cubic cats...
Which turn on rounded dogs.
They seek the label makers, desperate for the stamp...
Which tells them what they are.
Oh can you hear the whispered words the world is whisp'ring. Say...
You know, I might be mad!
static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mad_discord_9810.png
(This chapter brought to mind a song I'd come up with for a theatrical version of Discord.)
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There are parallels to be seen between Starlight feeling left out in 'Uncommon Bonds', and how Discord is feeling about Starlight, Trixie and Thorax, now. Best way to explore that to the fullest is with a certain orange stallion.
Queen Cheeselegs? Lord Beetlemoose?
If these don't become common vernacular by the end of the month, then I'm going to be very disappointed with this fandom.
Great job addressing Discord! Huh, I wonder if Starlight was referring to Spike? He seems like the logical choice, but it doesn't quite seem to match the way she announced it. Maybe Sunburst?
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No way, he was totally jamming Dare to be stupid
8582481
I do my best to be as canon as possible, and did my best in projecting how things would most likely turn out. Thorax is a huge cinnamon roll, so it wasn't too hard to guess the approximate direction he'd initially lead the hive. Thanks for the compliment!
This can't well at all
I am looking forward to shenanigans
That ending made me chuckle.
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That's got to be very difficult.
get it? it's because is hot in there, and he knocked it out cold
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Is a whinier and bitchier Strscream even possible?
Will the events of the movie be acknowledged in this fic by chance?
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I'm not opposed to it, but the events of the movie were pretty detached and unrelated to most of this fic so even I can't say if there'd ever be a point where it could make sense to bring it up. I guess we'll see where things go!
NEW chapter please!!!
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I always feel the most fulfilled as a writer when readers enjoy those sorts of themes in this story and my others. I think it's important that males be capable of affection just as much as females. Just as there are tomboys there are also men more in touch with thier sensitivity, and being one of them, I like to depict it. Suffice to say that Thorax's personality getting put in a benevolent leadership role was one of my favorite decisions this show has made in a while.
Just put him the nursery, they'll get along like a house on fire.
Have I ever said how much I love our colorful bugmoose overlord?
Caught up already? NOOOOOO!!!
Please update soon, I NEED this!
"I get you're trying to be reassuring, but that's not actually very reassuring."
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You realize Discord may very well be the one who set said house on fire for a laugh, right?
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Seeing as it's Discord, he could very well be blaring both at the same time.
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I see no conflict in that.
Discord feeling left out is a really good plot point. Wonder how I didn't pick up on it when watching the episodes.
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I'm glad you noticed it! Yeah, it was glaring to me. They bothered to have Trixie along to help Starlight but the entire reunion was cut short on Discord. Not a chance he'd take that lying down.
Once again discord you break the 4th wall again lol
oh boy Discord is gonna cause a lot of trouble Isn't he The next chapter is gonna be a fun one 😅
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I can't believe how fast you read and as I can see and remember. I think you're actually left a comment on all or almost all the chapters so far. And I also like the fact we kind of reading it at the same time. You maybe a faster reader than me or you have way more time to read than me.
I love this fanfiction and I am now addicted to it! AHH! Too many fanfictions to read!
When Discord comes to visit thing will be interessting.
Damn, Spike and Discord are so often forgotten in the storys that im really hyped how things will develop.
Pleasently exotic and unexpected chapter.
Why hasn't anyone put the music video up yet?
Their that's better
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Ftfy. Original is superior.
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First time hearing that actually. Thank you.