There you stood, in front of the cottage, staring at the family statue set beside the entrance. You were looking at the Discord statue with discontent. Fucking dickhead, sending back your sonar like that. “Asshole, thinking you’re always right. You’re lucky I don’t have a charge, or else I’d put a jacuzzi in the living room for Jimmy to use. How would you like that, huh?! Or even better, I could snuggle on Fluttershy right in front of you, and just act scared when you get close. Oh yeah, that’d get you good, wouldn’t it? Ugh, ergh, whatever. I have too much on my plate right now, I need some res-huh?” When you walked over to the door, it was cracked open, with the sounds and tweets of animals coming from inside. “That’s weird, she doesn’t usually leave the door open like this.” You peer your head inside and look around.
You could see Fluttershy, among many different animals, as she does her best to feed and nurture them as they all seemed to be making some sort of commotion. She then turned to many a bird, who seemed unhappy about something. “I really am so so sorry, if you just give me a little bit of time, I can make new nests for you to use, much better ones to keep your future babies nice and snug. Dear oh dear, what a mess. I really am sorry, I wish I was more prepared, I just didn’t think something like this would happen so suddenly… And then, erm, go away so suddenly. I hope the animals in the sanctuary are alright. I really should go, but I can’t leave you all here and… Oh, no no, Angel, it’s ok, I didn’t forget, I’m just a little busy.”
...Ah, dammit. Fluttershy seems to be having trouble. The sonar blast must have caused the animals to freak out. Good going, Anon, you didn’t mean to cause her a headache too. Seems it also destroyed a lot of nests. Luckily, somehow, it seems you didn’t end up destroying any eggs or killing any babies, that’s something at least. Well, this was your mess, so why not help out? At least with Fluttershy, she appreciates everything you do for her, even if it is admittingly not much. “Heya, Aunt Fluttershy, how are you? O-oh, is this a bad time?”
“Anon? O-oh, Anon! I-I’m sorry, things are such a mess right now and- Wait!” Fluttershy rushes over to you and gives you a hug as she sits down and cuddles you as tight as she can. “Are you alright?! You aren’t hurt, are you? There was a very scary wind that came and then came again! It scared everypony in town, not to mention scared all the animals in the forest. It even destroyed a few of their homes, the poor dears.” Fluttershy said as she looked into your eyes with her own tear filled ones. “You never left my mind, and I knew you’d be ok, but I was still so scared. But I knew, I just knew, that’d you come here if you were in trouble. And I was right! S-so, if you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask.”
Goddammit…
“Erm, actually Aunt Fluttershy. Um…” Fucking hell, fine. You’re on a truth streak so far, might as well end things off with a bang. Dammit, you wanted to hold off on this, but if she found out later after you just showed up, from someone else, then things could be bad. You sigh, back off, and look to Fluttershy with a somber expression. “It was me. I caused those winds.”
“W-what? Anon…” Fluttershy’s ears folded as she began to frown further, an air of disappointment around her. “Why would you do something like that?”
“Because, I just, I dunno, I overdid it? I, sorta have a lot more to the story, actually. But the wind thing, yeah, I-I was doing something important. I was trying to make sure a scary staff thing was out of Equestria, since it’s dangerous and all, and I ended up casting something that was a little too much.” You explain to her.
She looked at you silently, confused for a moment, until it suddenly hit her. “This has to do with the Storm King, doesn’t it? Anon…”
You let out a heavy sigh, that was fast. “Yeah. He got out, and… Look, Aunt Fluttershy, I already got spoken to by Twilight about this, she was already mad at me, and all this stuff, and we talked it out and everything, you can ask her yourself.”
“Anon, even then, didn’t I tell you to be careful? You could have been hurt, or somepony else could have. I-I thought this was all over…” Fluttershy said, as her disappointment began to mount.
