It has been a year since Fluttershy had agreed to accept her role as the bearer of kindness. And since then, Twilight along with the others provided everything she needed to be prepared, including the history of the elements and its past bearers and knowing the responsibilities and virtues she is to set example onto all of Equestria. It had been much of a surprise to them to know that Fluttershy was a quick learner, but it had been proven once before when she learn to read.
Discord and Fluttershy grew closer as ever before, now that the truth of their feelings finally set them to be a couple. They’ve only had taking it slow as they liked, as Fluttershy wanted to take the time to learn her lessons and her new home and Discord started to make amends to the princesses and to Equestria. He used his magic to help the ponies like he did before breaking Fluttershy’s curse, preventing natural disasters from crashing every pony town and stopping every creature, pony or not, from terrorizing and harming any pony and those in need. But whenever they find the free time outside of their responsibilities, they would spend that time together through a date or a simple hangout.
Their story, including his noble deeds saving Equestria and Fluttershy, had change the perspectives of ponies and other creatures that believed the lord of chaos they only knew from history books. In return, some had given Discord a second chance while few were skeptical, as if they were afraid of the possibility of a sudden relapse.
Things had been going well for them and it only gotten better when the day of Fluttershy’s coronation arrived.
The streets of Canterlot were filled with a festive atmosphere; ponies gathered together with food, games and entertainment for the young foals as they await for the sound of trumpets, signaling the start of the sealing of the element and its long-lost bearer.
Ponies outside can enjoy the festivities while the royal, diplomats and the wealthy, with the exception of the bearers and their friends and family, gathered within in the grand room where the ceremony will take place. They all sat on both sides of the room away from an aisle in the middle of the room that lead up to the podium platform where Twilight, Rainbow, Pinkie and Applejack stood with their elements around their neck (or head on Twilight’s case). Behind Twilight, was a stone stand that held the element of kindness behind a glass case.
“Wow, this is way bigger than our coronation,” Rainbow said in awe.
“Well, it is kind of expected” Twilight stated, “Having the missing bearer united with her element is something everypony won’t want to miss.”
“Yeah!” Pinkie agreed, “If I weren’t a bearer now or maybe in another alternate universe, I wouldn’t want to miss an amazing, exciting event like this! I wouldn’t get a wear a froufy fancy outfit like this for something like this!”
The others gave Pinkie a weird expression, but they giggled and shrugged it off as Pinkie obliviously smile in response.
In favor for this special occasion, Rarity insisted creating gowns for the bearers along a coronational dress for Fluttershy with no fees or favors in return.
Twilight almost look very much like a queen, with her simple white and lavender gown that flowed in each movement, her hair wrapped up in a bun and her element crown rested on the top of her head.
Pinkie’s dress was the easiest for Rarity to assemble as she knew the style that fitted Pinkie to a T. For that, her dress was both flashy and colorful, with yellow polka dotted dress with ruffles that alternated with purple and white and orange beads that fitted at the collar. Her hair was poofier than it was and tied up in a ponytail with a purple candy-like bow right by her right ear.
Rainbow wasn’t too keen on the uptight, sophisticated fashion so in order to ease her mind, Rarity promised to make her gown a little lighter and flexible for her liking. Rainbow ended up being satisfied with her long, slim, frushia dress that marks resemblance to the togas from the gracian times, even down to the golden belt around her waist.
While Applejack prefers the old-fashion, rustic style of her home, she was tolerable enough to at least dress appropriate for her friend’s big day. With that, she was presented in a blousy dress set with a corset and an open-slit skirt and her old Stetson hat on top of her braided mane.
At the mention of the dress, Rainbow asked curious, “Speaking of which, when exactly is this going to start?”
“Pretty soon, I hope,” Twilight answered, “I just told the princesses to give me a signal when it’s ready.”
A flash of light appeared behind the bearers and they jumped surprised at Discord’s arrival. Rarity had also offered outfits for Discord and the CMC; for that, they saw that Discord was dressed in tux with a top hat and a sash wrapped around him at the bottom of his dress shirt.
“I do hope it better be soon,” Discord stated, “I can’t stand the suspense!”
