//------------------------------// // Gone Batty // Story: Domestic Drabbles of Discord's Dimension // by GeekCat //------------------------------// Discord watched as Fluttershy munched on her third apple of the morning. For the last few days, she had eaten...a great deal of apples. More than she normally would, even ignoring other fruits and vegetables in favor of them. It was odd, and the more he thought about it, the more it...bothered him. "Flutters," he said, nibbling on a chocolate-covered pickle. "You've been eating...a lot of apples lately. Is something up?" She paused as she was reaching for yet another apple. "I'm...not sure," she said, lowering her hoof. "I just...really want to eat apples." She eyed the fruit basket between them, her eyes gleaming. He swore that she was drooling just the slightest bit. He teleported to her side of the table, making her jump a little in surprise. "Hmm," he said, lifting an apple and inspecting it. "Perhaps there's something up with the apple crop this year?" He sniffed it, and prepared to take a small bite. "My apple!" Fluttershy suddenly hissed at him. For a split second, her eyes looked redder than normal, her teeth just a little sharper. She flew up and snatched the apple out of his hands, quickly taking a bite and making a slurping sound. "...I don't think it's the apples that are the...oddity," he said slowly as she alternated between biting the apple and slurping at its juice. Slowly, her eyes widened and her ears flattened, and she dropped the apple. "Oh my...Discord, I'm so sorry!" she said, looking and sounding close to tears. "I...I don't know what's happening to me. But I...I need apples!" "It's okay, it's okay," he assured her, wrapping his arms around her and rubbing circles on her back. "We can figure this out. This is an oddity, and I know oddities." He pressed the palm of his paw against her chest and closed his eyes, letting his magic slowly flow through her body. She shivered a little, but didn't protest. "Hmm," he said as he processed what his magic was telling him. "There's nothing physically happening to you...the cause might be magical in nature." He frowned. "Whatever it is, I think all those apples made it recede for now...I'll look a little later." "Why would something magical be happening to me?" she asked, sounding worried. "Oh, there's plenty of reasons!" Discord said. A blackboard appeared in front of them, covered in complex chalk drawings. "The time of the year, overflow from a careless caster, eating something odd...there's plenty of magical things that can happen to ponies by chance in Equestria." Her eyes slowly widened as she tried to absorb what he was saying along with what was written on the board. "But!" he said. "We can narrow it down a lot. The only careless caster around here is me, and if you had chaos magic in you...well, we'd both know. It'd be much more...obvious." He paused, then shook it off. "And the only odd food is stuff I make, none of which is directly magical." "Sooo..." he said, holding up a calendar. "The main culprit is probably the time of the year. I'll look for anything odd going on in the next few days." He opened the calendar. "The time you spend in Equestria would expose you to anything celestial, planetary, lunar..." He showed the calendar to her, pointing at a square just a few days away. On it, there was a picture of the yellow full moon with an 'H' written in it, and it was decorated with red and orange leaves. "Hmm...the autumnal equinox coinciding with a harvest moon could be doing it," he said. "Though I don't know why that would affect you...that should only have effects on magic and spells. Not directly on ponies." "...what kinds of magic?" she asked. "Unicorn, kirin, changeling, yadda yadda," he said. "Magic of creatures who use horns to channel it. Most of them won't notice...but if anyone casts a big spell, they're going to find that it's much easier to do in a few days." He leaned in to whisper, "That's why so many rituals 'have' to be cast then...to get that extra boost in power." He pulled back and huffed, stroking his beard. "But...it shouldn't affect pegasi at all. Even if it did, I don't see why your temper would be influenced, or why you would crave things." She frowned. "If...someone had traces of an alicorn spell in them, even if they weren't a unicorn or alicorn...would the equinox affect them?" "Possibly," he said, clicking his tongue. "Depends on what kind of spell it is..." His eyes widened, and his ears flicked up. "Do you...think it's related to the Apple Orchard Bat Incident?" "It could be," she said. "But...I haven't become Flutterbat in years. Is it still possible for the magic to still...?" "Be there? Absolutely," he said. "Whether it's affected by the equinox, though...that's a good question." He snapped