Once upon a time, in a time long, long ago, before Nightmare Moon, before King Sombra, before the Pony of Shadows, before the sirens, before Tirek, before the windigos, before there was even an Equestria, there was a most magical forest. The Eastern forest was beautiful, orderly, teeming with life, beautiful flowers, frolicking animals, and much more. The Western forest was strange. Pieces of land just floating in the air, trees hung upside down, the ground formed a checkerboard pattern, clouds of pink rained chocolate milk, but those in the Western half did not fear these conditions, rather, they frolicked in their own way, enjoying the oddities and constantly in good humor. Any who saw either half would be equally astounded by the perfect tidiness of the East, or by the mind boggling atmosphere of the West, where it appeared as if some child had decided to have some harmless fun with reality to spread some joy.
In the center of the forest, right between the two halves, there stood a clearing. And in that clearing, there was the most odd little cottage you could ever imagine: a blend of harmony and chaos in one building, Some parts appearing ramshackle, others looking the most expertly designed. And yet, they somehow didn’t clash, the conflicting portions somehow worked.
In the cottage lived two twins, a brother and sister who were five years old. The brother was the most bizzare, having a head somewhat like a pony and a dragon, a single fang on one side, one antler and one horn, a serpentine dragon’s body, a lion’s paw on one arm, an eagle’s claw on the other, one feathered wing, the other ribbed like a bat’s, one leg like a lizard’s and the other like a goat’s.
As for the sister, she was as beautiful as her brother was strange. She had a head similar to his, but well-blended. She had two fangs to his one, but they were small and stubby. In place of a horn and antler, She had soft feelers like a moth, in an array of beautiful colors, and frills running down the sides of her head towards the gradual shift to a serpentine body of her own. Instead of two mismatched wings, she possessed two beautiful butterfly wings in a rainbow of colors, blended carefully into her back. For arms, she had white fluffy canine limbs ending in paws that were gentle and soft, once more, blending into her body, as if flowing out. And finally, for her legs, she had legs like a housecat, soft, quiet, elegant. And through it all, every part flowed into every other, giving her parts a sense of unity.
The brother, Discord, had power over chaos, while his sister, Concordia, had power over order, or as we call it, “harmony.” The two lived happily together as brother and sister, frolicking together in a world we today know little of besides this one tale.
One morning, while the two were having breakfast, after drinking his glass of chocolate milk and hurling the fluid over his shoulder, Discord found his sister right in his face, giving him a very annoyed look.
“Dissy…” she growled, rubbing her temples. “Out in the forest, that trick never ceases to astound and bring laughter, but here? In our home? All it does is make one big mess!”
“But I’m Chaos, Connie!” the male Draconequus whined, fidgeting slightly. “Messes are chaotic! And you know as well as I do that–”
“Yes, yes, although too much chaos is anarchy, too much order is tyranny,” Concordia huffed angrily. “That’s why your bedroom is allowed to be a pigsty! But this isn’t about our bedrooms. The rest of this house is shared, so we have to keep a happy medium. The dust on the floor is always welcome in any room but mine, you know that, right?”
“Yes, Connie…” Discord sighed, putting his twitchy hands behind his back so his sister couldn’t see.
“But that tipped the Balance just slightly to your side of the scale,” Concordia sighed in annoyance. “We’re the Twins of Balance, dear brother! We are this world’s dichotomy made flesh! We must keep ourselves in perfect check against each other. I don’t understand why I have to be the one telling you this. We’re exactly the same age, so I’m not your elder sister. We agreed on these rules together when we were three and wound up on our own, you remember, right?”
“Yeah,” Discord admitted. “I’m sorry, Connie…”
“Dissy, you know I could never stay mad at you,” the Spirit of Harmony giggled, although her smile was a bit strained. Still, the combination of the giggle and a gentle embrace elicited a chuckle from the Spirit of Chaos. “Here, I’ll help you clean up.”
The two joined hands, Discord’s fingers twitching slightly, made eye contact, and right after nodding, both snapped their fingers simultaneously, reverting the room to the state it had been in before the chocolate milk got on everything.
“There. Everything’s back to how it was,” Connie said with a satisfied nod, her annoyed tone replaced by a gentle, caring one, although she still appeared a bit stressed. “Now, brother dearest, I believe that our daily stroll should go through my side of the woods, you know those twitches as well as I do. You’re getting a chaos rush. Far worse than any sugar rush could be, so to remove the dent to my order that incident caused, as well as return your own chaos to healthy levels, we’re talking today’s walk through the Eastern forest.”
“But it’s dull!” Discord whined, trying to control his jitters enough to look fine. “It’s so boring over there!”