“I thought you were gathering the ponies at the square,” Twilight asked.
“And taking Apple Bloom and the girls inside the castle,” Applejack said, her voice suddenly sounding anxious.
“Already taken care of,” He said pointing to the five fillies in the front row seating next to Spike. All of them were in dressed also made by Rarity and they waved at their friends up on the podium.
“Honestly you two, I thought that after one full year, you would learn to have more trust in me.”
“It would’ve been more if it weren’t for your pranks,” Applejack’s eyebrow raised up in a playful frown.
“Hey, just because I’m a good guy doesn’t mean I can’t bend the rules every once in a while. Besides, it’s not as bad as I could’ve played them.”
Twilight rolled her eyes and giggled at his playful nature. It is true that Discord also uses his magic to do his usual tricks, but he never goes too far with it and he’s still learning about his limits. His friends had gotten used to it the more they spend time with him but the one thing that hasn’t changed is his occasional mind tricks on Twilight. Though unlike the time when he was still in hiding, it was mostly for fun and even if Twilight is heavily annoyed at it at times, he apologizes for it and means well, and she appreciates that.
Then Twilight notices Discord’s fiddling fingers and that he was staring attentively at the door at the end of the aisle. She nudges his side with her hoof and asked, “You feeling alright?”
“Of course!” Discord said, “I’m just…. Very excited.”
Twilight saw a slight bump at the pocket of his jacket and she’d admittedly gotten interested on what’s inside. But she kept her curiosity to herself and stared into the audience and continued waiting for the princesses’ signal.
The Cutie Mark Crusaders sat at the front row where they can see Discord and the bearers standing just as excited as they are.
“I can’t believe the day’s finally here!” Sweetie Belle squealed, “I’m so happy for Fluttershy! She worked so hard for this!”
“Yeah, it’s amazing to see how far she’d come along,” Scootaloo stated.
“And how many things had changed because of her,” Diamond Tiara said, making the others agreed. If it weren’t for Fluttershy coming into their hut for shelter, they wouldn’t made new friends and made their bond more meaningful and stronger than before.
Diamond Tiara was especially glad for this fact after all. Not only did she’d gotten the courage to stand up for herself against her mother after years living in her shadow, she was free to find her purpose in life and becoming the pony she’d never thought could be thanks to her friends.
A slight tap on the shoulder made Diamond jump and her eyes widen to see who exactly was standing on the side of the pew.
“Silver Spoon?” Diamond said, her voice weak with surprise.
The girls turned to the sound of Diamond’s voice and they all saw a gray earth filly, dressed in a blue gown with her light silver mane braid lying on her shoulder and her blue glasses in front of her purple eyes. The filly stood before Silver nervously, “Hey, Diamond.”
Diamond quickly stood up from the pew, but she could only stand before her as she was still in shock, “What are you doing here?”
“My dad was invited to come here, since we build a silverware company here after the move.” Silver paused for a moment before she asked, “How are you doing?”
Diamond had to clear her throat before she can find the ability to speak, “I’m… I’m good. You?”
“Yes, I’m doing good, too.”
Both of them stood awkwardly until Silver got the courage to speak again, “Diamond, I’m…. I’m sorry for what I’d said before. I didn’t want to snap at you but—”
“No,” Diamond Tiara interrupted, “I know that I wasn’t a good friend to you.”
Silver widen her eyes with surprise while Diamond continued, “I was angry about you moving and I let it get the best of me. You didn’t deserve the way I was treating you and…. I’m sorry.”
Silver stood in surprise as she could say to her, “Wow. I’ve never seen you like this.”
Diamond chuckled, “Let’s just say I had some time to think about some things.” She gestured to the CMC, who waved back at Silver with a shy but friendly smile.
“I did miss you, though.”
Silver paused for a moment before she could reply with a small smile and a slight glint of tears in her eyes, “I missed you, too.”
The two fillies launched into a hug, one that it had lasted longer and felt much stronger than before. The other fillies stared at the scene with their hearts warmed, proud of how Diamond finally made amends with her lost friend.