his fingers, and several green lights scanned her body. She inhaled deeply and stood very still as they passed over her. As the lights scanned, a rectangular machine covered in blinking lights appeared and began printing off a long roll of paper...marked with binary instead of with words. Discord grabbed it and began to read. "Hmm," he said. "There's definitely some alicorn magic here...Twilight's. Transformation magic with a bit of desire magic thrown in for flavor." "Flutterbat?" she asked, sounding a bit worried. "Yep," he said. "And it's flaring up a bit...I'd say there's a good chance the equinox is affecting it." He frowned in thought. "It might actually come out completely once the day arrives..." "...can we remove it?" she asked. "I know Twilight tried to, but..." "She did a rush job," he said. "It was late, she was tired, it was a new spell to her. She removed most of the magic, and decreased the triggers...probably increased your lucidity if you ever relapsed." "I...did manage to keep control once," she said. "During the night of living apples..." He stared at her blankly, and she glanced away. "It was...a strange adventure. Though not memorable." "How many adventures have you been on at this point?" he asked. "And I can't believe you didn't tell me more about living apples! For shame." He shook his head. "Anyway! At this point, removing the magic is probably a bad idea. Your body has acclimated to it, and I don't want to hurt you by pulling it out." He poked her chest. "It's probably safe in there...especially since it's taking a pretty big magical phenomenon to draw it out again." "So...what should I do?" she asked. "If it's coming out..." He frowned in thought and stroked his beard. "So...two options," he said a few moments later. "The first: I could alter the time and space of Chaosville to cancel out any effects the equinox is causing you. You might feel uncomfortable for the day, and you'll probably crave apples for the next few..." He messed with an abacus. "Months...but you'll be in total control of yourself for the day." "And...the other option?" she asked. "We do nothing, and let the equinox bring out the desire magic-fueled transformation," he said. "A warning, though: if it's been a while since you've last used it, it'll likely induce a full transformation. And it's...highly unlikely you'll be able to keep control of it." "...I need to think about this," she said after a few seconds. "How many days do I have to decide?" "The equinox isn't for three more days," he said. "But...the sooner we start option one, the less uncomfortable it will be for you." She nodded in understanding. Her wings twitched a little. "...do we have any apple cider? Or juice?" she asks, licking her lips. He snapped his fingers and created a large wooden mug, filled to the brim with cider. Before he could hand it to her, she snatched it away and chugged the entire contents. "Whatever you choose, I'll give you plenty of apples and apple juice," he said, drawing a gold 'X' over his heart. "Thank you..." she said, sounding a little embarrassed. "Could I...have some more?" He smiled and snapped his fingers, refilling the mug and creating a plate of warm apple pie in front of her place at the table. She eagerly ate and drank the apple creations. "Discord," she said the next day, nibbling on dried apple slices to fend off her cravings. Based on how many she was eating, it didn't seem to be working the greatest. "I think that...I want to go with the second option." "Hmm?" he said, looking up from the durian he had been staring at. "You mean...letting yourself turn into a batpony for the day?" She slowly nodded. "Will you...keep me from causing trouble as Flutterbat?" she asked. "If I transform and then stay in Chaosville, then...no creature will get hurt or scared by me." "Of course," he said. "I'll let you take out an apple tree or two, then bring you back home!" "No," she said sternly. "I don't want to take out any apple trees!" She shifted, licking her lips. "...okay, maybe I do. But I don't!" He patted her head. "I understand," he said. "I was just teasing...mostly. I won't actually wait for you to take out anyone's crops. Staying in Chaosville through the whole transformation it is!" She smiled, visibly relaxing. She reached for another dried apple slice, frowning as she nibbled on it. He snapped his fingers and made a real, juicy apple next to her, which she eagerly began devouring. He smiled. Even without causing some damage for some farmers...this will still be fun and chaotic. Discord and Fluttershy both woke up on the day of the equinox with trepidation. During breakfast, she didn't even have to ask before he made several all-apple dishes, with a glass of apple cider on the side. She thanked him before quickly tucking in. She seemed hungry than