“A-aunt Fluttershy, I can promise you, I messed up when it came to keeping him contained, but I did everything in my power to try to get him back. I thought he was gone forever, even Dad said he was gone. It just turned out he wasn’t.” You say, looking down in shame, knowing you did wrong.
But then something clicked in Fluttershy’s head, something about Discord. “Your father helped you? And he said he was gone when he really wasn’t?”
“Er, yeah, it turned out he really wasn’t trying to find the Storm King the best he could. It’s kinda why Twilight got involved. She found out after one of my classmates got foalnapped by him. I-I stopped him though, and I, er, imprisoned him in another dimension. I had to make up for my mistake, I did my best. I-I even went to see if my friends forgave me for letting it get so far. They did, but I dunno, I still feel really awful about it.” Dammit, now she was going to get pissed at you. That was the last thing you needed, for one of your only calming comforts to look down on you like this.
“I… Wait.” Suddenly, Fluttershy went wide eyed. “D-did you say foalnapped?! He foalnapped somepony too?!” It caught her off guard, and it made your heart sink, fearing of what she must be thinking at this very moment.
“Ngh…” Dammit. “Aunt Fluttershy, please. Don’t get mad at me. I really am sorry, I didn’t mean for it to go that far and-” But suddenly, she ends up hugging you close, tight, rubbing along your back to give you comfort. Wut?
“Shhhh, Anon, I-I’m not mad. I should have….” She hesitated for a moment. “I sho-should have known your father would have treated the situation very lightly. I told him things could end up getting really bad, but he ignored me. I believe you when you said you tried your best in containing him, I really do. Your father though, he had the power to make sure it didn’t go so far, and he didn’t do anything about it. If everycreature forgave you, and Twilight forgave you, then it is obvious to me you did nothing wrong at all, and I don't want to hear anymore of this 'blaming yourself' nonsense. I can feel it, you’re very very tense, Anon. Why don’t you go rest up in my room? I’ll bring you some hot cocoa to help you relax.”
Holy fuck, that was easy. Hell, you had to hide it, but you were grinning. Ooooh yes, all the blame goes to Discord, just as it should be. Bahahaha! Perfect! “A-are you s-sure? W-what about the birdies? I-I want to help.”
“Anon…” Fluttershy gave you a gentle nuzzle. “You should let me handle that. You should really rest up.”
“No, I c-can help! In fact.” You pull away for a moment, and look towards the birds perched around the room. “Listen up! I promise, tomorrow, that I will use my magic to make you all new homes! Better homes! That uses chaotic dimension shifting to make your future bird houses four times bigger on the inside, allowing easy food storage, and safety, and all that good stuff! They won’t even be affected by impact damage, it can’t even be felt as long as you’re inside, making sure your future babies are always secured, even if something happens! How does that sound?” And if the chirps were applause, you’d probably be deafened. Even the other animals seemed pleased by this. Though, Angel, he just crossed his little arms and rolled his eyes. You didn’t care if he saw through your façade, you were back on top again!
“Oh, Anon, are you really willing to do something like that?” Fluttershy asked, utterly amazed by your words.
“I managed to get three charges a day now, so it really doesn’t bother me to use
one if it will help those I hurt. Plus, I don’t want you to do any unnecessary work, Aunt Fluttershy.” You tell her with a wide grin, which prompted yet another hug.
“Oh, Anon, you really are the sweetest little gentlecolt in Equestria!” She cooed, nuzzling you.
Nehehehe, haha, BWHAHAHAHAHAHA! Yes, yes, affection, yessss. Sure, your Gary Stuness as a colt backfired with Neighsay, but it sure hit a bullseye with Fluttershy. With the animals placated, Fluttershy took you to her room. She explained to you that she still had some work to do, as she had to check on the sanctuary now. There was really nothing you could do about that, and given you were in the clear, it was all good at this point. Before she left however, she did make you that hot cacao, tucked you in, and gave you a kiss on the forehead before departing. It may have not been nightime yet, but you were fucking tired. And so, you went to sleep once more.