Diamond broke the hug before she could ask the gray filly, “Say, do you want to sit with us? We can tell you what happened after you moved away?”
Silver giggled, “I was going to ask the same thing. Since when you decided to become a Cutie Mark Crusader?”
“To be fair, I’m an honorary member,” Diamond clarified as she guided Silver to a seat next to her and Apple Bloom and led to the conversation of the beginning of their rocky but steady friendship.
In a dressing room, Rarity was braiding Fluttershy’s pink mane before she could wrap it around her head and pin it together.
She was satisfied on how perfect it looked on her, “You were right to make this switch from a bun; this looks better on you!”
The braid wrapped around Fluttershy’s head like a crown while the rest of her mane was curled and hang down gently against her neck. Rarity had also laid the makeup on her face, only highlighting her eyes with light eyeshadow and mascara and her face in a light pink blush and lipstick that made her skin glow.
“I guess I’ve been reading those magazines at the spa a little too much,” Fluttershy said with a chuckle.
“Heh, I just I’m to blame for that,” Rarity giggled, “You ready for your dress?”
Fluttershy was about to nod in response when a knock was heard at the door.
Rarity frowned in confusion, “Strange, I wasn’t expecting somepony.” She then called out to the door, “Come in?”
The door open to reveal Princess Celestia entering the room. Both Fluttershy and Rarity lightly gasped in shock and bowed before the alicorn.
“Oh, no, there’s no need for that,” Celestia excused, bringing the pegasus up by bringing a hoof on her chin, “I came here to see how you are doing. I love your mane.”
Fluttershy brought her hoof to her mane almost bashfully, “Thank you. Um, Rarity made it.”
“Well, actually, she made a change to her…. Assemble, but it fits just nice, if I might add,” Rarity chuckled nervously, “Is the ceremony about to start?”
“As soon as I give the signal to Twilight,” Celestia replied, “And as soon as Fluttershy feels ready.” She glances down at Fluttershy who blushed bashfully.
“Alright, well, I can get Fluttershy into her dress and we can head out there after that.”
“Actually Rarity, I would like to have a work with her. How about I get her into her dress while you can get to the reception room with the others?”
Both Fluttershy and Rarity were caught surprised by this request and Rarity quickly obliges, “Oh, of course—if that’s what you want.” She turned to Fluttershy, “Good luck out there.”
“Thank you, Rarity,” Fluttershy replied as she gave the unicorn a hug and saw her walk out the door, closing it behind her.
Fluttershy gotten more anxious as she stared at the noble princess standing in front of her. She has gotten to see her as a teacher to Twilight and a close friend, but she hasn’t used to being in her presence. It was almost like she was unsure if she was worthy enough to be this close of an ally to her. Despite that, she remains respectable and courteous to the princess every time they meet.
Celestia caught the sight of Fluttershy’s coronation dress that lied on the guest bed, “Is that your dress on the bed?”
“Oh, um, yes,” Fluttershy said. She was going to walk to the bed to grab it, but Celestia was one step in front of her by using her magic.
She zipped open the zipper at the underside of the dress and gently open up the skirt for entrance. She gestured Fluttershy to get into the dress, to which she obliged. As soon as she had gotten her hooves through the sleeves and her head through the neck hole, Celestia zipped the zipper up to a close and used her magic again to smooth out the ruffle of her green dress and her curled hair out of the neckline.
She looked like a morning spring day, with a green, flowing dress that complimented her figure and a chiffon veil that hang around the waist and trailed down to the floor. Within the veil were shimmering imprints of butterflies and vines that shone at the sunlight.
“Oh, you look beautiful,” Celestia complimented the young mare.
Fluttershy looked at the full-length mirror on the wall and stare at her reflection in awe, “Wow, I almost didn’t recognize me.”
“Feeling nervous?” Celestia asked as silence filled up the room.
Fluttershy sighed, “Maybe a little. I know it was my decision to be connected with my element but…. What if this is too soon? Maybe I’m not ready and I’m just rushing it? Or maybe I’m not good enough—”
She stopped as she felt Celestia’s hoof on her shoulder in her reflection. She stared up to it as she sees the princess kneeling down next to her face, staring at the refection as well.