usual, and her mane looked ruffled, like she hadn't slept well. When breakfast was done, Discord stood up and tore a portal to Equestria in front of him. "The...transformation will happen faster if we go here," he said, gesturing forward. "The sooner we start this, the...more comfortable you'll be, I think." She nodded, already stepping towards the portal as though drawn forward by something. "...we'll come right back?" "I promise." With that, she took a deep breath and stepped through the portal. He followed right behind her, glancing up at the sky. The only difference from a normal fall day was the faint outline of a yellow moon in the sky...though Fluttershy was quite fixated on it. She sat down, still staring at the moon. He sat in a beanbag chair next to her, tangling his fingers in her mane. She sighed and leaned into his touch. After a few minutes of waiting, during which Fluttershy kept shifting uncomfortably, she said, "I...I think it's starting..." As she said this, he noticed the gleam of her teeth, sharper and shinier than usual. "Time to go," he said in a hushed yet calm voice. He scooped her into his arms, and with a swish of his tail, they teleported back into their living room. "C-cordy," she said, her entire body shaking. Her eyes were closed tightly. "It's okay," he said, stroking her mane. "I'm here. I'm here." She pressed herself against him, and her shaking subsided a little...though the expression on her face said that this clearly wasn't pleasant. He watched carefully as her body slowly began to change. Her feathers receded, leaving behind leathery wings. Her ears twitched rapidly, shifting until they were longer and furrier. Even her cutie mark changed into bats as white fangs poked out from behind her lips. Finally, her eyes snapped open. She glared at him with bright red, animalistic eyes, and loudly hissed at him, showing off her impressive fangs. "Oh, you are just wonderfully chaotic!" Discord said cheerfully, cradling the batpony close to him and stroking her cheek. She hissed and struggled, biting his paw. He winced and laughed. "Ow...your teeth are certainly sharp now!" he said cheerfully as she tried sinking her teeth in a few more times. Each time, he winced, but kept up his grin and held her close to him. Eventually, she gave up biting him, an expression of plain confusion on her face. "Aww, is somebat not used to creatures not being scared of her?" he cooed, lightly pinching her cheek. She hissed at him and tried to bite again. This time, he managed to pull away in time. "I love you, darling, but I'd rather not lose a finger. Ha ha!" He teased her for a few more minutes, as she struggled and tried to bite him (succeeding quite a few times). He kept up his laughing and teasing, only stopping long enough to lean against a wall to catch his breath, still chuckling. He smiled and looked down at the batpony in his arms. Her ears were drooping, and she was still squirming. His heart panged a bit. Even if she had changed, this was still his Fluttershy, and he was plainly making her uncomfortable. So with a sigh, he snapped his fingers to lock all of the doors and windows...and let go of his hold on her. As soon as he had done so, she hissed and flew into a dark corner. She hung upside-down from a shelf and wrapped her wings around herself, glaring at him. "I know, I know," he said, wrapping a bit of gauze around his hand. "I should have respected that you were unhappy and let you go in the first place. But these bites," he waved his wrapped paw at her, "are a pretty good punishment for that, don't you think?" She hissed, and he couldn't tell whether she was agreeing or disagreeing with him. He sighed and sat on the couch, far away from her. "So...you were made when Twilight accidentally allowed some magic to spill over," he said conversationally. "That Stare of yours is quite unique...enough that I suppose even the magicallest pretty pony princess forgets to account for it." Flutterbat just kept glaring at him. He sighed and flopped back on the couch. "Ugh, I thought watching over your wild side would be interesting," he said. "But you're just going to glare at me the whole time?" She hissed lightly. "And hiss, how could I forget?" She kept glaring at him. He stared back. After a few minutes of this staredown, he felt quite bored. He grinned a bit to himself, knowing exactly how to spice things up a little. He snapped his fingers and created an apple in his hand. Immediately, Flutterbat hissed and dropped from the shelf, darting towards him. He lobbed the fruit high into the air, and she flew up in an arc to catch it in her mouth. She quickly sucked it dry and spat the dried husk at him. It bounced off of his forehead, and he grinned. "This should be fun," he said, making another apple, this time a pink one. She eyed it and