“What you call ‘boring’, some others call ‘beauty,’ his sister countered, taking him by the claw and pulling him along. “And by the same token, what you call ‘fascinating’, some others call ‘unnerving.’”
Although his sister held no more authority than him, Discord quietly nodded, but still sulked. Just because she was right didn’t mean he had to enjoy this stroll. He’d seen everything she had on her side several times by now, and it never changed, unlike how he’d constantly spice things up for those who resided on his side of the forest with a snap of his fingers, something they all seemed to love, so long and he never hurt any of them, but where was the fun in hurting anything? That just makes there be one less to enjoy the joy of chaos, and instead grow fearful of it!
So, as the pair plodded along into the near-perfect order of the forest’s Eastern half, Discord was determined to not think positively of anything he saw. Sure, Concordia knew to exercise limits with her power so she wouldn’t become a tyrant, but so did Discord! Although chaos didn’t need any rhyme or reason, it did have an intended result: every single living thing shall laugh, smile, be amazed, and have their minds opened to the “impossible”. Using it to achieve any other end could easily result in utter madness instead of the joy he hoped to bring.
“Ah,” his sister gushed, inhaling over and over, feeling the air flow over her scales and through her fur. “Yes, so calming! Everything in place enough to help me get that out of my system. Wouldn’t you agree, dear brother?”
In spite of his concentration becoming clearer and the jitters slowly fading, Discord merely grunted.
“Oh, Discord, please don’t be like that!” his sister begged, looking at him with a puppydog stare, those purple and green eyes of hers wide as saucers, her lower lip trembling, paws clasped in a pleading manner, ears drooping, and her eyes extremely moist with tears. “We’re family! I’m doing this for you!”
Discord grunted again, using his returning concentration to better focus on avoiding making eye contact.
“Dissy? Pleeeeeease?” the Spirit of Harmony begged, managing to make eye contact again, now with her cute stubby fangs exposed over her lip, draining Discord’s resolve.
“Fine, sister! Fine!” Discord exclaimed in frustration. “Reducing those jitters is helpful! Happy?”
“Much better!” Concordia affirmed with a smile and a nod. “Now, let’s keep going!”
As they followed the path, Discord did feel his self-control restoring, as well. He could do stuff like that outside the house, and it had little effect on him and Connie, but inside the house, everything went kaput if the scales tipped even slightly. It was so annoying! He was brought out of his thoughts when he suddenly bumped into his sister, who had stopped.
“Hello, Mister Rabbit!” Concordia gushed as she got on her knees. “Out by yourself today, huh?”
The rabbit started to chitter, but Concordia held up a finger.
“Just a second! I can’t understand you right now!”
With a snap of her fingers, she sighed and smiled.
“Okay, go ahead.”
“M-miss Concordia, Ma’am, I’m sorry for breaking routine,” the rabbit stammered, “My wife and children are all sick, so I had no choice but to head out alone!”
“I’m not angry, far from it!” the Spirit of Order giggled, shaking her head. “The schedule is a suggestion, not a law. I’m no queen! I’m just a little girl serving as your caretaker! Here.” Giving a warm smile, she snapped her fingers, causing a few stalks of celery to grow from the ground. Reaching out, she snapped them and pawed them over to the rabbit. “You should be home taking care of your family, not out here gathering food while none can care for them. Take these back home and give them to the poor dears.”
“Th-thank you so much, miss!” the rabbit exclaimed as he picked up the stalks and began to hop away. “This will help us so much!”
“Tell them hello for me, okay?” Concordia called after him. “I hope they get well soon!”
“I will!” The rabbit called over his shoulder. “Thanks again!”
“Now, see, dear brother?” Concordia said simply, not the slightest bit of malicious intent in her voice. “I can bring smiles, too, although I do it by fixing problems. I do sometimes envy how through a simple snap of your fingers, you can bring joy and laughter for its own sake, however.”
That brought Discord out of his sulk for just a little bit. Sure, they were both only five years old, but he’d never heard her admit something like that before. She envied him? Still, he quickly returned to sulking.
“If you really cared, you’d have given him carrots,” Discord grumbled, provoking a horrified gasp from his sister her quickly standing to stare at him, both paws over her mouth, and her purple and green eyes wide in horror.
“C-carrots?” she squeaked. “Discord, I’m here to care for them and help them! Not poison them! There’s too much calcium in a full carrot for it to be more than a rare treat for bunnies! Carrot tops, yes, those are fine, but full carrots are supposed to be eaten sparingly. No, what that family needs is a healthy helping of celery.”