“You know, I had these fears when my sister and I became bearers to it and we were the first ones. It was a little nerve-wrecking at first, trying to set an example for not only for Equestria but the future bearers after us. But give it a little time and eventually, you’ll learn that all you need to be is to be the best example for yourself. For this past year, observing you on everything you had done, I can see why the element had chosen you to be its bearer. You possess so much compassion and courage inside of you that it melts even the coldest of hearts. It’s because of that, you’ve already set on example on Equestria. You just need a little faith in yourself to see that.”
Fluttershy stared at her reflection somewhat in a new light yet, out of curiosity, she asked, “You really think I can do this?”
Celestia put her hoof on Fluttershy’s chin and titled her head away from the reflection and to her face that held a sympathetic smile, “I do.”
Fluttershy returned the smile and surprised Celestia into a hug. She didn’t expect such a gesture from her, but she appreciate it and returned the hug.
“Are you ready now?” Celestia said as she broke the hug.
Fluttershy can only nodded in response. Then Celestia used her magic to open the door as she guided her down the hallway that led to the ceremony.
Twilight and the other still stood on the podium until they saw Rarity coming through the back door at the corner and walked up to join them. Her dress was light blue with poofy sleeves connected with golden cuffs and a V neckline collar.
“I thought you were with Fluttershy?” Applejack asked confused.
“Princess Celestia said she wanted a word with her so I left them alone,” Rarity replied.
“Do you know when they’ll come here?” Twilight asked.
“She didn’t say, actually. But I think she’ll sent out the signal soon.”
“It better be soon, I don’t know how long I can stand up for any longer!” Rainbow complained.
Rarity noticed how anxious Discord looked and she trotted to his place. Twilight turned over her shoulder to see the two of them whispering to each other. She couldn’t hear them due to the expecting crowd behind her; she could only stare at them until Rarity came back to her spot. From the look of it, whatever they talked about seem to make Discord a little calmer than before.
“What were you talking about?” Twilight asked curious.
“Oh, just a few things to calm his nerves,” the next Rarity said was in a whisper, “And a few tidbits to remember for his gift to Fluttershy.”
“Gift?”
“Twilight, that’s the signal,” Applejack whispered to Twilight and Rarity as they turned their attention to Princess Celestia at the back of the room, who used her magical aura as a signal.
With that, the girls went back to position and Twilight nodded to the musicians to sound their trumpets in both the room and outside the castle. The ponies turned their attention to the podium as the music starts while the ponies outside can also hear from the spell Twilight on the speakers lied on the balcony that would broadcast the whole ceremony.
Twilight cleared her throat before she exclaimed to the audience, “Mares and gentlecolts, we are gathered here on a very special day. 21 years ago, as a new generation of bearers were born under the same starry night, it was known in history that one of our own had mysteriously disappeared without a trace. That disappearance had left Equestria into despair, as fear and hysteria began to grow, and the chain of harmony had become broken. And it wasn’t until 20 years later that we learn what happened to the newborn filly who was stolen that night. For so long, she was kept from us, trapped in the dark so that no one would ever find or discover her. But as life always do, things happen in unexpected ways. And because of those unexpected ways, she had found her way back into the light, made some friends and even been rescued by somepony who, we thought, was simply irredeemable,” she gestured to Discord, who waved to the crowd timidly, “Even without her element, she had taught us all that if we take a closer look on any pony, creature or the things that matter, we can choose to be kind and spread that example everywhere. And I can say that I am honored to be the one to officiate this bond that has been delayed for far too long. Mare and gentlecolts, I present to you, The bearer of kindness, Fluttershy!”
Music starts up again and the two princesses used their magic to slowly open the two doors. The crowd including the bearers and Discord turned at the door to see Fluttershy standing at the doorway and they gawked at the sight before them.
Discord especially was taken in on how breath-taking she looked, and he nearly lost his balance had it not been Rainbow and Pinkie holding him back up.
“She looks stunning,” Discord uttered under his breath.
“Now, now, darling,” Rarity says as she used her magic to reposition him, “Now’s not the time to get excited now.”