Hours passed
“...Something like the Storm King is too much for a colt, Discord. Even if Anon is very very amazing, ignoring how potentially dangerous he is for the sake of ‘training’ is not something you should be doing. He’s just a colt! He could have been hurt!” You hear, your right eye opening and looking around in the darkness of Fluttershy’s room, a light emanating from the living room being your only source of sight.
“But he wasn’t, and he did fine! The only real problem was involving Twilight the way he did! Fluttershy, nopony was going to get hurt, truly! Do I look like the kind of spirit to let anything go wrong?” There was silence. “Well, ok then, perhaps a little. When it comes to chaos, something always must go a little awry.” There was once again a silence. “Look, you’re right, I didn’t keep track of everything, and the little filly and hippogriff could have been hurt. But need I remind you that is more Anon’s influence than mine?”
“That’s not the point, Discord.” You climbed out of bed as you heard Fluttershy speak rather angrily. You went closer, slowly going down the stairs to get a better view of the argument. “The Storm King escaped, and instead of doing anything about it, you did nothing! Anon didn’t know what to do at the time, and asked you, his father, for help. Everything that happened afterwards is your fault! I can’t imagine how angry Twilight was when she found out. Anon seemed fine, but I know her, I feel like she may have said some really harsh things to him.”
“Now, see, we can both be proud of Anon on that one since, for you, he told the truth, and for me, he told her off. Can’t we just leave it at that?” Discord asked.
“No, you could have started a war, Discord! Anon could have gotten severely hurt! And if this staff was that much of a problem, it could have led to the destruction of Equestria! Don’t you understand? You need to be a father, take responsibility, and apologize to your son. He put on a brave face when he came to me earlier, Discord, but I could tell he was blaming himself for everything. That kind of guilt is very traumatizing for a colt, especially if he thinks he’s the only one who did something wrong. You need to talk to him, Discord, you need to let him know even you can make mistakes, and that he shouldn’t feel like he did everything wrong.”
“...Have you ever considered that perhaps Anon is a little more self aware than that? Perhaps, much more?” Discord asked nonchalantly.
“Discord, I am cancelling tea time tomorrow unless you talk to your son.” OOOOOHHHH, Fluttershy laying down the law.
“I-you, er, MMNNGH.” Discord stomped down onto the ground, frustrated. He stared at Fluttershy silently, who only stared right back. It made him finally back off, causing him to slump, sigh, and shrug. “Ugh, fine, fine, fine, fine, fine, fine, fine… Fine. I will speak to Anon, and let him know bla bla bla.”
“Not bla bla bla, Discord. Say it right, er, please?” Fluttershy asked.
“Ugh, I… I-er-I will tell him it was my fault, and that I should have taken things more seriously, and that I should have been a father and dealt with the issue when he asked for my help. Other things too, I guess? Look, I get it, I really do. But I’d like to handle this my own way, if you don’t mind.” Discord eyes, they suddenly shifted to your position, despite the fact you were keeping yourself mostly hidden. It almost made you yip as you could see them turn a demonic red. Oh… oh, no, oohhh no. He knows now, he knew you were enjoying it. Oh no…
“Well… Alright. I know you both interact with each other very differently than normal. Just remember, Discord, I expect you to handle this like a father should, ok?” Fluttershy was calming down, seeing, in her own eyes, that Discord was being mature about it.
He clearly wasn’t. “Oh, of course, of course. Now, it is getting rather late, my dear. I did make you this special tea, just for you, to help you after a stressful day. It will relax you near immediately upon swallowing, so please, drink it right before you go to sleep, alright?” He said, that gaze making you hurriedly go back into the room and duck under the covers. Ah shit, ah shit, ah shit!
“Thank you, Discord. I want you to know, I’m not mad at you, I just want you to do what’s right, ok? Please don’t think I hate you.” Fluttershy said to him in a softer tone.