Being much less in tune with nature than his sister, Discord was less knowledgeable on this subject, but carrots for rabbits seemed to make sense, even though stuff making sense wasn’t his thing, either.
Still, he was not going to apologize for the mistake. That’d be letting her win.
Refusing to make eye contact because he knew his sister would drag an apology out of him if they even locked eyes for an instant, Discord gave an annoyed huff and continued to follow her, his sister shaking her head at how stubborn her brother was being.
As Discord watched, still ready to avert his eyes if his sister so much as looked back for a second, a rainbow of technicolor butterflies flew over them through the trees, one much larger than the others.
“Oh! Hello, Amaryth!” Concordia greeted the larger one, causing her and those following her to halt, hovering in place, “How’s my favorite Queen of the Butterflies today?”
The larger butterfly appeared to blush, if the green tinge of her face was any indication.
“Please, Lady Concordia,” Amaryth sighed, I’m the only Queen of the Butterflies! How can I possibly be your favorite?”
“Well, the way you care for your kind,” Concordia said, counting her answers on her fingers, “How gentle and kind you are, how you bring beauty to my side of the forest just by being present, and because even if there were somehow a second to bear your title at the same time, you’d still be my favorite!”
“You are too kind, Lady Concordia,” Amaryth giggled.
“And please, just call me Concordia,” Connie insisted. “Or even just Connie. Noble titles make me feel uncomfortable. You know how hard I try to avoid becoming a tyrant. Mother warned us both about the potential of ‘Psycho Discord’ or ‘Tyrant Concordia’. Noble titles remind me of that warning.”
“Very well, Concordia,” Amaryth relented before turning to address Discord. “And Discord? Please, give my regards to Moth King Zimentoc next time you see him. I haven’t had the time to talk with him in ages!”
Despite himself, Discord found himself smiling, and even agreeing. “Of course! He’d be thrilled to hear anything from you. Poor fellow just hasn’t been as rowdy and bouncy as of late. It should put some spring back in his wings.”
His smile vanished when he noticed his sister looking at him, smiling warmly and nodding in approval. He quickly dropped the attitude, and resumed his sulk.
“Um… Is something wrong?” Amaryth asked worriedly. “I’ve never seen your brother like this when you take him through this side of the forest before. Yes, I’ve seen him stubborn and moody, but never like this!”
“It’s complicated, Connie sighed before whispering “He had a Chaos rush this morning. I’m trying to help him recover from it.”
“Oh dear,” Amaryth whispered back. “I hope he’s okay. Even everyone on this side adores your lovable goof of a brother.” Discord looked up when he heard what he’d been called, grinning like a certain cat and waving before resuming his sulk as if nothing happened. “I’ll keep quiet about this. I just hope everything turns out okay.”
Connie nodded, and after bidding farewell to the Butterfly Queen, they continued.
Some excited yips and barks were coming from up ahead, and as they followed the trail, four wooden dogs covered in cherry blossoms due to the season ran in front of the pair, the fourth almost tripping Discord.
“So sorry, Discord, sir!” the fourth one whined, her ears drooping, even her petals appearing to wilt, “Please don’t be mad at me!”
Discord actually had to chuckle. Though not the Ash Timberwolves from his side of the forest, the Cherry Timberwolves from his sister’s side were still quite playful, and it seemed like making them orderly as pups was impossible. A little touch of Chaos, like his sister claimed, every here and there to make sure it didn’t become stale. Just like how he had some semblance of Harmony on his side to keep it from turning from wonder to madness.
Instead of berating the pup, he picked her up and looked her right in the eyes. “I’m just upset that I didn’t trip,” he chuckled. “That would’ve been hilarious!”
“Y-you mean it?” the pup sniffled.
“Of course I do!” Discord chuckled again as the mother of the pups finally joined them in the path.
“Oh! The Twins!” She gasped, a paw to her mouth. Her body wasn’t as rigid as an Ash Timberwolf’s, nor was the grain of her body’s wood as coarse. The wood was springy with a fine grain, giving her a more elegant appearance. “Did the pups bother you? I’m sorry if they did, we just had a fifth last night, and trying to keep up with the older pups is hard while also carrying a newborn.”
“Oh, no! Not at all!” Concordia assured the Timberwolf. “In fact, I think they might’ve just done us both a favor.” She pointed to Discord, who was now happily playing with and entertaining the four pups, his laughter joining theirs as he pulled stunt after stunt to entertain and amaze them.
The mother nodded in understanding.
“So, Mrs. Cherryfang,” Concordia began, changing the subject. “You and your husband now have a fifth?”