him warily. As soon as it was tossed into the air, she dove for it and drank it dry, as well. He grinned and continued lobbing apples of different types and colors into the air, along with a few other types of fruit. A few times, she grabbed one of the oranges or grapefruits instead of an apple. Each time, she spat it out with disgust with a loud hiss, sometimes tossing them at his face. He didn't mind as he was pelted with fruits—it didn't bother him, and it seemed to satisfy her. But the more apples he tossed up for her, the less she flung things at him (except for the non-apples he tossed up to mess with her). After a while, his arms were getting a bit tired from throwing and his fingers from snapping, so he stopped with a sigh and laid down on the couch, snuggling into a decorative pillow Fluttershy had made. He heard her land on the ground. He didn't think much of it until he heard her hoofsteps approaching. He turned around, and she jumped back a foot or so, her wings flaring out. They stared at each other for a few seconds. Slowly, she lowered her wings and cautiously approaching, eyeing him curiously. She stopped in front of the couch, and he watched her with an eyebrow raised. She leaned close, her nose twitching as she sniffed at him. "I don't have any more apples on me," he said, sitting up a little. As soon as he spoke up, she hissed at him again and flew away, disappearing into the shadows of the hallway. He sighed and rolled his eyes, laying back down on the couch. Hmm. How does she manage to bond with skittish critters? he thought. Give them space until they approach...I did that. Don't spook them off...I did do that on accident. He stroked his beard for awhile. Then, his eyes lit up, and a lava lamp appeared above his head. "That's it!" he said. He snapped his fingers several times, creating multiple apples. He rolled them down the hallways and into the dark corners of the house like bowling balls, placing one apple just a few feet away from the couch he was lying on. With that done, he leaned back, summoning a book from the library to keep himself entertained while he waited. A few hours and two books later, his patience was rewarded. He heard the soft flapping of bat wings as Flutterbat entered the room, gliding over towards the apple he left out. Slowly, he closed his book and laid down, watching her out of the corner of his eye. She sniffed the apple, and then her long tongue whipped out and snapped it up. Just a few seconds later, she spat out the dried husk of the apple...and her head turned to him. He did his best to stay absolutely still. Slowly, she landed on the ground and approached him, her nose twitching. He stayed as still as a statue (as uncomfortable as the analogy made him), even as she stood just inches away, still sniffing at him. "Rrr," she said as she sniffed his neck. "Rrr?" "Rrr," he growled back. She flinched a little, her wings flaring up a bit. He clamped his mouth shut, but she hadn't run away yet. After a few moments of hesitation, she continued her inspection of him, lightly growling all the while. She seemed satisfied with whatever she noticed, as she lightly pressed her nose against his cheek. "Mmm...my." His ears twitched. "What?" he asked quietly. "My...mine," she said in a growling voice. "Mine." She pressed her nose more firmly against his cheek. His cheeks flushed, and he couldn't stop his ears from wriggling and his tail from wagging. Fluttershy calling him hers—her husband, her draconequus, her Discord—it was one of the things that still always got to him. With her thinking of him as hers, even in her animalistic state... "Yours," he said, leaning slightly to press into her touch. He could feel the hint of a fanged smile on her muzzle. With a light growl, she laid next to him, tucking her legs underneath her. She leaned against him, closing her eyes. "Aww, is somebat tired?" he cooed, brushing her mane. Even as messy as it looked, it was still just as soft. "Sss," she hissed. She didn't even bother opening her eyes, and only showed a little of her fangs. She snuggled into his chest, her breathing slowly becoming even. He smiled softly, rubbing the top of her head. She hissed slightly, giving the tiniest of snores. He chuckled a little bit. Even with desire magic filling her mind, she was still his precious Fluttershy. He shifted so he was lying on his side, and draped an arm over her. She growled a little, but not in a warning manner. She even snuggled a little closer to him as he tucked his snout into her mane. "Sweet dreams, my batty little pony," he murmured, lightly kissing her forehead. She mumbled sleepily, almost sounding like her usual self. He smiled and closed his eyes. Though things hadn't been as wild and chaotic as he had imagined, this was still a wonderful result in his eyes.