“Right, right,” Discord nodded as he glanced back to Fluttershy at the other side of the room.
“Seriously, what is this ‘gift’ you’re helping him with? I’ve never seen you acting this motherly to him,” Applejack whispered at the unicorn.
“Uh, uh, no spoilers,” Rarity whispered back to her in a sing-song tone before she turned her attention to the aisle.
Fluttershy looked at everypony who were in awe at the sight of her. At first she was nervous, but then she remembered Celestia’s advice and mentally tells herself to be strong. She took the first step out of the doorway and started walking across the aisle gracefully. She kept her focus on her friends, her coltfriend and the birthright element that has been waiting for a long time.
As she arrived at the podium, she stops in front of Twilight and greeted her with a smile.
“You ready for this?” Twilight whispers in her ear.
Fluttershy replied back to her with a determined expression, “I know I am.”
Twilight nodded before she used her magic to open the glass case and stepped out of the way for Fluttershy to step in front of the element.
Then her chest started to glow, and the element reacted to it by glowing as well. A pink aura started to engulf around her as the element started floating on its own and made it way towards her. As soon as it touched her chest, a bright light appeared, and it died down to see the element is now place in a gold necklace around her neck with the gem now in a shape of a butterfly.
Then Twilight and the bearers started to glow, with each aura matching the color of their elements. Slowly, they started to rise above the ground and the audience can only stare at the scene in awe.
As they floated, the bearers came close to each other and in almost like an instinct, each bearer grabbed another’s hoof to form a circle. Then it came Fluttershy’s turn and as soon as she grabbed both Twilight’s and Applejack’s hooves, they all to glow very brightly than before.
An aura sphere in the colors of the rainbow emitted from the group and it began to spread all across Equestria. Everypony cheered at the spectacle while Discord, absentmindedly snapped his finger and brought a bucket of popcorn and a pair of glasses all while in awe.
It seemed like a simple lightshow for the ponies inside the castle. But to everypony outside, this was a sign of hope that Equestria didn’t had for a long time. From the sight of a beautiful rainbow, the truth was made clear: the chain of harmony is now restored.
Eventually the light died down and the bearers floated back down to the floor. Fluttershy and the others catch the glimpse of her element necklace and Twilight turned to the anticipated crowd.
“We have now done it; the moment we had been waiting for so long! The element of kindness is now returned!”
The crowd roared in a glorious applause and the bearers stand before them proudly. Fluttershy turned her head to see Discord smiling at her, seeing that he is very proud of her.
After the ceremony, the room has been turned into a reception, thanks to Discord’s magic and Pinkie’s super-fast party preparations, everypony stayed whether to dance, mingle with the crowd or for others to congratulate the new bearer.
At the other side of the room, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon continued their conversation.
“Woah, you actually stood up to your mother?!” Silver gasped in surprise, “And she kicked you out for that?!”
“Yeah, and I apologize Apple Bloom and the others for everything I’d done in the past and we made amends.”
Silver was amazed of how much her friend had changed the last time she saw her and so far, she liked seeing this new, improved Diamond. “So you’re still living at Sweetie’s?”
“I was actually,” Diamond explained, “But recently, my dad finally came back from Manhatten. I told him and everything that happened and how mother kicked out of the house. He wasn’t particularly happy about that, but he convinced her to let me move back in if he reopens his business with the connections he made while he was away. The best thing about that is,” she squealed in excitement before she can say, “I can now work in his shop!”
“Wow, you never talk about your dad’s shop without getting excited,” Silver said, “I like this version of you.”
Diamond chuckled in a mix of embarrassment and giddiness, “Me, too, Silver. Me, too.”
The Cutie Mark Crusaders watched Diamond and Silver from afar, glad that she was able to regain her old friend back in her life as a different pony.
“Man, they’d been talking ever since before the ceremony,” Scootaloo stated.
“Diamond looks very happy to be with Silver Spoon again,” Sweetie Belle said.
“Yeah, it won’t be long before they can do that ‘sugar rump’ hoofshake again,” Babs Seed joked, making the girls laugh in response.