“Oh yes!” Mrs. Cherryfang said proudly. “He just came into the world last night! My husband’s out getting food, so it’s up to me to get them all their exercise today, even if that means bringing a newborn with me.”
“Can I see him?” Concordia whispered.
“Yes, of course,” the mother said proudly, lifting a paw, using her nose to push a tiny pile of wood out from under her, then using her tail to move him towards Concordia.
Connie gently picked up the newborn. He was absolutely tiny, and not even his flowers had grown in yet. They were but stems starting to grow.
“Oh, he’s so precious!” Concordia cooed. “Hello, little one! Can you hear me? I’m Concordia! Your Mommy and Daddy protect you, but I protect them!”
The ears of the tiny pup perked up at the sound of her voice, but his eyes didn’t open.
“Right, too young to see yet,” Connie sighed, blushing in embarrassment and pawing the newborn back to his mother. “He’s so cute and adorable!” She gushed again. “New life is always a blessing from Mother.”
“Even you two are her blessing to us,” Mrs. Cherryfang said while nuzzling Concordia appreciatively. “To us, she is ‘the Allmother,’ but to you, she is simply ‘Mother’. It is something that many envy.”
“At least we knew Mother for a few short years,” Connie sighed sadly. “Father didn’t live through the day of our birth. Being what we are, we can remember him, and our purpose, but… I just wish I knew him personally, more.”
Reminding herself of how little she knew of her Father made Connie’s eyes burn with tears of grief. How she’d barely known him before he died right in front of her and her brother hurt so much. Everything that could have been, she wished dearly that she could have been raised by his loving hands, and all that pain forced its way to the surface as even more tears, like a burning pair of rivers flowing down her face.
The sight of her dear friend and caretaker in tears saddened Mrs. Cherryfang as well. Looking around, she tore a soft leaf off a plant with her teeth before pinching it with the “fingers” of her paw, and using it to help dry the poor girl’s tears. Being reminded of just how young and prone to the weaknesses of youth the caretakers were wasn’t a happy thought, but she did her best to help her friend. As she wiped the eyes of the poor, sobbing Draconequus girl, Mrs. Cherryfang took her in a soothing embrace, nuzzling her harder in an attempt to comfort her.
“It’s okay, child of the Guardian,” she said soothingly. “Though we knew of him and his deeds, none knew him himself besides the Allmother. For you to even have a fleeting few hours of memory of him is something none of us could ever dream of. To speak with him, to be spoken to by him, this is something none in remembered history has ever done except for the two of you.”
Concordia sniffled, then nodded with a smile. “You’re right, Mrs. Cherryfang,” she said, hugging her back, “thank you.”
Mrs. Cherryfang smiled and nodded before calling out, “Children? It’s time to go!”
Discord and the four pups all groaned in unison.
“But I didn’t get to show them me diving into a water glass!” Discord whined.
“Yeah, Mom! We wanna see!” a male pup begged.
“No,” she sighed with a shake of her head. “Your father should be home soon, and we don’t want to keep him waiting.”
“Okay…” the four groaned in unison before slowly walking to follow their mother, but stopping long enough to look back and wave, once again speaking in unison: “Later, Dissy!”
Discord smiled and waved back, suddenly finding two purple eyes with green dots for pupils filling his whole vision. Backing up, he found his sister smiling patiently. Not a smirk, not some smug grin of victory, but just one that told him she was proud of him.
“So, did you all have fun?” she asked with a level of excitement that Discord rarely saw in her. One that could rival some of his more excited moments. “Oh, pleeease say yes! So, did you? Huh? Huh?”
Caught completely off guard by the rare behavior, Discord entirely forgot about his intention to sulk the whole way through, and answered her truthfully.
“Yes, it was a lot of fun!” he admitted with a huge smile. “They weren’t scared of me bringing Chaos here, they were just as amazed by it as I am by how so much Harmony can be beautiful! Our Timberwolves may be different, but yours are as playful as mine!”
“Yes!” Concordia exclaimed with a fist pump. “I knew I was doing the right thing to help you! Now, don’t you feel better, dear brother?”
Now remembering his intention to sulk through the whole stroll, Discord stared at his sister in paralyzed bewilderment. He tried to think of a way to salvage it, but he realized, even though his sister wasn’t acting as if she’d won anything, he’d lost.
Sighing, he looked at her with a smile and admitted, “Yes, Connie, this did me a world of good. Thank you.”
“Aww, it was nothing, dear broth–” Connie found herself cut off by a very tight hug from her brother. She tried to pry him off, but he wouldn’t budge. So, she eventually gave in, sighed, shrugged, and returned the embrace just as tightly.