“Oh, perish the thought. In fact, you are more than right, Fluttershy, and I only feel shame. I should cancel our meeting tomorrow anyway, on account of my recent behavior. I should cancel our time together for a whole year, actually. I truly have been an awful father.” Discord said, defeated.
“Oh no no no! Discord, please! Don’t do that, no, you-” But then, the sound of Fluttershy’s voice is cut off.
Why did it cut off?
You lift the blanket, feeling a deep heat around you, an eerie red glow coming from behind as steam blasted out of pipes and vents that suddenly made up the area around you. You looked back to see a frightening looking boiler, spewing flames, and hissing loudly.
Wait a second.
“L-Lunnnaaa? Is that you? Did I fall asleep? You there? Look, if this is a joke, I already get it and-” Suddenly, your fur starts to stand on end as you hear a little girl singing from somewhere.
“1,2, Discord is coming for you.”
Oh, that son of a bitch.
“3,4 there’s gonna be gore.”
Gore?! You begin to slowly back away from the boiler, trying to keep your eyes peeled.
“5,6-” And the voice suddenly began to become more demonic “Anon’s gonna get fixed.”
Fixed?! What kind of fixed?! Hit? Or… You look down between your legs, then ahead as you begin to turn white. He really wouldn’t, would he?
“7, 8, soon you’ll meet your fate.”
And that’s when you heard it, the sound of metal claws slowly clanging on the pipes, getting ever so closer to you, no matter where you went.
“Discord! I fucking swear! You heard Fluttershy, I know you did. You can’t fucking do this to me. Hell, what are you even doing?! I know this is a dream and-GUH!” Suddenly, you stop dead cold as you bump into something behind you.
Then you hear him whisper into your ear. “9, 10, get pecked by hens.”
Wut?
You turn around to see Discord, leaning against a pipe, dressed as Freddy Kruegger, down to having his talons fitted with the long claw glove.
“That’s the best you could come up with? You say all that freaky shit, set this whole thing up, and that's what you got? HA, even with all our time together, you are still only capable of TV-Y type shi-QAEGFSEDGFDFSDFSD” Suddenly, you were overwhelmed by hens coming from the open pipes as they began to assault you with endless pecks. “NO, STOP! GYAH! NO! I PEE FROM THERE! AGH! OH GOD! OH GOD! I THINK ONE FLEW INTO MY ASS! NO, AGH, STOP! ITS LIKE A THOUSAND PENS BEING JABBED AT ME AT ONCE! OOOOOOOHHHH NOOOO!”
Discord smirked as he admired his claws, only glancing at you every other moment. “I’ll admit this, it really was mostly my fault, Fluttershy was right about that. I may have been a rather big baby about things too, which I apologize for as well. I really do, I was being a big jerk. You were right, Anon, and because of my own actions, things did not line up in my favor. I’d like things to go back to how they were between us, for all of our sake. I’d rather be your pal than a pesky nuisance, even if I do enjoy that sort of thing.”
“ADFHSFHDFHDOFSDFIHSDOFLDHJOE” You screamed.
“Ah, yes, about this… This, er, this whole nightmare scenario. You can’t tell me you didn’t deserve it. You should have realized I was still watching you after I sent your little radar wave back at you. That little smirk told me all I needed to know. I applaud you, really, I liked it.” Discord said as he clapped his gloved claws and paw together. “...But emotionally manipulating Fluttershy like that? Oh, you should have known this was coming.” He said in a dark tone before he suddenly became his jovial self again. “But yes, let us just get back to the status quo of our little friendship, alright? That alright with you, my son?”
“SDGERGERGHTHGFDGFGDFG” Oh god, they were pecking your nose too! Right in the nostrils!
“Sounds like a yes to me! I could leave you like this until you wake up. But, well, I am a father, I need to know there is a difference between punishment and torture. Soooooo…” And with a snap, everything disappeared as you fell into the darkness of dreams, screaming for dear life as you swirled into the whirlpool of darkness.
Until finally…
You woke up.