Then Apple Bloom looked at Diamond with a thoughtful expression. “You know, girls, I’ve been thinking.”
“What about?” Babs Seed asked as the others looked at their leader with intrigue.
“We’ve spend the last 4 years trying to find special talents to find our cutie marks. But now I realized last year was so special for us because, not only did we make new friends, but also those who had trouble realizing their cutie marks.”
Through listening with attentive ears, the girls realized that fact since they never noticed it before. But now, through realizing it, it turned out to be good thing for them, for they realized that it turned to be much more memorable and meaningful than all the times they focused on gaining their cutie marks.
“Yeah, Discord helped Fluttershy to read while it reconnected her talent with her animals and Diamond realized her talent to be a leader after coming out of her shell,” Sweetie Belle explained her observations
“And her mother’s shadow,” Scootaloo added.
“I think it’s because of this,” Apple Bloom resumed, “I think it’s much more rewarding helping others with their cutie marks. Maybe, while we should still find our talents, we should also be focusing on helping other who had the same problems like Fluttershy’s or Diamond’s. What you guys think?”
The girls looked at each other before they turned to Apple Bloom with a newfound excitement.
“Yeah, we should totally do that!” Babs Seed exclaimed.
“As much as I want to find my talent” Sweetie Belle stated, “I would rather put my cutie mark on the line if it meant it’ll help others.”
“Even if it would take us longer, I don’t care about it as long I’m with my friends,” Scootaloo said as she side-hugged Sweetie and Babs.
“Then that settles it,” Apple Bloom exclaimed, “For now on, we start focusing helping with other ponies’ cutie mark while still in the search to find ours! Hoofs up at three!”
One by one, each member reached out their hoof out with the others laying on top of them all the while counting in unison, “one, two---!”
But before they can count to three, their hooves emitted a strange glow that surrounded all of them before it could flash in a burst of light.
Other ponies, including Diamond, Silver, the bearers and Discord, watched the sight that happened and when the light died, their surprise turned into awe.
The four fillies rubbed their eyes, feeling dizzy from that strange glow, and they immediately took notice of the excited ponies in front of them.
“What’s going on….?” Apple Bloom asked confused.
“Why are you looking at us like that?” Scootaloo asked.
“It’s….” Diamond Tiara gasped in awe before she can exclaim with joy, “It’s your cutie marks! They’re amazing!”
The girls’ eyes widen at that news and their heads snapped at their flanks that indeed, there was a cutie mark. All of them had the same symbol of a shield with the colors of red, purple, orange and green but at the center the other symbol was very different. Each of the fillies’ inner symbol reflects to their personality and talent in a special way. Apple Bloom was a shape of an apple, noting her family heritage, Scootaloo was a thunderbolt showing her adventurous side, Sweetie Belle was a musical note for her love of music and Babs Seed was a seed sprouting into a small tree, showing her family heritage like Apple Bloom’s but also her rising from rough past and growing anew.
The girls gasped in shock before their smiles grew into a joyous expression and they started screaming while hugging in unison, “WE ALL GOT THE SAME CUTIE MARKS! WE ALL GOT THE SAME CUTIE MARK! CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS FOREVER!”
They all laughed and cried in joyful tears as their friends came to congratulate them on this special surprise.
Fluttershy and Discord were the first reach to them, greeting them with a huge hug.
“Oh, I am so proud of you!” Fluttershy said, “I knew you would find your talent someday.”
“Us, too, Flutters,” Apple Bloom said, wiping the tears away from her eyes, “Thank you.”
“A coronation and a cutie-cernera at the same time,” Pinkie exclaimed in excitement, “WHY DIDN’T I THINK ABOUT THAT! Stay here while I order balloons and a cake!”
Pinkie sprinted out of the room in super speed as the others giggled and turned their attention to the Cutie Mark Crusaders.
As much joyous of an occasion it is for the fillies, Discord realize that now is the right time to give Fluttershy his ‘gift’ to her. With that, he tapped on Fluttershy’s shoulder, getting her attention.
“Can we go to the balcony?” Discord asked to his marefriend, “I have something that I want to show you.”
“Oh, okay,” Fluttershy nodded as she got out of the crowd and let Discord guided her through the balcony doors.
Fluttershy went to the railing while Discord followed her. Down below, she can see the ponies enjoying the festivities down below.
“Wow, the party is very big from down here,” Fluttershy gasped in wonder.
“Well, this day is very special, in more ways than one,” Discord commented.
Fluttershy took it as a response to the girls’ cutie marks and replied back to him, “Oh, I’m happy for the girls. They have waiting for a cutie mark for so long!”
Discord giggled, “Well, I’m happy for them, too. But that’s not what I was mentioning about.”
Fluttershy raised her eyebrow in confusion, “What do you mean by that?”
Discord gently grabbed her hoof and guided her to the center of the balcony. It was until then he responded back, “I know this day is mainly about reuniting with your element, but this day is all about you. You had mean so much to other ponies, including me, and everything we went through, you deserve everything good thing that is given to you.”
Fluttershy blushed and she held her hoof up to her mouth, “Discord, stop. You’re making me blush.”
“Well, be prepared to blush even further. And as you deserved any good thing coming to you, I feel it is right to ask you this one simple question.”
With that, Discord kneeled down on knee and his paw reached for his jacket to bring out a small, velvet box.
Fluttershy grew confused of this gesture and asked, pointing to the box in his paw, “What’s that?”
“Open it,” Discord simply said, ushering her to take it out of his paw.
She opened the box to see two rings. One was simple gold ring, etched with vines at the side and a small light rosy pink gem at the center of it and the other was silver with thorns with small rhinestones circling around it.
“What are these?” Fluttershy asked confusingly.
“Fluttershy, would you marry me?”
Fluttershy looked up at Discord with wide eyes, seeing his face is slightly blushed.
“What?”
“We’ve been together for so long… and we know what we felt for each other… I thought it would be best to take the first step.”
Fluttershy looked between the ring and Discord, still not able to process words. Her cheeks are slightly blushing red and she was so stunned by this heartwarming gift.
“But if you don’t feel like you’re ready, then we can wait. We can use these as promise rings. Seem kind of odd but, Rarity told me it’s a popular trend for ponies now….”
Fluttershy was smiling so big and her face was streaking joyful tears on her face, “Oh, Discord. I don’t know what to say….”
“Well, you can say either yes or no?”
Fluttershy laughed at the comment, bringing more tears trickling down, “Yes! Yes; I will marry you.”
“That is all I needed to hear,” Discord smiled as he slips the ring around her neck, touching through her soft locks and caressing her face in his hands. Fluttershy in return, took his paw and slip the silver ring into his middle finger.
He then leaded her face closer to his, urging them into a gentle kiss on the lips, glowing brightly as the sun shined on them from the horizon.
Twilight thought she saw something at the corner of her eyes and she turned to see Discord and Fluttershy kissing on the balcony. On further inspection, she saw that the tuft of his dragon tail was holding a velvet box and she realized what exactly this ‘gift’ was.
She smiled at the sight and the potential future they will make for each other while Rarity creep behind her to see the pair.
“Well, time for me to get started on the wedding dress,” Rarity grinned in satisfaction and walked away sipping her drink.
Nothing could’ve been better for the two of them, for they were married months later and they lived happily together until the end of her days. Even though Discord was once broken about her death, he still kept his promise to protect all future bearers to the Elements of Harmony and all of Equestria.
She along with the other bearers had passed on in order to make way for the next generation. All except for Twilight, whose role as Princess and its price for immortality only kept her here to help the future bearers prepare for the trials that are yet to come.
The Cutie Mark Crusaders, members and honorary, had also helped ponies with their purpose behind their cutie marks and even those who needed to realize their true talent. When the words of them spread outside of Equestria, some creatures often came to them for advice and they would ask if they could help those trouble finding themselves, even though they don’t have the ability to have cutie marks themselves. The influence they had on Equestria lasted even longer until they had grown old and passed on to the heavens above. There were even some in their own families that would continue their legacy in their memory.
It was clear to everyone that the love between Discord and Fluttershy was special enough to even lasted death. For it was because of that love, they were saved.